03

I heard David fall to the ground as I opened the door. Marco and Benito, my second cousins, got in, and we drove away, leaving David to find his own way home.

I rubbed my chin and looked out the window. Clearly, Mancini had let his daughter run wild. She probably slept with a handful of men. Did I care? While we kept most of our traditions in Siderno, the old way of insisting on a bride's virginity was fading. The ritual of bloody sheets was practically archaic these days.

My marriage, twenty years ago, followed all the traditions, the things that were supposed to bring good luck to a couple. However, my bride died after only five years of marriage, leaving a son behind. There was no good luck.

I hadn't loved Lucia. We were both young, and the marriage was arranged as an alliance. I thought she understood her role as my wife, tolerating my long absences and the mistress I kept in the city. After all, such things were common in our world. Giulio was born after our first year of marriage, and I always thought we would have many more sons and daughters. How foolish I was. What naivety to think that the violence of my world wouldn't extend to my family.

"Do you think Giulio will like her?" Marcos asked. "He wasn't happy that you were coming here to choose his bride."

"Giulio will marry whoever I tell him to," I replied.

To be honest, I had no idea about Giulio's taste in women. Even at eighteen, my son was reserved, a trait he had learned from me. But who wouldn't like Francesca Mancini?

And that didn't matter. The marriage would forge a strong bond between our families, as well as settle a debt.

Marco looked at me through the rearview mirror. "Should we head back to the hotel?"

"For a moment. But she'll run, so we need to be ready." Mancini had given his daughters a lot of independence, clearly, with no discipline or consequences. The way Francesca had spoken to her father and me indicated that she didn't know her place. I almost envied my son for his task of educating her.

I liked women with spirit. They were much more fun to fuck, and having a strong woman bending to my will always made my dick hard.

Benito turned around. "Do you think she'll run?"

A smile tugged at my lips. "Oh, you can bet on it. But we'll be waiting. Tell the pilot we're leaving today."

**

FRANCESCA

Later that day, I tossed my makeup bag into a larger bag. I couldn't bring much when I was running away, but I took my favorite things, like the earrings Mom left me. And, of course, my passport and money.

"This is a bad idea," my sister Emma said. "How are you going to survive?"

"Never mind that, how is she going to escape Dad and the guards?" Gia flipped the page of her magazine, hardly paying attention. "You'll never make it to the street, Frankie."

"Yes, I will."

Two years ago, I discovered that the security cameras didn't cover a small part of the stone wall surrounding our house, so I put footholds in the stone, allowing me to come and go as I dared. It was how I escaped to lose my virginity with David last November.

However, my sisters didn't know about this escape route. It was too dangerous for anyone but me.

Gia made a scoffing noise as if she didn't believe me.

"Dad will be totally pissed when you get caught," Emma added.

I sat on the bed beside them. "I hate leaving you two, but I have to do this. I can't marry a stranger and become a mafia wife, stuck at home with a bunch of kids while my husband fucks a mistress on the side."

"The Ravazzanis are very rich," Gia said. "I Googled them. They live in a castle, Frankie. I don't know what you're complaining about."

God, Gia was so spoiled. She had no idea how bad it could be for mafia wives. "Mom gave up her modeling career for Dad, and she always regretted it. You don't remember her as well as I do, but I can't give up the chance for a normal life."

"I understand," Emma said, always the sensible twin. "And I don't think you should agree. The man who came here, your father? They call him il Diavolo."

The devil.

I could well believe it. No one rose to the top of the Calabrian mafia without being ruthless and terrifying.

Emma touched my hand. "I have a thousand dollars saved in my room. Do you want it?"

I felt like crying. Again. I threw my arms around her. "I can't accept your money, Emma. You might need it someday. But it's very kind of you to offer."

I had five thousand dollars and a few gold coins in my bag. It wouldn't last long, but it would hopefully be enough to disappear. I hoped.

Then I hugged Gia, who hugged me almost reluctantly. "I'll see you again in an hour or so when Dad's men drag you back inside," she said.

"Give me a hug."

That made Gia's arms tighten slightly. "Good luck, Frankie."

"I love you both. Use these next two years to find a way out. He won't marry you before you turn eighteen."

"They can," Emma said. "Gabriella Pizzuto's father arranged her marriage when she was only thirteen."

Brutal. I stood up and grabbed my bag. "Both of you can come with me, you know."

Gia frowned. "That would only make it easier for us to be caught. Besides, they won't hurt us in retaliation."

I hoped that was true. Women and children should be off-limits in any mafia conflict, but I'd never forgive myself if one of my sisters got hurt because of me. "Convince Dad to honor his promise to let each of you go to college."

I looked at my phone on the dresser. Leaving it behind felt very strange, but it would be too easy to track me if I kept it. I needed to leave it behind, as I always did when I ran away.

After opening the window, I took the rope I kept under the bed, attached it to the bedpost, and unraveled it over the windowsill. I threw my backpack to the ground and descended into the backyard.

My sisters watched me descend safely before pulling the rope back up. I blew them a kiss and ran toward the trees. Dad had no idea that David existed, so I would start there tonight. In the morning, I would come up with a plan. Maybe I'd go to Vancouver. Or Colorado. Somewhere I could hike and ski.

First, I had to escape the property. Then I needed to stay hidden, change my name, and never contact my sisters. I couldn't allow Dad to find me, not until the threat had passed.

I had to leave all of this behind and become my own person. Find happiness for myself, as my mother had encouraged me. Never settle, Francesca. Be your own woman.

She had spoken those words when I was young, and I hadn't understood them at the time. But I understood now, and I would follow her advice.

I followed the worn path to the wall and into the trees, where the cameras couldn't see. I tossed my backpack over the wall first, then used the footholds to climb. At the top, I threw my legs over and held on with both hands so I could drop the rest of the way.

Except fingers wrapped around my legs, startling me. They wouldn't let go. I kicked hard. But it didn't help. The hands just tightened. "Stop it! Let me go."

"No chance, Francesca."

No, no, no. This couldn't be happening. How had Ravazzani found me here?