2. Don Vittorio

“Young lady, please follow me.” An auctioneer said to Natalie after the whole auction was over. She gritted her teeth and then wordlessly walked after him.

 

The man escorted Natalie out of the auction house. A black SUV was waiting for her outside the exit. “Miss Smith, please.”

 

Natalie tried to look calm. She opened the car door. The man in the hat, who had bought her for an outrageous price, sat in the passenger seat. He stared straight ahead.

 

“Get in!” he ordered without turning around.

 

The passenger seats were not separated, so Natalie sat right next to the man. She closed the door, and the car drove off. Not a word was said between them, and the longer it went on, the more uneasy Natalie felt.

 

Questions raged in her head. She silently glanced at the man next to her. Her action was somehow immediately noticed by the man. She immediately turned her face out the window.

 

Dante raised the corners of his lips. “If you want to know something, why don’t you ask, Ms. Smith?” His voice sounded deep and sexy, full of allure and a hidden sense of danger.

 

Natalie feigned a smile and turned to the man. Unfortunately, the lighting was very poor, and she couldn’t see his face clearly. Moreover, he was still wearing a hat.

 

“Who are you?” The question just slipped out of her mouth. She kept her demeanor calm so the man wouldn’t think she felt threatened or afraid.

 

“I am your master,” the man replied.

 

“Your name. Your dentity.”

 

“You are not yet worthy enough to know it.”

 

Natalie frowned. The man thought of himself as a master and probably thought of her as a slave. She was getting worried about her safety.

 

“Do you know who I am?” she asked cautiously.

 

“Aren’t you Cavendish Smith?” The man smirked. “Or do you have another identity?”

 

Natalie immediately shut up. She saw the man pronounce her real name beforehand. Did she see wrong, and it was just an illusion amid her fear? She was worried that he was pretending not to know and wanted to trap her into confessing her true identity.

 

‘I have to be careful,’ Natalie thought. She didn’t know what kind of man he was. His demeanor seemed better than Lucas’s, but he exuded an inexplicably dangerous aura.

 

“You’re right. I’m Cavendish Smith,” she said, staring straight ahead.

 

The car sped through the streets of Manhattan towards Bronxville. Slowly, the hustle and bustle disappeared into the quietness of the night. The tall buildings gave way to the sight of large houses that were far apart from each other.

 

The streets are narrower. The air was colder. And Natalie’s feelings became more restless. Ever since her ex had imprisoned her, she had decided not to get involved with a man. No matter who it was. Because a man could get her into a lot of trouble, but instead, she got involved with Lucas. And now with this mysterious man!

 

“Why did you buy me?”

 

The man suddenly touched the back of her hand. His fingertips trailed down her hand to her arm and then to her neck. “Didn’t you want to come to me?”

 

Natalie’s body shuddered slightly when the man’s hand touched and caressed her nape. She dodged to the side. “I don’t understand what you mean.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Can you let me go?” asked Natalie earnestly. “I’ll pay your money back. It’s not a hard amount for me.”

 

Yes. Because she wasn’t poor.

 

The man chuckled. “Aren’t you in too much of a hurry?”

 

“No.”

 

“I haven’t even tasted your flavor yet.” Dante suddenly pulled Natalie close. His left hand grazed her smooth, bare back.

 

Natalie’s body stiffened. She resisted his hand, preventing him from touching her more. Then he suddenly gripped her chin with his right hand. In the dark car and such proximity, she could vaguely see his glowing gaze full of menace.

 

“Don’t refuse me, Cavendish. Every inch of your body is mine.”

 

Natalie trembled with anger. “Asshole,” she hissed.

 

“Say it one more time.”

 

“Ass—ahh...!” She winced as he gripped her jaw firmly, as if to crush her. However, it was only momentarily, as he immediately let go.

 

“Ah, sorry, I didn’t mean to.” Dante stroked her jaw. “That’s not how you call me, darling,” he whispered. “Call me Master. Do you understand?”

 

Natalie didn’t answer. Her face was slightly pale. Goosebumps were on her skin. It turned out that the man was no better than Lucas. He was even more terrifying!

 

Dante smirked, sensing Natalie’s fear. His hands probed her body again, and he found no weapons. The woman was clean. Finally, he pulled away from her. Just then, the car they were traveling in arrived at their destination.

 

“Boss, what about the plan to go to Las Vegas?” asked Alex, who was in the front seat.

 

“Talk about that later. I need to talk to Tomas. That idiot!” Dante snorted coldly and then gave Natalie a quick glance. “Take her and arrange all the arrangements!” he ordered, opening the car door. He drove into the mansion and left them there.

 

Alex quickly got out of the front seat and opened the door for Natalie. “Miss Smith, please.”

 

Natalie got out of the car. She could see a huge, classic pre-war mansion. The walls were all dark. The place might be antique and stunning, but it didn’t look pleasant at all.

 

She walked after Alex while hugging her arm. It was almost midnight, and she only wore a very short sheer bodycon dress. The night breeze touched her bare skin, making her cold.

 

They passed through the entrance, which two tall and large muscular men heavily guarded. They wore black clothes and had fierce faces. Natalie became increasingly wary of the identity of the man who bought her. Who could he be?

 

The mansion was spacious and quiet. The interior was as classic as the exterior. The floor was black marble. The walls were painted ivory. There was a fireplace and a classic wooden mini bar. The layout looked confusing for a newcomer.

 

Alex escorted Natalie to the bedroom on the second floor. The room was large, but very empty. There was only a bed and an empty dressing table. It looked like an unoccupied room.

 

“Miss Smith, this will be your room. If he’s happy, you’ll get other, more complete facilities.”

 

Natalie didn’t care about the room’s facilities. She only cared about her fate. “May I know who he is?” she asked.

 

“You’ll find out in time. But ....” Alex gave Natalie a deep look. “Don’t play games with him. Don’t make mistakes that make him feel unhappy. His temper is a bit bad.”

 

“A bit bad?”

 

The handsome, curly-haired man smiled. “Good night then.” He immediately closed the door and left her alone.

 

“What should I do now?”

 

Natalie frowned. Running away might be a solution for her. However, she couldn’t do it now. Why? Because the mysterious man would demand his $50 million back from the auction house, and Lucas wouldn’t stand for it.

 

Finally, Natalie just sat on the edge of the bed, feeling uneasy. She couldn’t sleep. Instead, she was on high alert for fear that the man would come.

 

An hour passed. The sound of a car suddenly came from the mansion’s courtyard. Natalie frowned. She hurried over to the wood-framed window. The blinds were slightly open—a good place to peek.

 

A car stopped on the mansion’s lawn. Two men dressed in black came out of the front door. They opened the back door and dragged a middle-aged man out roughly.

 

Natalie’s eyes widened at the sight of the middle-aged man. “Isn’t he the owner of the auction house?”

 

Lucas had previously taken her to meet the owner of the auction house. Natalie didn’t know exactly what they were talking about. But she naturally recognized him.

 

Then, the men in black pushed the auction house owner into the mansion. Curiosity arose in Natalie’s heart. What was going on?

 

She hurried to the bedroom door and tried to open it. It was unlocked! She carefully peeked out. The atmosphere on the second floor was quiet, but there was a commotion downstairs. That made her even more curious.

 

Natalie walked silently towards the stairs. As she got closer, she could finally hear more clearly what the conversation was like downstairs.

 

“Sir, please don’t get angry! I really didn’t find anything strange during the auction!” shouted Tomas, the owner. He sounded panicked.

 

“You know this gun can put a hole in your head if you lie?”

 

Natalie’s heart skipped a beat after hearing the threat from the house owner’s mouth. Did the mysterious man dare to kill someone here?

 

“Sir, I’m really not lying!” Tomas shouted in fear.

 

“Then what about the woman I bought?”

 

Natalie became wary. Her hand unconsciously gripped the stair railing firmly.

 

Tomas didn’t answer the question right away. That made Dante angry. He kicked his leg so hard that the middle-aged man fell to his knees.

 

“Mercy, boss!” he shouted through the pain.

 

“Don’t you have a mouth?!” Dante’s voice boomed throughout the room.

 

“That... that’s a guy named Lucas Alexander! He sold it, but I don’t know him!” Tomas shouted. “Is there something wrong? Please don’t punish me!”

 

“Fool! Absolutely useless!” Dante growled. “Alex, investigate Lucas Alexander! And Tomas, don’t expect to go free. Any of my sloppy subordinates won’t be able to escape punishment!”

 

After that, the sounds of blows and cries of pain rang out all the way upstairs. Natalie had goosebumps. Why was he so rude and cruel?

 

Natalie also didn’t understand why he was being so careful, while she herself didn’t have any purpose there. It was purely an auction. Did he think she wanted him to buy her?

 

‘Ridiculous,’ she mocked. She was about to step back, but suddenly Tomas’ voice rang out again.

 

“Mercy, please!”

 

“Please, forgive me, Don Vittorio!”

 

Don!

 

Natalie’s eyes widened. Her face turned pale. How did she fall into the hands of a mafia lord?

Her feet unconsciously stepped backwards. At that moment, someone suddenly tapped her on the shoulder from behind. "Who are you?"