Chapter 7

Chapter 7

I do not push him.

I press my palm flat against his chest and hold it there until he feels the pressure.

"Not like this," I say.

Luca's fingers stay at my throat. "Explain."

"You want to find out which version of me is real. Fine. But you don't get to decide how it happens." My voice shakes at the edges, but the words come out. "You said fear makes people honest. Then you shouldn't be surprised when I'm honest about this. I won't be tested like a lock you're trying to pick."

The system screams across my vision.

[Host is refusing the mission.]

[Punishment imminent.]

[Warning: Retreat will cost points.]

The ache in my spine spikes. I breathe through it and keep my eyes on his.

Luca does not move for a long moment. Then his hand drops from my neck. Not because I pushed it away. Because he chose to.

That bothers me more than if he had held on.

"You are telling me no," he says. He says it slowly, like the word is in a language he has never needed to learn.

"I'm telling you not yet."

The pain hits. It is not a sting this time. It is a bright line down my back that makes my vision go white at the edges. I grip his shirt with one hand to stay upright and hate myself for it.

Luca catches me by the elbow.

"Elena."

"I'm fine."

"Stop saying that." His voice is flat, but his grip is careful in a way it was not a minute ago. "You went pale. What is that?"

I almost tell him. The words are right there. A system. A second life. A bullet. If I say them, he will either call me insane or believe me, and I do not know which is worse.

[Host's pain level critical. Suggestion: Offer a compromise.]

A compromise. The system has opinions now.

I look at the man who watched me die and make a decision that feels like walking onto ice.

"Sit down," I say. "Stay on the bed. Talk to me. Ask me anything you want, and I'll answer one question honestly. Just one. In exchange, you give me the night without touching me."

His eyebrow rises. "You are negotiating with me."

"Yes."

"On your wedding night."

"You've made it clear it's a contract." I lift my chin. "So let's treat it like one."

Something moves across his face. Surprise, I think. It is gone before I can name it. Then, to my shock, he sits. Not close. On the far end of the mattress, one arm resting on his knee, like a man waiting for a business meeting to begin.

[Reward issued: 600 points.]

[Pain suppressed.]

[Condition met: Target engagement through dialogue.]

The ache fades like someone has turned a tap off. I let out a breath I did not know I was holding.

"One question," Luca says. "Make it count."

I watch him. He is waiting with that stillness that always made me feel like prey. But I have the advantage now. I know how this man thinks. I know what he will say before he says it.

"Ask," I tell him.

He studies me for a long time.

"Who are you working for?"

I almost laugh. Of course. In his world, a wife who changes overnight is a spy.

"No one," I say. "That's the honest answer. I'm not working for your enemies, your rivals, or the Moretti family. I woke up and decided I was done being afraid of you."

"And yet you are afraid."

"Yes. And I'm here anyway."

He is quiet. The silence stretches, but this time it does not feel like a trap. It feels like a man recalculating.

"Your turn," he says at last. "You said one question. That was yours. I answered nothing."

"Then I'll ask mine." I fold my hands in my lap so he cannot see them shake. "Why did you marry me?"

For the first time since he walked in, Luca looks away. His jaw moves once.

"Because your father owed a debt," he says. "And because the old Don wanted a wife who would not cause problems."

The words should hurt. They hurt less than they used to. What I notice instead is the pause before them. The half-second where he chose not to say something else.

"That's not all of it," I say.

His eyes snap back to mine.

"One question," he says softly. "You asked it. I answered."

"You answered part of it."

"Then you will have to earn the rest."

The system flares.

[New hidden objective discovered: Uncover the real reason for the contract.]

[Reward: Unknown.]

[Warning: Target has secrets. Danger level: Extreme.]

My heart kicks. Luca sees it, of course he does, but he only stands and straightens his jacket like the conversation was a negotiation he has decided to adjourn.

"Sleep," he says. "I will take the couch."

"You're leaving?"

"You asked me not to touch you." He pauses at the door. "I keep my agreements, Elena. Even the ones I did not expect to make."

He goes. The door closes softly.

I sit alone in the white dress, in the big silent bed, and for the first time I realize I have not lost the night. I have kept it.

[Mission 'Seduce Luca before sunrise': Partially completed.]

[Remaining time: 6 hours 12 minutes.]

[Bonus unlocked: Skill 'Read Lies (Lv. 1)'.]

A thin, cold smile finds its way onto my face.

Then, through the wall, I hear Sophia's heels in the hallway. They stop outside the master suite. A soft knock. And Luca's low voice answering.

He did not go to the couch.