CHAPTER ONE — Exactly where I wanted to be.

The basement was colder than I expected—damp air clinging to my skin, concrete walls sweating under flickering fluorescent lights. My wrists ached from the cuffs, pulled tight above my head, forcing me onto my knees like some helpless little lamb.

Perfect.

I lowered my chin, letting my hair fall forward in a dark curtain. Soft, trembling breaths. Wide, glassy eyes. The picture of fear.

The two guards posted near the steel door actually looked uncomfortable watching me. Good. Men like them hated seeing weakness. It made them feel guilty. Or worse—responsible.

I swallowed hard and let my voice tremble.

“P-please… c-can I have some water? I—I won’t cause trouble.”

The smaller one—Marco, if I remembered his file correctly—shifted his weight, glancing at his partner. “We’re not supposed to talk to you.”

“I’m just… so thirsty,” I whispered, letting a tear slip down my cheek. Manufactured. Controlled. Nothing in me felt fear—only calculation. “Please… I don’t want to die.”

Marco’s jaw twitched.

Hook, line, and idiot.

The bigger guard—Rocco—crossed his arms. “Boss said no one touches her. No one gives her anything. No exceptions.”

Boss.

Dante Valenti.

The man I was here to kill.

I didn’t look up, but my pulse quickened with anticipation. I’d spent years dreaming of getting close enough to end him. Years of training. Conditioning. Acting. Bleeding. Disappearing into shadows and becoming whoever I needed to be.

Tonight, I was the frightened little captive.

Tomorrow, I’d slit the king’s throat.

“I didn’t do anything,” I whispered, letting my shoulders tremble. “Why is this happening?”

Marco ran a hand through his hair, pacing. He was cracking—beautifully. “You don’t understand. You were taken from enemy territory. The boss thinks—”

“Marco,” Rocco growled.

“What? She’s scared.”

“She’s leverage,” Rocco snapped. “Not our problem.”

Leverage.

That was what Dante thought he had—a bargaining chip.

He would soon learn he’d invited a weapon into his home.

I sniffled softly and tugged weakly at the chain. “Can you at least loosen this? Please? It—it hurts.”

Marco took one step forward before Rocco grabbed his arm.

“Don’t be stupid. You touch that chain, and the boss kills you himself.”

“But she—”

“Is not our job,” Rocco hissed.

I nearly smiled.

Not visibly.

Internally.

They were already dividing. Already arguing.

Already human.

Weakness was a language most assassins never bothered to learn.

But I’d studied it.

Mastered it.

Perfected it.

And men always underestimated the woman they believed was fragile.

A heavy door upstairs slammed open. Footsteps descended—slow, unhurried, confident. Each step spread a ripple of tension through the room.

Both guards straightened instantly.

Dante Valenti was coming.

My heartbeat didn’t stutter.

My breathing didn’t change.

But I lowered my head even more, curling in on myself like prey waiting for the predator’s bite.

The footsteps stopped just before the gate.

A key slid into the lock.

The metal door groaned open.

Bootsteps crossed the room, stopping inches in front of me. I kept my gaze on the floor, trembling, letting my breath hitch like I was desperately trying not to sob.

Then—

A finger slid under my chin.

Slow.

Controlled.

Commanding.

He lifted my face.

I met the eyes of the man I’d been trained to kill since childhood.

Cold, dark, intelligent eyes.

A king in the shape of a monster.

Dante Valenti.

He looked down at me like he already owned me.

“Look at that,” he murmured. “My little captive finally awake.”

I let my lips part, voice trembling on cue.

“P-please… don’t hurt me…”

His gaze sharpened, amused.

“Why would I hurt you, little one? You’re far more useful alive.”

Useful.

I forced a shiver down my spine, lowering my lashes.

“Yes… sir.”

Behind the fear in my voice, my mind whispered:

And you’re far more useful dead.