CHOICES THAT KEEP YOU BREATHING

Luca's Pov 

The door opened slowly. Dante Vitale stood there holding two mugs of coffee.

"You always have choices," he said quietly. "The consequences might not be ideal, but you have choices."

"Really? So if I choose to walk out that door right now, you'll let me go?"

"No. Because walking out that door would get you killed within twenty-four hours. Viktor wants you dead. The FBI can't protect you now. And anyone else who wanted you at that auction is still out there."

"So I don't actually have a choice."

"You have the choice to stay alive. That's more than you had last night."

I hated that he was right.

"You bought me," I said, standing up. "Don't pretend this is about choices."

Something flickered in his eyes. Guilt, maybe.

"I bought you because the alternative was watching you get sold to someone who would break you for sport. Dmitri Sokolov was bidding."

"So I should thank you?"

"I want you to understand that I'm not your enemy."

"You locked me in a room."

"To keep you safe."

"From everyone except you."

The words hung in the air between us.

"Come have breakfast," he said finally. "Please. Then we'll talk about what happens next."

I followed Dante into the living area. He gestured to a bar stool.

"Sit. I'll make breakfast."

I sat. The coffee was perfect, strong and black, exactly how I liked it.

Dante pulled out eggs and vegetables and cheese.

"How old were you when you learned to cook?"

"Twelve. My mother died and my father couldn't boil water. So I learned."

"I was fifteen when my mother died. Sofia was twelve. Our father had left years before. I learned to cook because someone had to."

Dante glanced at me. "You raised your sister."

"Someone had to. She's in medical school. Third-year residency. She has nothing to do with any of this."

"I know. I had someone check on her last night. She's safe."

My hands clenched around the coffee mug. "You had someone check on her?"

"To make sure Viktor's people hadn't gotten to her. They hadn't."

"Don't go near my sister."

"I won't. As long as you cooperate, your sister stays out of this completely."

There it was. The threat hidden in reasonable words.

"What do you want from me?" I asked.

Dante plated the omelet and set it in front of me. Then he made one for himself and sat across the island.

"You worked for the Bratva. As an accountant. That means you saw their money operations."

"I didn't know I was working for the Bratva."

"But you saw the transactions. The shell companies. The money flows."

I stared at my omelet. "You want information."

"I need information. Someone in my organization has been embezzling significant amounts. I need someone with your skills to trace it."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then you stay locked in that guest room while Viktor's people hunt your sister and the FBI wonders what happened to their witness."

My fork clattered against the plate. "You're blackmailing me."

"I'm offering you a trade. You help me with my problem, I keep you and your sister safe. Eventually, when things settle down, we figure out your next move."

I ate the omelet because I needed my strength.

"What kind of embezzling?" I asked finally.

"Large amounts moved through legitimate business fronts. Whoever's doing it knows our system well enough to hide it from our regular accountants."

"How large?"

"Seven figures over the past two years. Maybe more that we haven't found yet."

I whistled low.

"You think it's someone high up in your organization."

"Has to be."

"If I do this, if I find your embezzler, what happens to them?"

"That's family business."

"You'll kill them."

"I'll handle it appropriately."

Which meant yes.

"I can't do that. I can't be responsible for someone's death."

Dante leaned forward. "You think whoever's stealing from us won't kill you if they find out you're investigating? You want to survive? You want your sister safe? Then you make choices that keep you both alive, even if those choices aren't perfect."

I hated that he was right.

"How long would it take?"

"To find the embezzler? Depends on how good they are. Weeks, maybe months."

"Months locked in this apartment."

"Months alive and safe with your sister protected."

I closed my eyes, thinking of Sofia.

"I need to call her. I need to tell her I'm okay."

"That's not possible right now. Any call could be traced."

"Then send her a message. Email, text, something so she knows I'm alive."

Dante considered this. "I can arrange for an anonymous message. Nothing traceable."

"Fine. I'll look at your financial records. But I want that message sent today. And I want proof it was delivered."

"Done."

He stood and cleared our plates.

"The office is down the hall," he said. "I'll have everything you need set up there."

"I'll need coffee. A lot of coffee. And probably snacks."

"I'll make sure you have everything you need."

He started to walk away, then paused. "Luca? You have choices. Not great ones, but choices. You can work with me and have freedom within the apartment, or you can fight me and stay locked in that room. But either way, I'm keeping you alive."

"Whether I want to be kept or not?"

"Yes. Because you're twenty-eight years old and brilliant and you deserve a life beyond that auction, even if you can't see that right now."

Then he left me alone.

"You okay?"

I spun around. A man stood in the doorway, the driver from last night.

"Who are you?"

"Nico. I'm your babysitter while the boss handles family business."

"Babysitter or guard?"

"Both. Dante's not lying. He really is trying to keep you alive."

"By locking me in his apartment."

"By keeping you away from people who want you dead. Viktor's put a price on your head. Half a million to whoever brings you back."

"Why does Dante care? Why spend two million dollars on someone he didn't know?"

Nico studied me. "The way you refused to kneel at that auction. The way you kept getting up every time they knocked you down. Dante's been going through the motions for years. Then he saw you fighting when you had every reason to break, and something clicked."

"The office is this way," Nico said.

I followed him. The office had a desk, computer, file cabinets, a whiteboard, and a drawer full of snacks.

"I'll be in the main room if you need anything."

I sat at the desk and powered up the computer. Financial files were organized in folders by year and business.

I opened the first file and started reading. I pulled up a spreadsheet and got to work.

Hours passed. When I finally looked up, the sun had moved significantly across the sky.

I opened the office door. Nico was on the couch.

"Do yo need something?"

"Food. And maybe to know what time it is."

"Four thirty. Dante's still out dealing with family stuff."

"What happens when I find who's stealing from you?"

Nico sighed. "You're asking questions about things you don't want real answers to."

"Someone's going to die because of what I find."

"Someone's going to face consequences for stealing from the family. That's not on you."

"Did he send the message? To my sister?"

"Yeah. This morning. Anonymous email. 'I'm safe. Don't look for me. I love you.' She responded asking who it was but Dante didn't answer."

At least Sofia knew I was alive.

I returned to the office and dove back into the numbers.

It was after midnight when Dante finally came home. I heard footsteps approaching the office.

I didn't look up.

"You've been working for twelve hours straight."

"Fourteen, actually."

"You should rest."

"I should find your thief so my sister stays safe."

He was quiet. Then, "Did you find anything?"

"Maybe. There are some patterns in the construction company accounts that don't make sense. Money moving through subcontractors that might not exist. But I need more time to be sure."

"Take the time you need."

I finally looked up at him. He looked exhausted.

"Who did you meet with today?"

"My brother. My sister-in-law. Some other family members who had questions about last night."

"Questions about me."

"Questions about why I spent two million at a Bratva auction. I told them you were an intelligence asset."

"Am I?"

"You're whatever keeps you alive, Luca."

The way he said my name sent an unexpected shiver down my spine.

"Go to bed," he said quietly. "The numbers will still be here tomorrow."

"Will you?"

"Where else would I go? This is my home."

"You could go anywhere. You have money and power and freedom. I'm the one who's stuck here."

"Yes. You are. For now. Until it's safe."

"And when will that be?"

"I don't know. But I'm working on it."

He left me alone. I worked for another hour before exhaustion finally won.

When I stumbled to the guest room, I found the door unlocked.

I crawled into the bed, wondering how long until this felt normal.

Wondering what it meant that I'd spent fourteen hours willingly helping the man who'd bought me.

My last thought before sleep took me was of Dante's eyes when he'd cut my zip ties at the auction.

Not possessive. Not cruel. Just... sad.

Like he hated what he had to do but couldn't see another way.

I understood that feeling more than I wanted to admit.