บททั้งหมดของ STOLEN BY THE DON: บทที่ 31 - บทที่ 40

And the worst part, the part that was tearing him apart, was that Sienna had survived hell before he'd ever touched her."So I'm trapped too," Luca laughed bitterly. "Trapped by my own actions, by the uncertainty I've created, by the knowledge that anything she feels could be manufactured by circumstances rather than real emotion." "That's your penance," Matteo agreed. "Living with uncertainty, with guilt, with the knowledge that you destroyed something precious before you even knew it existed." Luca stood, moving to the window again; outside, he could see the art studio where Sienna was probably still painting, processing the devastating news about her twin through the only language she truly trusted. "She deserves better than me," he said quietly. "She deserves someone who didn't kidnap her, who didn't force her into this nightmare, who could offer her love without the shadow of violence and coercion hanging over everything." "Yes," Matteo agreed simply. "She does; but that's

"So what?" Sienna's voice rose, desperation bleeding through. "I'm just supposed to accept this? Accept that I'll never be free, that you're going to keep me here forever because you've decided your feelings trump my rights?" "No," Luca said quietly. "You don't have to accept anything; you can hate me, fight me, spend every day making my life hell—I'll still keep you here, still refuse to let you go, because losing you is worse than being hated by you." He stepped back, giving her space to breathe. "I'm giving you an ultimatum, though it's not much of one; you can stay as my prisoner, fighting me every step of the way, making this a war of wills that destroys us both—or you can stay as my partner, my equal in everything except freedom, building something real despite the twisted foundation." "That's not a choice," Sienna said, her voice shaking. "That's just two different versions of captivity dressed up as options." "I know," Luca agreed. "But it's all I can offer; I've tried

"Until I saw you," Luca agreed. "And I thought finally, after all this time, I'd found her—found the missing piece that would make me whole again; but you weren't her, could never be her, because you're not gentle or soft-spoken or sweet." "I know," Sienna said, familiar bitterness creeping into her voice. "I'm the damaged one, the wrong twin, the one who survived hell instead of being rescued from it." "No," Luca said sharply, turning to face her fully. "You're not the damaged one—or if you are, it's a damage that makes you stronger, fiercer, more real than any fantasy Serena was my escape from darkness, but you—you're someone who's lived in darkness and refused to let it win; there's a difference between being saved from monsters and fighting them yourself." Sienna felt tears threatening and fought them back. "Don't do that; don't try to make keeping me prisoner sound noble by claiming I'm stronger or better than the woman you actually wanted." "I'm not trying to make it no

"I want to bargain," Sienna corrected. "You have all the power, all the control but I have something you want, something you can't take by force; my willing participation, my choice to build something real rather than just endure captivity. That's valuable, Luca, and it should be worth something." Luca leaned back in his chair, studying her with an expression she couldn't quite read. "What do you want?" "Freedom," Sienna said simply. "Not permanent freedom, not escape but periods of time where I can leave, go places, live parts of my life outside these walls. You said you can't let me go completely, fine but give me pieces of freedom, controlled releases where I can breathe without feeling the cage closing in." "No," Luca said immediately, his voice hardening. "That's not possible." "Why not?" Sienna challenged. "You're worried I'll run, that I'll disappear the moment I'm beyond your reach. So come with me, send guards, put trackers on me if you must but give me the il

Dinner that evening was a tense affair; Sienna sat across from Luca at the unnecessarily large dining table, both of them picking at food neither seemed to want, the silence between them heavy with everything left unsaid. The conversation from that morning still hung in the air—his refusal to negotiate, his brutal honesty about her belonging to his mistake, the finality of her imprisonment; Sienna had spent the day in the gardens, pacing like a caged animal, trying to process the reality that there would be no compromise, no middle ground, no escape. Now, forced into proximity again, she felt rage building in her chest—not the hot, explosive kind, but something colder, more calculated, the kind of anger that came from complete powerlessness. "You need to eat," Luca said quietly, gesturing to her nearly untouched plate. "We leave early tomorrow for Milan; you'll need your strength." "Don't," Sienna said, her voice tight. "Don't pretend to care about my wellbeing when you've