Part 4
The morning sun offered no warmth.
A sleek black sedan waited outside the hotel, the engine idling with a low, menacing purr.
Enzo’s men stood by the doors, their expressions completely unreadable.
They looked like shadows given human form.
Elena walked beside Enzo, her hand resting lightly on his forearm as he had instructed.
She wore a simple, elegant dark dress that covered her completely, the heavy ruby ring weighing down her left hand.
As they approached the car, one of the guards, a burly man named Marco, glanced at Elena.
There was a trace of familiarity in his eyes. A look that suggested he knew exactly what her family’s reputation was.
He didn't bow his head.
He just held the door open, his eyes lingering on her a second too long.
Before Elena could step inside, Enzo stopped.
The air around them instantly grew freezing cold.
Enzo didn't look at Marco.
He kept his eyes focused straight ahead, but his voice carried a deadly weight.
“Marco,” Enzo said softly.
“Yes, boss?”
“Where are your eyes?”
The guard stiffened, the color instantly draining from his face.
“I was just ensuring the lady got in safely, boss.”
“The lady is my wife,” Enzo said. The words were quiet, but they cut through the morning air like a blade. “If your eyes lift above her shoes again, I will ensure you never see the light of day to use them. Am I understood?”
Marco swallowed hard, his posture instantly shifting to one of complete submission.
“Yes, boss. My apologies.”
Elena felt a strange, unfamiliar sensation bloom in her chest.
Protection.
It was a foreign concept.
In her uncle’s house, guards looked at her however they pleased, knowing she had no power to stop them.
Here, a single glance from Enzo was enough to terrify a grown man into submission.
Enzo turned to her, his expression softening just a fraction.
“Get in,” he said.
She slid into the leather interior of the car, and Enzo followed, closing the door behind them.
The privacy glass cut off the rest of the world.
As the car pulled away from the curb, Elena kept her eyes on her lap.
“You didn't have to do that,” she whispered.
“I had to,” Enzo replied, not looking at her. “In my world, perception is everything. If my men think I tolerate disrespect toward what is mine, they will begin to think they can disobey me elsewhere.”
“Is that all I am to you?” she asked, turning her head to look at his profile. “A statement of authority?”
Enzo turned his head slowly.
His dark eyes searched her face, tracking the slight tremor in her lips, the tension in her shoulders.
“Right now, you are an asset I am protecting,” he said honestly. “But give it time, Elena. Assets have a habit of becoming investments.”
The car sped through the city streets, heading toward the DeLuca estate.
A fortress of stone and iron.
May you like
And as Elena watched the skyscrapers fade into sprawling gated properties, she realized the old Elena was truly gone.
She was entering a world where survival meant becoming as dangerous as the men around her.
