Chapter 64

Aurora POV

Who is this man?

And more importantly: how does he know Gianna’s name?

My brain tries to make sense of it, scrambling for any reasonable explanation, but there’s only one answer that keeps circling back with growing certainty.

This is the man Dominic went to meet in Russia.

And if that’s true… that means he was the one behind Leonardo’s death.

A sick twist rolls through my stomach, hot and cold all at once. I don’t even realize I’ve taken a step backward until Gianna’s hand brushes mine. She’s still frozen beside me, eyes locked on the stranger who still sits comfortably on our couch like he belongs there.

Across the room, by the front door, three more men stand watch. All of them tall, broad, and silent. Each of them has that same carved-from-stone expression that only men used to violence seem to possess. Their jackets might as well be uniforms for how they move, subtle bulges at their waists telling me all I need to know: they’re armed.

We’re outnumbered, badly, and we all know it.

So Gianna and I do exactly what he wants, sinking down onto the couch opposite of him like we’re guests in our own home. My pulse is pounding in my ears, loud enough that I can barely hear myself breathe.

The man smiles as if we’ve just agreed to share a bottle of wine.

“Thank you,” he says, dipping his head slightly in gratitude. “I know this is… unexpected.”

Neither of us says anything in response.

He leans back, crossing one leg over the other with practiced ease. He’s elegant in that old-money, European kind of way—clean lines, crisp shirt, gold watch that probably costs more than the new designer clothes currently sitting in my closet.

Still, there’s something sharp under the charm, like a predator dressed up in silk.

“I am Alek Volkov,” he says, looking straight at Gianna as he introduces himself. “But I believe Dominic has already told you about me.”

I feel like the floor tilts beneath me.

So I was right. This is the man he went to see—the bratva leader. The one with the resources and reach to pull off a global hit without getting caught by not one but two mafia families. That’s not the sort of thing that can be pulled off with sheer dumb luck. That takes brilliance and calculation the likes of which I’ve only seen Dominic pull off before.

Alek glances at me now, and something in my expression must give away the storm inside me because he chuckles softly. “You can relax, devushka. I’m not here to hurt either of you. I simply wanted to meet you.”

Gianna blinks. “Me?”

His smile spreads. “Of course. You’re to be my bride, after all.”

My heart stutters. What?

Gianna looks at me like she’s been slapped. “Excuse me?”

Alek’s brow lifts in mock surprise. “Ah. So he has not told you yet.”

“Told her what?” I say. What the hell? Bride? Why would…? Dominic would never promise Gianna to anyone. What would be the point?

“As I am sure you both are aware, Dominic and I have a… certain business arrangement in place.” he says calmly. “As payment for the matter of his father’s death, he has offered you, Gianna, to me in exchange for keeping his money and his property.”

I don’t hear anything after that. My brain is short-circuits, repeating that sentence over and over again.

“That,” I swallow, bile rising in my throat. “That can’t be true.”

Alek fixes me with a perplexed look. “If not, why would I come all the way here, devushka? I would not make the trip if this were not a formal arrangement. Surely you would know this, yes? We mafia do not do things on whims.”

This can’t be. There’s no way Dominic promised Gianna to this man? In exchange for murdering his father and keeping his assets from being touched?

I can’t accept it. I…

But then, memories start flooding in. Dominic’s vagueness surrounding his trip ‘underground’ which didn’t even turn out to be that, it had been an excuse to go to Russia without telling me. His insistence on being cryptic when I asked why he’d gone there.

Oh, god.

That’s why he went to Russia. That was the business arrangement he was ‘re-negotiating’. That’s why he came back so suddenly with no real explanation. He’s been plotting this behind our backs the entire time, and I—

I’m going to be sick.

I believed him. I let him touch me. I let him in.

I thought he had changed. That he was trying to build something better.

But this is who he really is. Cold. Calculating. Self-serving. I’ve always known this and yet I’d deluded myself into believing he had changed. He used Gianna like a bargaining chip just like every other person in his life. Like he’s used me too. He saw her as nothing more than leverage to use in order to bargain himself out of giving over any piece of his newly acquired property.

Gianna launches to her feet suddenly.

“He has no right to promise me to anyone,” she snaps, hands clenched at her sides. “I don’t belong to him. And my father is the Caruso family’s consigliere. He’ll never agree to this.”

Alek doesn’t flinch. “I understand your frustration but I was owed a debt. I am here with the intent to collect.”

“Are you kidding me?” she hisses.

He tilts his head. “It is not such a terrible trade. In Russia, you would be a queen. I can give you anything. Power. Security. Riches. You’d want for nothing.”

Gianna scoffs. “Except freedom, apparently.”

As her voice is rising, I can feel the guards across the room watching more closely now, the air in the space growing tighter.

So I reach out and I grab her hand, not at all gentle when I yank her back down to sit next to me. She jerks her gaze to me, confused but I don’t let go, I just squeeze it tight. So tight that she knows what I’m saying without me saying it.

Stop. We are in no position to fight this.

Not yet, anyway.

I take a deep breath and turn to Alek. “Thank you for coming all this way to meet Gianna. But you have to understand… this is news to both of us. So, forgive us for being a little surprised.”

Alek studies me.

It takes everything in me not to look away. I hold his stare and twist my fingers around Gianna’s, intent on subtly telling them both not to cross whatever line it seems we’re all teetering towards the edge of.

After a long pause, he nods once. “I see. Apologies for the sudden intrusion, then.”

He reaches into his pocket, pulls out a slim black card and sets it gently on the coffee table between us.

“My number,” he says to Gianna. “When you’re ready to talk properly, please call me.”

Gianna doesn’t move.

Alek stands, smoothing his jacket with the ease of someone used to commanding rooms. His men begin to shift at the door, preparing to leave, and I exhale slowly through my nose.

God, now what do we do—

Bang!

The door slams open so hard it bounces off the wall, causing both Gianna and I to cover our heads and duck down.

“Ah,” Alek says casually, “Dominic… How wonderful to see you again.”