It takes an hour for his staff members to release me from my binds and clean me up. I blush as they run their hands over my body cleaning me from head to toe, but I am grateful for one thing. There is no man with us, especially my captor. The female staff brush my hair as I sit close to the vanity looking at my features. My eyes look puffy from all the crying of last night before the auction and my hair is a bird’s nest after all my tossing and turning in the bed when I was punished. The thought makes a red tint creep up my cheeks as I remember what I had to do when I was in that man’s presence.

I wipe the thought from my mind and frown. I couldn’t forget that I was here against my will. I was bought for Christ’s sake. A fucking property to a mafia boss. My only concern now was how I would get out of this place without being killed rather than Luca’s eyes boring holes in my soul whenever he looked at me. I groan, racking my mind for a point of escape when the women step away from me.

“All done.” One of them says, making me turn back to the mirror and look at myself.

My hair is no longer a mess. It sits on my shoulders in their signature and natural loose curls cupping my face and making me look younger than I actually am. The gown I have on is long and plain light blue gown for which I am thankful for because Luca wouldn’t think of touching me while I wore this.

“It’s time to see Mr. Luca now.” One of the women speaks, eyeing me through the mirror.

I sigh and pout. I didn’t want to do this. I wanted to go home. Home. A place that meant nothing to me now since my father and family betrayed me so blatantly, throwing me to the wolves to fend for myself. I scoff at the thought and stand up. According to Luca, all I need to do is obey and maybe I would be able to escape this place. If that’s all it takes, then I’ll abide by his rules. For now.

With one last look at me, the women led me out of the room, towards what I assume is going to be the dining hall. With slow strides, we reach the room, and the large oak doors open for me to enter. I walk into the room, marveling at how the dining room of this place is even grander than my former home.

Walls adorned with art and curtains trimmed with gold sit prettily in the massive room. The table itself, as I can tell due to my father’s old rantings, is made of pure grenadilla, African blackwood, one of the most expensive woods in the world. Just how rich is this man? I ask myself as I walk over to the table and take a seat opposite from him. Surprisingly, he didn’t sit at the head of the table like I thought he would. Still, I don’t want to be near him.

“Stand.” He commands me, his eyes not even on me as he goes through his phone.

I do as he says and stand up immediately, not wanting to incur his wrath. Luca drops his phone and watches me, making me feel self-conscious about myself even though I was dressed decently.

“The gown looks good on you.” He says shortly.

“Thank you.” I reply with my head bent towards the table.

“Come here.” He commands once again.

I freeze. I don’t want to go anywhere near him after what he did to me, but I know that if I refuse, I will get punished. I struggle with the choice when he speaks again.

“Come here unless you want to get punished. Or do you?” He asks with a raise of his eyebrow, cockily teasing me. I swallow my pride and walk around the table to his side, my eyes not leaving the floor.

“Sit.” Luca says.

I move to sit on the chair next to him when he grabs my hand, stopping me.

“Not there.” He clarifies as he gestures to his lap.

My eyes widen. He wants me to sit on his lap. Why, though? Hadn’t he already embarrassed and groped me enough? I gulp when I see him stare at me, as if daring me to disobey him. I go to sit on his lap, not saying a word. As I do, his arms tighten around my waist pulling me further into his hold and also preventing me from escaping if he tries to do anything.

“Isn’t this nice?” He sarcastically asked me.

When I don’t reply, he loosens his grip on me and brushes my hair with his hands.

“You don’t need to feel uncomfortable near me. You’re mine now after all. You should feel right at home.”

I’m not sure when a scoff leaves my mouth at the word. Home. His. Never in a million years.

“What was that?” He questions in a steady voice.

“Nothing.” I quickly answer and mentally berate myself for my outburst. I'm fighting every urge in me not to curse him out, but I know that it'll lead to me on my back, and I am not willing to let this man have his way with me again. Regardless of whether I liked it or not.

“No. Explain.”

“It’s nothing.” I reply.

I feel him tense up while I speak. With one hand, Luca grabs my arm and lifts me off his body, causing me to stand on my own two feet. I turn to look at him when he points to the seat next to him. I take it as an invitation to take a seat. One which I take over sitting on his lap and contemplating the inevitable.

“You should understand that whenever you are in my presence, you are to be submissive. No talking back unless asked to and no refusal. You have to come to the reality that you are my property and no one in the outside world will help you escape me.”

I look up at Luca, his words resounding in my head. No escape. His face was serious while he looked at me, his once playful demeanor gone, making me believe that he was not joking. Is this my reality? Being forced to be with a man I want nothing to do with? I mean I know that technically it isn’t his fault since he didn’t drag me away from my family or even sold me out to gang members like my father did, but I needed someone to blame for my misfortunes and he was right here. Who better than the man I could see sitting before me?

I frown, my blood beginning to boil and my defiance bubbling up in my throat, forcing me to speak up against him. Luca must have caught up to what I am about to do because he slams his hands on the table, causing me to flinch in shock.

“Submission Lia. That means no talking back either.” He warns.

I shut my mouth, gripping onto my gown and settling back down. Luca sighs and rubs his chin before he speaks again.

“I won’t be in the house for most of the day because of work. So, you’ll be watched by some of my men while I’m gone. You can ask for whatever you want to make your stay more comfortable, but you will under no circumstance leave the house. Do you understand?”

I nod my head as an answer to his question.

“Speak Lia.” He prompts me.

“I understand.” I say to him, my voice unwittingly cracking.

I hear Luca sigh and then get up.

“Eat up and go to bed after.” Luca orders me one last time before he walks out of the room without eating a thing. As soon as the door closes after him, I feel the atmosphere of the room change and now I can breathe better. I look around and exhale.

Most people would be concerned about how they were now trapped with this man. That was my concern, yes, but I had other things on my mind. Like how I was going to escape when he left the mansion. When I was brought here there was little to no security around the mansion and even less in the house. For a mafia don there was really no form of protection around him which was weird but I didn’t bother to question it. It would serve me well. I mean with him gone, how hard could getting my freedom be?

I smile to myself as I look out the window in my bedroom. Luca had gone back to his room leaving me alone in the dining room to eat and also think to myself. A time that I had used wisely. The stars are out tonight, giving me hope in what I plan to do tomorrow when my captor is away for the day. I still contemplate why I am not chained to anything or even being used as a sex slave. Well, the last part wasn’t so far-fetched, but Luca had been gentle with me ever since I was brought into his home. I was even given good food to eat and clothes to wear. Hell, the freaking window wasn’t even barred to keep me from leaving if I wanted to.

It confused and yet intrigued me. Did he really think that after a day in his care, I would be submissive to him fully? I chuckle at the thought and smile. His negligence would be my path to freedom. Still, with the thought in my head, I wrap my robe tighter around my body and walk over to my bed, ready for a good night's rest before my prison break. I climb into my bed and cover myself with the satin sheets, smiling from ear to ear as I drift off into a willful sleep.

•••••

I wake up to the sound of the alarm clock ringing beside my head. I turn to my nightstand and turn it off before stretching my limbs and yawning. After the dinner I had all by myself and my musings about having a restful sleep, the night had gone by so quickly. It’s not just the fact that I couldn’t sleep. It was also the fact that Luca had mentioned that he would be gone the next day. Gone, as in meaning that I had some sort of freedom the next day. The ideas I had about leaving the mansion were endless. Nevertheless, it was finally time to put my plan in motion.

I go to the window just in time to see what I assume is Luca’s car pulling out of the mansion grounds. I smile to myself knowing that my time has come but first I need to get ready. I get up from my bed and go about my morning routine. Thankfully, the women who helped me before were not here to poke and prod my body while I was naked. I stripped off my clothes and had a quick shower, not bothering myself with a hot bath like I normally do. It takes approximately thirty minutes for me to shower and find some jeans and a top to put on. There were hundreds of gowns in the closet, but I didn’t need anything that would trip me when I ran, hence the low-key clothing.

With my hair in a ponytail and my mind ready, I open the door of my bedroom and walk out when I notice that no one roams the hallway. Slowly but surely, I trace my way out to the lobby where I was led when Luca wanted me in the dining room. I move to leave through the front door when one of the staff members walks past me, making my adrenaline rise. That was stupid. How did I think that going through the front door was the best idea?

I crouch at the back of the stairs that lead up to the second floor to avoid being seen, my heart pounding against my ribs. Luca’s orders echo in my mind.

“Behave while I’m gone.” But defiance surges within me like a wildfire. I won’t be a pawn in his twisted game. I will not be kept here trapped against my will.

Once the man stalks off, I turn around and make a beeline into the inner rooms of the mansion, hoping that I will be able to find a back door from which I can escape without being seen. Just then the thought enters my mind. The dining room. The room has a door that leads directly to the kitchen. A door I had noticed when I was being served the night before. Surely, it must have a back door. I steel myself and decide to go for it. I wouldn’t know unless I tried right?

I sneak through the hallways until I get to the familiar oak doors of the dining hall. With one peak inside, I slip into the room and crouch near the table. I slink close to the door, using the table as a guide, not wanting to be immediately seen if someone walked into the room. Luckily for me, no one did and even better, no chefs or help were in the kitchen at the time. I smirked and went in, confident now that the universe wanted me to escape my fate.

Just like I guessed, there was a back door leading from the kitchen to the backyard and what I think is a trash bin. Ominously, the layout of the kitchen was somewhat the same as the one in my home which gave me the idea that I would be out of the building and on the grounds.

I creep towards the door and open it, lovely sunlight coating my face and giving me joy. I run with a grin on my face, the back of the obsidian gates in my sight. The back gates beckon—a portal to freedom. I reach them, fingers trembling in relief as I grasp the cold metal. But as my skin brushes the bars, agony sears through me. Electricity. The gates are electrified, a cruel trap set by that man. By Luca. I seize as the last thought that enters my mind before darkness claims me is damn that man.

I finally wake up. My head throbs, and my vision swims. For a second I think that I am in my bed back at home waking up from a bad nightmare but all that changes when I see his face. Above me, an angry face hovers—Luca. His eyes bore into mine, fury etched in every line of his rugged features.

“You disobeyed,” he growls. His grip tightens on my wrists, and I realize they’re bound to the bed. Tended to but bound. The pain in my hands is a reminder of my failed attempt at escape.

“Why did you think you could escape?” His voice cut through my defense with how harsh it sounds.

I try to move, but the ropes hold me fast. Luca leans closer, his breath hot against my skin.

“You’re mine now,” he says. “If you won’t listen, I’ll watch you myself. From tomorrow you will be my assistant. You will follow me wherever I go and be by my side at all times. Maybe that will teach you how to behave and stay in one place.”

His words hang heavy in the air. I’m to be his assistant, shadowing him to and from work. But what kind of work? Criminal dealings? Dangerous secrets? A freaking gang family? My mind races, fear and curiosity warring within me.

Luca straightens, leaving me bound and bewildered.

“Remember this,” he murmurs. “You’re trapped, Lia. And escape? Well, that’s a luxury you won’t find beyond these walls. Not in your life.”

As he strides away, I’m left with questions and uncertainty. My life has shifted irrevocably. Perhaps I’ll find answers by Luca’s side—or maybe, just maybe, I’ll find a way. Possibly when I leave the walls of this mansion with him and enter into the real world. Outside those mansion walls, I could run and if freedom is within my palm, then I’ll seize it, even if it means defying the don himself.