His Tesoro: An Arranged Marriage Age Gap Mafia Romance (Empire of Royals Book 1)
His Tesoro: Chapter 57

Angelo put the heavy cast-iron pot in the oven for me while I supervised nervously.

“It will turn out great, principessa,” he said, shutting the door against the high heat.

“I don’t know,” I said, twisting my hands. “It’s my first time baking sourdough. I probably messed it up.”

Angelo scoffed. “Don’t worry. It’s not like the Boss won’t eat whatever you put in front of him.”

“That’s an exaggeration,” I muttered, but my guard’s expression told me I was full of shit. There was a mischievous glint in his eyes and I blushed, reminded of how Matteo had eaten me out on the kitchen counter just yesterday.

Noodle nudged my hand and I scratched his ear. “Do you want to go for a walk, malysh?”

“We have time to go around the block before the bread is done,” Angelo said.

“Okay, let’s go for a quick walk, then,” I told Noodle, who spun around excitedly.

I rolled towards the front door, but it opened before I got there. For a moment, I hoped Matteo was back early, but my heart sank when I saw it was Domenico. Noodle moved in front of me, his body on alert.

“What’s going on?” Angelo asked, hurrying to my side.

“Is Matteo okay?” I asked, glancing between the two men.

“The Boss is fine. I’m here for you, Mrs. Rossi.” The enforcer’s face was impassive, but there was a glint in his eyes that made me shiver.

“What do you mean?”

“The Boss asked me to bring you downstairs. He’s waiting for you there.”

An uncomfortable feeling rose in my chest. Matteo trusted Domenico, but I didn’t want to go anywhere with him.

“I haven’t heard anything about this,” Angelo said.

Domenico huffed. “The Boss sent me up to get her. He has a surprise for her.” His voice was calm, but tension crackled in the air.

“I stay with her,” Angelo said.

Domenico shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

I went to put Noodle’s harness on, but Domenico stopped me. “Leave the dog here.”

“He comes with me,” I said coolly.

Domenico rolled his eyes. “Fine, fine, do whatever you want.”

Angelo was messaging someone on his phone as we got in the elevator, and I knew he must be confirming whatever this was with my husband. I took a steadying breath and ran my hand down Noodle’s soft ears. I was overreacting. Matteo just had a surprise for me. There was nothing unusual about that.

The elevator door opened, and Angelo cursed as he moved in front of me, blocking my view.

“Why the fuck are we down here, Domenico?” Angelo seethed.

“I’m just following Boss’s orders.” Domenico grabbed the handles of my wheelchair and pushed me forward, forcing Angelo to jump back.

A chill washed over me as I saw we were in a basement, not the garage. It was dark and cold, and in front of me there was an open door leading to a small cell.

Angelo roared and pushed Domenico in the chest. “What the fuck is this?”

I breathed in sharply as Domenico drew his gun on my bodyguard. “What are you doing? Don’t shoot!” I screamed.

“I’m carrying out the Boss’s orders,” Domenico said. “And I won’t tolerate any treason.”

“You’re lying.” Rage danced in Angelo’s eyes, and I was terrified he would attack Domenico and get shot. Just then, his phone rang.

“Romeo,” Angelo said, relief washing over his face as he answered. The rest of the conversation was completed in rapid Italian. I only caught a couple of words, but the horror in Angelo’s eyes was all too easy to understand.

He hung up.

“Sofiya,” he said, his voice gentle.

“No,” I croaked, shaking my head. “What’s happening? Don’t leave me here.”

My bodyguard looked anguished. “It’s just until the Boss returns. It shouldn’t be long.”

“Please,” I begged. “Please don’t do this.”

Domenico grabbed my wheelchair, pushing me into the cell. Noodle whined, refusing to leave my side.

“Get out.”

Before I could process Domenico’s command, he tipped the wheelchair forward, and I cried out. I managed to grab onto Noodle, who steadied me and prevented me from hitting the ground too hard.

The enforcer grabbed Noodle’s leash and started to pull. Tears spilled down my cheeks as I shouted at him to let go. But he just sneered and dragged my crying dog out of the cell, slamming the door behind them.

The room was shrouded in darkness.

And I was alone.

I didn’t know how much time had passed when the door opened again. Domenico entered, dragging a metal chair in one hand and holding a flashlight in his other. I peered around him, trying to spot Angelo or Noodle, but the door shut with a loud clang, leaving me alone in the small room with the enforcer. I clenched my jaw hard to keep my tears from falling.

“You thought you were being quite clever, didn’t you?” Domenico asked, flipping on the flashlight. It cast threatening shadows along the walls.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

A sinister smile spread across his face as he leaned back in his chair. “I’m going to enjoy watching the Boss get information from you. When I first saw him torture a man, I’d never seen anything like it. That man was a traitor, too. The Boss kept him alive for a full week, slowly carving away his fingernails and then his fingers and then his limbs. Every part of his body was so mangled by the time he finally died, he barely looked human. It was… inspiring.”

Chills wracked my body, and my armpits grew damp. “I’m not a traitor.”

Domenico snorted. “At least you have a couple hours to practice your acting.”

Anger flared in my chest. “I’m not acting.”

“We’ve known for weeks that someone was feeding intel to the Albanians. The Boss certainly didn’t expect that it was you, but the evidence is overwhelming.” His eyes darkened as they raked over my body, and I suddenly felt horribly naked. “I wonder if he’ll start with waterboarding. It’s incredible what he can do with such a small amount of water. Or maybe taking each of your pretty little toenails. If I’m lucky, I’ll get a turn.”

My mind rejected his words. Matteo cared about me. He would never hurt me. Domenico must have gone rogue.

But then… Angelo had confirmed the order with Romeo.

Panic flared in my chest. “This is all a misunderstanding,” I said, but my words sounded weak.

Domenico just laughed. I moved as far away from him as I could in this tiny, disgusting cell. The concrete floor was cold and dirty, and my position made me even more vulnerable in front of the horrible enforcer.

“Goodbye, Mrs. Rossi. Not that I’ll be calling you that for much longer. I hope you enjoy your stay.”

The room was blanketed in oppressive darkness, making it impossible to know how much time had passed. I curled my body around my knees, trying to generate heat. But it was futile—the damp cold of the concrete floor and walls felt like ice through my clothes. My chattering teeth broke the silence, but nothing could distract me from the pain in my bladder.

I half-scooted, half crawled to the metal door and banged my hands against it.

“I have to go to the bathroom. Please let me out.” My voice was hoarse from the hours I’d spent screaming for help when I was first put in here. I finally slumped against the door as tears streamed down my face.

I was alone.

Completely alone.

My arms gave way under me and I crumpled to the ground, my body too weak and tired to support myself anymore. The hard floor was excruciating under my hips, but there was nothing I could do about it.

I closed my eyes, imagining Matteo storming into the cell and rescuing me. But even my imagination couldn’t offer me relief as the image shifted, Matteo’s expression turning cruel. He sneered down at me. “Now I can finally be rid of you.”

My sobs choked me. “Don’t leave me here,” I whispered over and over, until my lips were moving in silent agony, my voice stolen.

I was the most pathetic creature in the world as hot urine spread down my legs, pooling on the floor. Sad and pathetic and small. Because I thought I’d finally found it. Love, care…something that felt like family.

But it was never real. Because even now, even as my heart was breaking, I knew no matter what he did, I would never be able to do this to Matteo.

I loved him too goddamn much.

What a fool I had been.