Chapter 3 - BEFORE THE DAWN|
Adrian stepped toward the bed, his hands reaching for mine.
"Elena, listen to me," Adrian said, his gray eyes dark with urgency. "Vanessa's family is tied to the Moretti syndicate. If she was attacked tonight, it means a war is breaking out in the city. I am keeping her here to extract information, not because I care about her."
"I don't care about your mafia politics, Adrian," I replied, pulling my hands back from his reach. "I care about boundaries."
"I set boundaries!" he insisted.
"No, you made a executive decision as a mob boss in the house we share," I said, standing up from the bed. "You told me she was staying. You didn't ask. And now she's marking her territory in my hallway while you run security downstairs."
Adrian’s jaw clenched. "It’s one night, Elena. Don't make this bigger than it is."
"It isn't just one night, Adrian," I said quietly, walking toward the walk-in closet. "It’s the fact that in your world, your past will always bleed into my present. And I refuse to be the collateral damage."
"What are you doing?" he demanded, following me into the doorway of the closet.
I pulled two heavy leather suitcases from the upper shelf and set them on the bench.
"I’m packing my bags," I said calmly.
"You are not leaving this house at one in the morning," Adrian commanded, his tone instantly shifting into the hard, uncompromising voice he used with his captains.
I turned around, staring him down without a single trace of fear.
"Watch me," I whispered.
May you like
"Elena, there are guards at every gate," Adrian growled, stepping into my space. "They answer to me. Nobody opens those gates without my order."
"Then you better tell them to shoot me, Adrian," I said, pulling my clothes off the hangers. "Because unless you plan on locking me in a cell, I am walking out of this house before sunrise."
