5. Chapter Four
Chapter Four
Elise
As usual, my day is spent practicing. It’s the only thing I could bring from my old life to this new one. It’s also something that Luca admires about me. He admires it so much that he had a practice room placed in our home. It was one of the many renovations he had done, but only one of the few he has told me about. So I can hear nothing beyond these doors, and whoever is on the outside can hear nothing within. I let the melody pour from my fingers as I play the music on the stand, losing myself in thought.
Luca doesn’t trust me. But there’s more to his distrust than me being a new presence in his life. It stems from my family name. I always knew other families looked down on ours. My father has not only made a name for himself as a man who wants power but has none, but nasty rumors surrounding the lengths he has gone to get it have tainted our name. Once again, it makes me wonder why Luca agreed to this marriage when he obviously has a distaste for my family name.
“Mrs. Pasquino.”
I tense, almost dropping my instrument at the sound of a voice entering my sanctuary. I turn to face the owner of the new voice to see a man I recognize. He was with Luca the weekend of our wedding. He told Luca about the woman who showed up to crash the engagement party. His eyes remind me of the clearest sky, holding a disturbing look behind them as he watches me.
“Your husband is asking for you,” he says.
I hide my confusion. Luca usually does business at this time. And he made it very clear he didn’t want me to be part of it. My mind shifts as excitement blooms in my chest.
Maybe he actually heard what I had to say this morning.
I stand, moving to put my instrument away, when the man stops me.
“He wants you to bring that with you,” he says.
Once again, I hide my confusion. I don’t know why Luca would want me to bring my instrument with me, but I am not in a position to ask after the way he reacted this morning. So I nod, allowing him to lead me to my husband.
I haven’t been in Luca’s office since arriving at our new house. I know where it is, and I’ve heard some of the terrifying things that go on behind the doors, but I’ve never been in it physically. It feels taboo. I was only ever called into my father’s office to be informed of my upcoming marriage. And now that Luca has asked for my presence after our conversation this morning, I feel like maybe things between us could be different. Maybe our relationship won’t be so black and white after all.
Luca’s man opens the door to his office, and my excitement immediately vanishes.
There’s a man, beaten and bloodied on the center carpet, heavily breathing. Luca stands in front of him, his arms crossed as he looks down at the man in irritation. Two of Luca’s men stand on either side of the victim, their stances relaxed as they watch their handiwork, waiting for a command from their boss. And upon my entrance, Luca’s crazed gaze falls on me.
“My beautiful wife has finally arrived.” His tone sends a chill up my spine as he pushes himself off his desk. He roughly grips the man’s head, turning him to face me.
“Don’t be rude, James. Say hello to my wife,” he says.
James doesn’t speak, though. He spits bloodied saliva onto the floor at my feet, earning him Luca’s rage. Luca releases him, gesturing to the men in the room. They don’t miss a beat as they begin raining down a beating on the man. Luca watches in satisfaction, a smile on his lips. And once again, with only a gesture, he commands the men to stop.
The sound of James’s heavy breathing fills the air.
Luca approaches James again, placing his foot under his chin.
“I won’t ask again. Say hello,” he growls out.
Luca shoves him with his foot, and James collapses, his battered face lifting to meet mine as he struggles to find words to speak.
“Hello.” His voice is gravelly and trembling.
Luca steps past him, coming to stand over me. He gently grabs a fistful of my hair, pulling me in for a kiss. He holds me tight, letting me know without speaking not to pull away. And I don’t. I kiss him back until he releases me. His gray eyes study me intensely before he turns back to James, his grip on my hair remaining.
“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” Pride laces his voice.
“Yes,” he grounds out.
Luca chuckles, leading me to a chair as he speaks.
“Not only is she beautiful, but she is talented as well. Extremely talented. She’s been in many recitals, all featuring her talent. She plays the violin very beautifully. Unlike anything I’ve ever heard,” he says.
Luca makes me sit as he speaks, his eyes twinkling in excitement. He gently tucks my hair behind my ear before turning to face James.
“Do you know what discipline it takes to learn such a difficult instrument? And to make it come out so beautifully yet effortlessly?” he asks. “It takes discipline that you don’t have.”
Luca pulls out a gun, aiming it at James. Out of instinct, a squeak leaves my throat, forcing all eyes to turn on me, including my husband. I immediately shrink away from Luca’s gaze, biting the inside of my cheek as I remember what he said to me the last time I interfered. Luckily, he turns back to his victim.
“Would you like to hear her play?” he asks.
Silence fills the room. No one knows where Luca is going with this. He laughs, though, bringing us all back to the present.
“Oh, James, I think you’ll want to say yes to this,” Luca says.
James can barely lift his head at this point, but he nods, appeasing Luca enough for him to continue.
“Perfect. Elise is going to play a melody for us. And you’re going to guess what the song is. You get three tries. Only three, like the number of times you were caught leaking information.” Luca cocks the gun, looking my way.
“Go ahead, Elise. Did you not say you wanted to be part of the business?” Luca has a sadistic grin on his lips as he studies me. This is his way of threatening me. I crossed the line this morning without being fully aware of it. There is no place for me in his business.
My fingers are trembling as I bring my violin up to play. He is going to kill this man in front of me. There’s no way this man could guess any of the tunes I could play. As a matter of fact, I don’t think even Luca himself could. And that’s the point. He wants to torture this man in the final seconds of his life. It’s something that Luca is looking forward to, but I don’t have the stomach for it. So I do something incredibly stupid.
I begin to play “Mary Had a Little Lamb”.
Luca’s face shifts as a myriad of emotions play over his expression: shock, amusement, and rage.
A shot rings out, and I scream, lowering my instrument. But it is James who hunches over in pain. Luca isn’t done with him, though. He shoots him again, this time in the arm, before putting his weapon away, his eyes focused on me.
“Wait, wait-Ah!” Luca crosses the room in three quick strides, snatching me up from my chair, and drags me out of the room. I whimper as he pulls me through our home until we reach the bedroom. He slams the door seconds before turning on me, slapping me across the face. I cry out, stumbling from the force of his blow. He snatches me by the hair before I can find my footing, holding me firmly around my throat as he pushes me into the wall. My vision is blurry as tears pour down my cheeks, but Luca is blinded by his own rage. He easily swats away my hands as I claw at his grip around my throat.
Luca abruptly releases me, letting me collapse onto the floor. He watches me silently as I gasp for air, clutching at my throat to ease the pain of his grip.
“You knew going into this marriage who I was. You know I will one day head the Pasquino family.” He roughly grips my face between his palm, pulling me in close as he speaks. “When I give orders, I expect them to be followed. If you ever attempt to outwit me again, I swear to you, Elise, you will not like the consequences.”
I’m trembling in his grip as I try to compose myself. Luca is not a man to be messed with. And I provoked him over the life of someone who obviously wronged him.
“I’m sorry,” I whimper.
Luca’s expression doesn’t change, but he releases me, standing.
“I have to admit. No one has ever thought to cross me in the way you did.” He scoffs, eyeing me with intrigue. “I was shocked when I heard that silly song coming from you.”
I flinch as he kneels, placing his finger under my chin. He uses his other hand to reach under the hem of the dress I wore today, his fingers brushing against my panties. My eyes widen as terror grips me.
“I guess you’re more than just a pretty face,” he says.
Luca watches me, taking in my reaction with glee. He grips a fistful of my hair, bending my head at an uncomfortable angle. His lips close over my throat to place gentle kisses along the sensitive flesh. I loved it when he would do this during sex, but now it only fills me with terror, the malice behind it unmistakable.
“I don’t think you’re quite ready for the family business. Maybe you should worry about your playing from now on.”
Luca releases me, standing. He makes his way to the door, pulling it open. He doesn’t leave immediately, standing in silence before turning to look at me.
“I’m going to kill him. Slowly and painfully. And just when he thinks I am going to give him the sweet mercy of death, I am going to play him the last song you decided to grace him with before I start his torture all over again,” he says, smiling sadistically.
Nausea washes over me at the thought of Luca using me to implement torture. It’s why I didn’t want to play a difficult tune for the man in the first place. I don’t have the stomach for it. I quickly stand, my legs trembling as I attempt to plead with him.
“Luca, please. Don’t—hck!”
Luca cuts me off, snatching my jaw roughly in his grip. He’s angry, adding an uncomfortable pressure on my jaw, forcing me to whimper in pain.
“What did I tell you would happen if you interfered?” He increases the pressure of his grip, and I cry out, my hands flying to his in a panic. I am weak compared to him.
Luca pulls me in close, his eyes dropping to my lips.
“I really don’t want to have to follow through, seeing as I need your mouth for... other tasks.” He releases me, scoffing as he looks at me. “Stop pissing me off.”
He doesn’t say another word to me as he leaves the room, leaving me alone. My legs feel like mush, and I can no longer hold myself up. I slowly fall to my knees, my breathing in a panic as I grip my chest in an attempt to calm myself down.
This is Luca Pasquino. The real Luca. The man who is known for killing someone with his bare hands. The man who is feared by all.
I choke back a sob, covering my mouth with my hand. My reality has finally reared its head. Our simple honeymoon phase has ended with this night, and Luca has finally crossed the line, no longer resembling the man I met at our wedding. He is a man not deterred by emotion or conscience. He is a man ruled by desire alone. I squeeze my arms over my chest, holding myself in the middle of our bedroom. I don’t know how long I stay, silently sobbing to myself as any clear vision of my future immediately disappears.