Page 2 of Of Lies and Shadows

But I know what happens if I’m late, even by a minute. Grounded, probably. Maybe a slap for good measure. With the back of his hand, of course. It hurts more and leaves fewer marks.

What can I say? Papa’s had years to perfect it.

“Your father is waiting for you in his office.”

No. No, no, no. My skin already tingles at the thought. What did I do? What did he find out?

“I—”

“Don Salvatore is with him.”

Andjust like that, I wish it were the beating. Because if my father wants to see me with the don, there’s only one possible reason.

They’re going to marry me off.

At that thought, even the sharp burn of his belt on my back doesn’t seem so bad anymore.

“Don’t make them wait. Hurry.”

“Mom, please, I?—”

She shakes her head. “I’m sorry.”

Are you?I don’t say it out loud. I can’t. I just walk, legs shaky, breath so scattered I see stars, toward the office.

I know I’m not being fair to her. She’s tried to shield me when she could, in the quiet, hidden ways that wouldn’t get her hurt.

But she’s scared, too, and she’s just as stuck in this life as I am. Still, knowing that doesn’t stop the bitterness from curling inside me like rot.

I knock, and my father tells me to come in.

The first thing I see is his smile, predatory and calculating.

Then Don Salvatore, expression carved in stone, his gaze a quiet, ruthless appraisal.

But it’s not until my eyes land on Bruno, my father’s first guard and, somehow, the person I trust most in this house, that my stomach truly knots.

It defies logic that my father and I would trust the same man, and yet it’s true. And the look Bruno gives me, tight-lipped and worried, tells me everything I need to know.

This isn’t going to be good.

“Please, have a seat, Francesca. We have good news for you.”

I glance at Bruno again, and my father’s expression darkens into a scowl.

“Francesca.”

“Don Salvatore.” I nod to the man and take my seat, straightening my spine, crossing my legs at the ankle and to the side just like the proper lady I’m expected to be.

“I asked you here today because I have a deal to offer.”

I sit up a little straighter.Offermay be generous. It’s more likely a command dressed up as a kindness.

Don Salvatore watches me, and it feels like I can hear the wheels turning in his mind. I’m not sure I like that.

“You want out, don’t you?” My father’s cold voice cuts through my thoughts.

My soul screams yes, but my lips are frozen.

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