Page 21 of Ruined By Blood
My throat tightens. "Yes," I whisper, unable to lie. "But not just him. I'm afraid of every man."
Lucrezia reaches for the coffee pot, refilling her cup before offering me some. I shake my head. She settles back, studying me with those intelligent eyes that seem too old for her young face.
"You know," she says carefully, "if Enzo wanted to hurt you, he would have already."
The blunt statement makes me look up.
"He found you bleeding and unconscious," she continues. "You were completely vulnerable. He could have done anything." She wraps her slender fingers around her mug. "But he didn't. He brought you here, called a doctor, gave you a safe place to recover."
I open my mouth to argue but close it again. She's right, of course.
"The men in this family—they're not saints. Far from it." A shadow crosses her face. "But they don't hurt innocent people, and they don't hurt women. That's a line none of them crosses."
Something shifts in my chest—a painful loosening, like a knot being carefully undone.
"My father will find me," I whisper, the words escaping before I can stop them. "He always finds what belongs to him."
The memory of his cold eyes makes my skin crawl. The thought of being dragged back, of facing his rage, of being handed over to Cortez—it steals my breath.
"You keep saying that," Lucrezia says gently. "That you belong to him. Like you're property."
I stare down at my hands. "That's what I am. What I've always been."
"Not here," she says, and the certainty in her voice makes me look up again. "Not with us."
I let Lucrezia's words sink in.
"Are you finished with breakfast?" Lucrezia asks, changing the subject. Her voice is light, as if we weren't just discussing my status as a human being versus property. "I could show you around the house if you'd like."
I glance at my half-eaten waffle and nod. "Yes, I'm done. Thank you."
"Great!" She stands with unexpected energy. "This place is huge, and it's easy to get lost. Might as well know where you're staying."
I follow her out of the dining room, my footsteps hesitant compared to her confident stride. The mansion unfolds around us like something from another world—my father's house was luxurious, but cold. This place, despite its grandeur, has touches of warmth I never expected.
"Living room, obviously," Lucrezia waves her hand as we pass through a space with plush couches and a massive fireplace. "Damiano's office is down that hall—off limits unless you want to risk getting shot."
My eyes widen and she laughs. "I'm kidding. Mostly."
We continue through corridors lined with art that looks expensive enough to fund a small country. Lucrezia points out the kitchen where Ettore, their chef, creates "absolute magic." She shows me the library filled floor-to-ceiling with books in multiple languages, an indoor pool, and several rooms whose purposes I can't quite determine.
"And this," Lucrezia says with a dramatic flourish, pushing open double doors, "is my domain."
Her bedroom is nothing like I imagined. While the rest of the house maintains a certain refined elegance, Lucrezia's room explodes with color and life. The space is massive—more suite than bedroom—with different areas flowing into one another.
"Come in," she urges when I hesitate at the threshold.
I step inside, immediately drawn to the wall covered in canvases. Each painting bursts with emotion—abstract explosions of color, haunting faces emerging from darkness, landscapes that seem to breathe.
"Did you paint all these?" I ask, unable to hide my amazement.
"Guilty," she says, flopping onto a couch draped with vibrant fabric.
I move deeper into the room, taking in the details. A sitting area with mismatched furniture arranged around a low table covered in sketchbooks. Floor-to-ceiling windows draped with gauzy fabric that softens the sunlight. Against one wall stands an easel with an unfinished canvas, surrounded by paint-splattered drop cloths and containers of brushes.
"It's beautiful," I whisper, running my fingers over a carved wooden desk. "I've never seen a room like this."
"It's my sanctuary," Lucrezia says, watching me explore. "The one place that's completely mine."
