A knock rattled the door. It was sharp and impatient. My chest tightened.

“Come in!” I said with the little strength I had left in me.

“Dinner!” a gruff voice barked from the other side, not bothering to answer or to come in like I asked.

I froze. The thought of walking into a dining hall where Valerio Moretti might be waiting made my stomach twist. But I couldn’t stay locked in here forever. If I was going to make him notice me, I had to start now.

I glanced at the mirror again. My lips were still cracked, my eyes rimmed red from crying, but underneath the ruin, I could still see her. The girl my father said looked like my mother. The girl who could make men stop in their tracks.

I touched the cold glass. “You’re still in there,” I whispered. “Now use it.”

I straightened my back, brushed down the dress that still smelled faintly of auction rooms and fear, and opened the door.

Two guards waited outside. They didn’t look at me, not really. Their eyes were fixed forward, their guns slung across their shoulders. One jerked his chin. “Move.”

I swallowed hard and followed.

The house…or castle, or prison, I couldn’t decide was quiet as they led me down the hall. The silence was thicker than before. I heard only the faint tapping of my shoes, and the echo of it bouncing off walls that had seen too much.

Finally, they stopped before tall double doors.

One guard pulled them open, and my breath caught.

The dining hall wasn’t just a room, it was a statement. A long table stretched across the space, polished dark wood shone under a chandelier that spilled golden light. Silver cutlery, crystal glasses, dishes that looked untouched. And at the head of the table, sitting like he had all the time in the world, was Valerio Moretti.

He didn’t rise. He didn’t speak. He just looked at me.

That same look from the auction..deep, unreadable, like he saw too much and nothing at the same time.

I forced myself to walk forward, every step a battle with me trembling.

The guards shut the doors behind me. The sound of it echoed like a lock sealing shut and it felt like I was given up as a prey.

“Sit,” Valerio finally said, his voice low, smooth, and commanding.

It wasn’t a suggestion.

I sat immediately like I was enchanted. My hands curled into fists beneath the table, hiding the fresh wound in my palm.

I lifted my chin, meeting his eyes. I told myself I couldn’t afford to be afraid anymore. If I wanted to live…no, if I wanted revenge, I had to make him see me as more than just something he bought.

But the longer I held his gaze, the more I realized one dangerous truth.

If I wasn’t careful, Valerio Moretti wasn’t just going to be my weapon.

He was going to be the fire that burned me alive.

He poured himself a drink, slow, like he had no rush in the world. He didn’t offer me any. Didn’t even move the bottle my way.

My throat was dry, but I sat up straighter. If he wanted to treat me like a shadow, fine. I’d make him see me sooner or later.

“You don’t eat?” His voice broke the silence, low but sharp.

I startled. My fork clattered against the plate, making me curse myself inside. “I… I do,” I said, hating how shaky my voice sounded.

His mouth twitched almost a smirk, but not quite. “Then eat.”

The food looked perfect. Rich, steaming, nothing like the scraps I’d had in days. My stomach turned, not from disgust, but because I knew what this was. A test. Was I going to throw myself at the food like a starving dog, or pretend I wasn’t hungry at all?

I forced myself to take small bites, slow, measured. Every chew tasted like dust. My body begged me to eat faster, but I held myself back. If he was watching, and I knew he was..then I couldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me desperate.

His glass clinked against the table. I looked up.

Those eyes. Cold, sharp, unreadable. Like two pieces of glass that could cut straight into me.

“You’re calmer than most,” Valerio said finally.

I blinked, unsure if I should answer. “Most?”

“Most girls scream. Beg. Cry. You don’t.” He leaned back in his chair, swirling his drink lazily. “Interesting.”

My nails dug into my palms. I wanted to tell him I wasn’t “most girls.” That I had already lost more than he could ever take from me. But I bit back the words. Too fast, and he’d see right through me.

Instead, I lowered my eyes just enough. “Maybe I’m too tired to scream.”

He chuckled, quiet but sharp. “Tired doesn’t look like that.”

My heart skipped. He saw through me. Just like that.

I forced a little smile, pretending not to care. “Then maybe I’m not like the others you’ve bought.”

The air froze between us.

His glass stilled. For the first time, his gaze sharpened..not lazy, not distant. He studied me with real attention, like I had stepped one inch too close to fire.

“You think you’re clever,” Valerio said, voice slow, almost amused. “Clever gets people killed in this house.”

I swallowed, but I didn’t drop my eyes. “So does being weak.”

For a moment, silence. My chest burned from holding my breath.

Then he laughed. Low, dark, dangerous. The sound filled the hall, echoed against the walls. My stomach twisted because it wasn’t the laugh of a man amused. It was the laugh of a man curious.

And curiosity, in the hands of Valerio Moretti, was lethal.

He stood. His chair scraped back, the sound scraping through my bones. He walked toward me slowly, like a predator circling prey.

I gripped the edge of the table to keep myself steady.

He stopped beside me, his presence towering, shadow heavy over my shoulders. He leaned down, close enough that I felt his breath brush my ear.

“Careful, Piccola,” he murmured, voice like smoke. “If you want to play with fire, make sure you’re ready to burn.”

A shiver ran through me, and I hated that my body betrayed me.

He straightened, stepping back. “Finish your food.”

And just like that, he turned and walked out of the hall, leaving me with untouched plates and a heart pounding too loud in my chest.

I let out a shaky breath.

I had wanted to test him. To make him notice me.

And he did.

But in that moment, I realized something I hadn’t expected.

Valerio Moretti didn’t just notice people.

He consumed them.

And if I wasn’t careful, I was next