Chapter 7 - A Dangerous Game
The next few days were a lesson in luxury and fear.
I was given a suite of rooms that were larger than my entire apartment.
I was given clothes that cost more than I made in a year.
But I was also given a team of guards who followed me even to the bathroom.
Gemma was recovering,
but she was a shadow of her former self.
She spent her days staring out the window,
clutching her silver ring.
"He’s going to kill him,
Clara,"
she whispered one afternoon.
"Dominic is going to kill our uncle."
"He has to,"
I said,
though the thought made my stomach churn.
"It’s him or us."
That night,
Dominic came to my room.
He was dressed in a tuxedo,
looking like a dark prince from a fairy tale.
"There’s a gala tonight,"
he said.
"The Morettis will be there."
"And my uncle."
"I need you there,
Clara."
"Why me?"
I asked,
looking at the black silk dress on the bed.
"Because they think you’re my weakness,"
he said.
"They think if they target you,
I’ll falter."
"I want them to see that you’re not a weakness."
"You’re my partner."
The word 'partner' sent a thrill through me.
I put on the dress,
the fabric feeling like a second skin.
I put on the diamonds he had left on the vanity.
I looked in the mirror and didn't recognize the girl staring back.
She looked powerful.
She looked dangerous.
When we arrived at the gala,
every eye in the room turned toward us.
Dominic held my hand,
his fingers interlaced with mine.
We walked through the crowd like royalty,
the air parting before us.
I saw the Scarred Man from the lighthouse in the corner.
I saw the uncle,
a man who looked so much like Dominic it was chilling.
"Smile,
Clara,"
Dominic whispered in my ear.
"Let them see how happy you are to be a Russo."
I smiled,
but my heart was racing.
I realized then that this was the game.
May you like
A game of masks and hidden daggers.
And I was finally learning how to play.
