The Gilded Cage

Chapter Two: Cesare

"So that's where she's been? Right underneath our noses," I muttered, staring at the letter sent by one of my spies.
"I must admit, she's smarter than any woman I've ever come across. To slip past your spies for three years is quite the feat," Gigi remarked, her tone tinged with reluctant admiration.
"Enough, Gigi. Or do you want to find another job?" I snapped, narrowing my eyes at my secretary and so-called friend.
"I'm merely voicing what we're all thinking. What do you plan to do now?"
"What else? I'm going to get her."
"And the child? They say the little boy is—"
"Don't finish that sentence," I interrupted sharply, my gaze hardening as I glared at her. Yes, I was impressed, but the anger simmered beneath the surface, barely contained. How had she managed to elude me for three years? After everything I had done for her, I made her what she is, and then she just disappeared. I wanted to wring her lovely neck... By the goddess, these last three years have been exhausting.
My deal with Adele Vivi had gone as smoothly as it could until she almost married Ezra Della Valle. I was on the verge of being free, but I fell for her. She was the most beautiful, stubborn, and intoxicating woman I had ever met. It was as if my soul called out to her, like a sailor lost at sea. I admit, I used her harshly, played with her as if she were merely an object for my amusement. But I never thought she would disappear for this long. Did she really think I wouldn't come looking for her? Her first mistake was contacting my mother—how on earth did she think she could keep that hidden from me?
Three years ago, the night Adele vanished from the Bonaparte manor is seared into my memory, a constant torment. We had been lying together in the dim light of my bedroom, the scent of roses still lingering in the air. Her skin had been warm against mine, her presence a balm to the restlessness that always gnawed at me. I remember the way she had looked at me, her golden eyes filled with something I couldn't quite name—was it resignation? Determination? I should have known then, when she kissed me so tenderly, as if she were saying goodbye.
But I was too blind to see it. I woke up determined to make her my wife. I left her to seek out my family's ring. I returned only a few hours later to find her gone. I searched the manor frantically, shouting her name, but there was nothing. No trace of her remained; clothes I had bought still hung in the wardrobe, jewelry was overflowing; the room seemed empty. It was as if she had never existed, like a ghost that had simply faded into the night.
"Damn it, Adele," I whispered to myself, clenching the letter tightly in my hand. She couldn't hide from me forever.
"How do you want to approach this?" Gigi's voice cut through my thoughts, pulling me back to the present.
I gave her a slow, calculated grin. "I have some ideas."