OMERTÀ

The first rule of the Ricci estate was simple.

DO NOT LOOK AT THE CAPO!

Dalia broke it the moment his shadow filled the doorway.

She had felt him before she saw him. The shift in the air. The quiet fear that crept up her spine and settled between her shoulders like a warning. Men like Lucien Ricci did not announce themselves. They were sensed. Felt. Endured.

Everyone said he was ruthless. That his hands were stained with blood and power in equal measure. That once you belonged to him, you never truly left.

Dalia had never planned to belong to anyone.

She was just a maid. Quiet. Invisible. A girl with dreams tucked away where no one could touch them. Until his eyes landed on her and did not look away.

Until his voice said her name like it tasted good.

Until one command changed everything.

There was a moment, later, when she would understand that it had never been about choice. That desire had teeth. That power could be intoxicating when it wanted you back.

Lucien Ricci did not chase.

He waited.

And when Dalia knelt at the edge of his world, trembling but willing, he knew exactly what he would do.

He would ruin her carefully.

He would claim her completely.

And she would never be the same girl who walked into his room again.