His To Ruin: The Mafia Don’s Favorite Sin

Chapter 002

ISABELLA

Air vanishes from my lungs when I hear those words. I stumble back, the room spinning wildly around me and a loud, incessant ringing buzzes in my ears, drowning out everything else.

Collateral?

My own father used me as collateral? With Luca Moretti?

I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping this is some feverish nightmare I can wake up from. But when I open them, Luca is still here, watching me.

My mouth goes dry, and the only word I manage to choke out is, “What?”

Luca tilts his head slightly, his expression one of detached curiosity as if he is observing a bug pinned under a glass. Then slowly, he turns his gaze to my father, and the look in his eyes says it all: Explain yourself.

“Isabella,” my father croaks, his voice cracking in shame. “I—I didn’t have a choice. I was desperate. But I’ll fix this, I swear. I’ll pay him back.”

My mother’s sobs grow louder, her hands clutching my father’s arm like she can hold him together while my brother’s eyes dart between us, his face pale with fear.

Luca’s jaw tightens, a flicker of irritation crossing his face before it vanishes. He steps forward, his presence growing heavier with each step.

“Enough.” He snaps without looking at my father.

Then his gaze locks onto me. “Your father thinks he can pay me back. He’s lying.” He leans in closer, his voice dropping. “Two million dollars doesn’t just appear, dolcezza. And he doesn’t have it.”

I swallow hard, my throat burning.

My father’s breath comes in panicked gasps. “I—I just need time. Please, Don Luca. Give me more time.”

Luca straightens, but he doesn’t even spare my father a glance. “He’s had enough time.”

The floor seems to vanish beneath my feet. My mind screams that there has to be another way out, that this can’t be real. But the reality is staring me in the face, draped in a perfect black suit.

I’m not a person anymore. I’m a debt, a payment. And Luca Moretti has come to collect.

Betrayal stabs through me like a knife as I look at my father. My heart shatters into pieces and I feel bitterness spreading through my veins. I can’t believe it, I refuse to believe it. I refuse to believe the man who raised me, who was supposed to protect me, has just handed me over to a fate I can’t even understand.

Every choice I’ve made to avoid men like Luca Moretti, every careful step I’ve taken, now feels like a cruel joke. My father hasn’t just failed me, he’s sold me. Like I’m nothing more than a piece of property. And for what? To pay off a debt? To save himself?

My hands tremble as I wipe the tears off my cheeks. I force myself to stand tall even though my knees feel ready to buckle. “That agreement was between you and my father. I have nothing to do with it.” My voice wobbles, but I force the words out.

Luca doesn’t say anything right away. His cold eyes narrow, then, to my shock, he smiles. He points to the door in an almost casual gesture.

“You can leave.”

I freeze. Is he serious? Can I really just walk out?

I take a hesitant step toward the door, but before I can take another, Luca’s voice echoes.“Your father’s fate is in your hands now.”

He c***s the gun and my breath hitches. I turn back to him, my heart pounding. “Please,” I whisper, my voice breaking. “Please don’t do this.”

Luca’s face is emotionless as he walks toward me. My legs give out, and I sink to my knees, shaking. “Please… spare my family. Spare me.”

He stops in front of me, towering over me. Without a word, he lifts my chin with the barrel of the gun, forcing me to look up into his icy eyes.

“Isabella,” he says, his voice low and calm. “My rules are the f*****g law. Save yourself, or save this man you call a father.”

I glance at the dead body on the floor, and the blood pooling around it. This is real. Luca isn’t bluffing.

I turn to my father, his hands tied, his eyes full of fear and regret. Anger burns through me but helplessness as well. No matter what he’s done, I can’t let him die. I can’t let Luca destroy my family over money. I can’t let Anton or my mum mourn my dad.

So I take a shaky breath and slowly nod. “I’ll go with you,” I say.

*************

I sit in Luca’s office, my mind spinning out of control because everything has happened so fast. One minute I’m sipping coffee, the next I’m here, facing Luca Moretti after making the hardest decision of my life. I’ve handed myself over to him to save my family, but nothing about this feels right.

My brother’s terrified eyes, my mother’s sobs—those images replay over and over in my head. I’ve done this to protect them, but the weight of that choice is crushing me.

Luca doesn’t say a word as he slides a bundle of documents across the desk.

“What’s this?” I ask, trying to keep my voice steady.

“Read it,” he says.

My eyes skim the document until a line makes me freeze:

“SUBJECT ACKNOWLEDGES THAT HER BODY AND OBEDIENCE ARE BOUND TO THE UNDERSIGNED.”

My throat tightens, and I turn the page with trembling fingers.

“SUBJECT MUST ADHERE TO HIS COMMANDS WITHOUT QUESTIONS OR RESISTANCE.”

I look up at him, and he just sits there, his unreadable gaze fixed on me.

“This contract is…” I start, blinking repeatedly as I collect my thoughts. “It’s…”

“Exactly what your father agreed to,” he finishes.

I hate that my father has betrayed me like this and just thinking about it makes my chest hot with anger and bitterness.

“I’m not my father,” I say, my voice hard. “Two million dollars is nothing to someone like you. You’re doing this because you’re heartless.”

Luca’s eyes darken, and I immediately regret my words as the air in the room seems to drop ten degrees. Is he going to punish me for that? Am I about to make things worse?

“You’ve got spirit,” he finally says. “I like that.”

My jaw tightens, teeth digging into my lip. I hate that he treats my anger like it’s some kind of amusement. I want so badly to spit on him, to make him feel a fraction of what I’m feeling, but I know one wrong move and he’d kill me without a second thought.

“Are you really doing this for money?” I ask. “Is that the real reason you’re terrorizing my family?”

He scoffs, then pulls out his phone and pushes it across the table toward me. I hesitate for a second, my heart hammering, before leaning forward and stealing a glance at the screen.

What stares back at me are dead bodies, torn limbs, and blood everywhere. My stomach twists, bile rising hot in my throat, and I clamp my jaw shut, desperate to keep it together.

Luca’s voice slices through my haze. “Do you know who’s responsible for these deaths?”

I say nothing, unable to tear my eyes away from the horrific images.

He doesn’t wait for me to answer. “It’s your father.”

The words hit me like a slap, and I raise my head to look at him. “No,” I whisper, staring back at the image. I can’t believe it. “No, that’s not possible.”

“Your father isn’t some saint, Isabella. He’s weak, but he’s just as vile.” He suddenly slams his hand on the table, the force of his anger making me flinch. “He organized a bombing to cover up the money he stole from me,” he continues. “Sixteen people died, including my nephew.”

I can’t speak. The world around me starts to feel unreal. The images on his phone, the accusations… my father, involved in something like this?

“No,” I manage, my voice trembling. “My father wouldn’t do that.”

He stares me down. “He offered you up so quickly, I thought maybe you were ugly or retarded. But what kind of father does that?”

My heart races and I say the first thing that comes to mind. “But you left him no choice.”

He leans in. “Correct. No one steals from me and gets a choice. Your father killed sixteen of my men. Every breath he takes is mercy. Every step he takes is because I allow it. And you,” he says, his gaze sharpening, “are mine now. Until your father repays everything he owes me.”

I’m shaking as I manage to meet his gaze. “What do you plan to do with me?”

He leans back in his chair. “Your father killed the only heir to the DeLuca empire. So, you’re going to have to make me one.”

I flinch, my heart skipping a beat. “What?”

He doesn’t hesitate before repeating. “You’ll give me a f*****g heir.”