Bastard!

Just my fucking luck! I'm stuck with a mafioso who likes to play games. 

I glower at him as satisfaction glints in his deep chestnut eyes, a corner of his lips twitches upwards.  

"Fine," I mutter through gritted teeth.

Elio shoves his hands into his black trousers' pockets. "Do you know what your father discussed in his last meeting with Sokolov?"

I frown with confusion. "What? The Russians? My dad stays away from them, whoever gave you this information was mistaken." I cross my arms but before I get the chance to ask a question, he shoots his.

"If you lie to me, I will kill you. As long as your answers are honest, expect the right answers from me. So, I repeat, what went down between your father and Ivan Sokolov?" The hardness in his gaze is a stark contrast to his relaxed stance.

I blink a few times and tilt my head slightly. "I told you the truth, my dad avoids Russians."

He purses his lips. "Why did he resign from his post as the prosecutor?"

I shrug. "Because it got boring. He was tired of tackling the same type of cases day in and out."

He eyes me suspiciously. I roll my eyes before scanning his desk and halt on the pistol. I can grab it and make a run for it, threaten anyone who gets close to me. It can be my ticket for getting out of here.

"Before you can reach that gun, I can put at least four bullets in you. And don't even bother to pretend like you know how to use a gun because I know you don't."

The smugness in his voice is enough to provoke me to slap him but I don't and instead settle on glaring at him.

"I know everything about you Cerise Campbell, there's no hiding or escaping me." He takes a step towards me.

The ominous tone of his words mingles with his deep voice and sends a chill crawling down my spine. I gulp and hold his gaze with as much bravery as I can muster.

"Why do you know so much about me?" I dare to question. Seems like a good place to start my interrogation.

"I know everything about my enemies. Ever heard Tieni i tuoi amici vicino... ed i tuoi nemici... ancora più vicino?" he pauses, arching his eyebrow mockingly. "Keep your friends close but your enemies closer, I strongly abide by that."

I scowl at him before questioning, "Do you keep tabs on every single prosecutor for this very reason?"

"No. Your father is my enemy, the man I will kill one day," his voice grows dangerously low as he leans down to me, his dark eyes locking with my green ones. "No matter the cost." He straightens himself abruptly, leaving me gawking at him as he continues, "And you are his daughter, so it's the most tactical thing to do."

My heart hammers, and dread pools in my core. The fear of losing Dad is like a bucket of ice water pouring over my head.

I harshly say, "Just because my dad was doing his job and sent your father to prison doesn't give you the right to monitor his every move and plan to kill him. I won't let you stay alive if you so much as think about harming him; I'll get the shoot-at-sight warrant and have you dead in less than a week."

"Do as you please Campbell," he spits, uttering my last name like it's acid on his tongue. "Why did you drop the Volkov case?"

I sigh heavily and tap my foot. "My dad told me to."

His eyes get a faraway gleam in them, fixing on the statue at the far end of the room. I scan his face to figure out his mood and perhaps in which direction his thoughts are headed but it's futile.

As he considers my words, I take the chance to survey him. His dark hair is neatly combed back and his black button-up shirt is smooth and ironed. Even though the first two buttons are undone, it still doesn't affect the perfect balance between appearing professional and casual at the same time.

I wonder if Elio has to attend a meeting or if it's just a habit, or perhaps an obligation, to appear so clean-cut.

"Why did he file for divorce from Daria?"

His question snaps me out of my observation and I snort, "What? Who the hell is Daria?"

His eyes widen.

"You're talking about my dad, Vincent Campbell, right?"

"Who else would I be asking about?" he incredulously shoots back.

I shift as I study the wooden cabinet on the other side of the room. "My mom was the only person he married and after their divorce, he didn't even date anyone, let alone marry."

Elio rubs his chin as he moves and sits on the edge of his mahogany desk. "So you're claiming he never got married to a woman named Daria?"

I nod.

"Where is she now?" he folds his arms, the muscles of his biceps flexing and bulging.

"How the hell am I supposed to know?" I huff. I don't even know who that woman is to start with.

"Have you ever worked on a case with your father?"

I shake my head and situate myself on the edge of the black armchair's armrest.

"Is there anything you know about your father?" He waves his hand with such force it's as if he's swatting the air.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!"

He groans and gets to his feet, with two long strides he places himself in front of me. Pressing his palms together, he leans down to my eye level. "You're his daughter, think, has he messed with the Vasiliev family?"

I squint and tilt my head in confusion. Now that is a name I've never heard before.

He curses under his breath. "Didn't you ever get curious why he doesn't let you tackle cases against Russians?" his voice raises, a hint of desperation underlying it, and it only makes me more confused.

"Because they're dangerous."

"And the Mexicans are not?" he counters back with disbelief.

"They're more," I offer, sounding unsure even to my own ears.

He runs his hand through his hair and curses under his breath again.

"Okay, I'm done being interrogated." I draw myself to my full height. "Why are you keeping me alive? Why are you protecting me and going against your family for me?" I demand.

For a long moment, he stares at me blankly.

"How can you be so stupid," he grumbles.

"How dare you call me stupid, you asshole," I fire back earning a death glare from him.

He closes the minimal space between us, his chestnut eyes bore into me as if they can see straight into my soul.

My heart pounds from our close proximity, his woody cologne scent is not helping either. The longer he gazes at me, the less I can think about anything that isn't his eyes and the golden rays in them.

"During the past few days, did it not once occur to you, the reason you're here in the first place, its occurrence was... slightly suspicious?" his eyebrows knot together.

I squint and tilt my head. Aaron dropping the flash drive?

Elio retreats a step, and a breath I didn't know I was holding slips past my parted lips.

"Out of blue, a guy decides to go on a date with you, and not a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing either, the date was decided at least a week beforehand. He chooses that very night to receive the USB from our associates, and carries it with him, putting it in the same pocket as his phone, while he's perfectly aware you're a prosecutor and the USB had everything about Cosa Nostra... it's almost like he was told to ensure you get it."

I chew my bottom lip as I ponder over his words.

"Conveniently, he drops it and leaves." He cocks his head to one side, as he adds with incredulity, "Don't tell me you were convinced it was dumb luck."

Shame gnaws my insides and warms me up. "But..." I start but words fail me.

He rolls his eyes heavenwards. "It was planned. I refuse to believe it was stupid luck. Someone wanted you to have that drive. Someone wants me to kill you and I don't intend to become anyone's puppet and get whoever this person is to reach their goal."

I rub my forearm as I gaze at the books neatly lined on the library racks on my right. Some of the titles are Italian, while a small portion is in Russian, but to my great surprise over half of the books are in English.

"What sort of prosecutor are you," he mutters.

My head snaps to him and I seethe, "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't get the chance to consider every other possibility out there because being kidnapped by the mob is not mind-boggling enough!"

He mumbles something I don't catch.

"But what if you're wrong? What if-" I begin but he cuts me off.

"Impossible." Elio shakes his head and runs his hand through his hair.

"It doesn't make sense." I throw my hands up in exasperation.

He purses his lips and squints at me. "It would've if only you knew your father better."

I bite my tongue to not cuss him again. I need answers and I can't piss him off right now. "What does this have to do with my Dad?"

He inhales sharply before releasing his breath in a heavy sigh.

"We'd been gathering information for the past few years over all the powerful Coscas. The initial plan was to join forces through blackmailing or deals, based on the information, whatever worked best, and bring down Vasiliev's business. They had the information and we used our associates to steal it from them." He sits back on the edge of his desk, absently fidgeting with the ring on his middle finger.

"To ensure Maxim Vasiliev doesn't figure out we're the ones behind this plan, we had to take a longer route, to avoid his people from putting the pieces together. Aaron was supposed to get the data and go straight to his captain, so he'd bring it directly to Pietro. But Aaron went on a date with you... left the data for you." With a sharp inhale he pushes himself off the desk and paces up and down the room.

My eyes follow his movements, taking in his narrowed eyes, tense shoulders, and his fidgeting fingers.

"There's not a single crime family that's not aware of the bad blood between the Campbells and Marianos. Whoever planned this ordeal, wants us to start a war. If I kill you, your father will be free to take whatever legal course necessary to get back at me, putting my family and my business at risk. I'll be busy handling him and other Coscas will be free to take over Fenice." He halts and rubs his eyes.

"It has to be either Vasiliev, Sokolov, or Belov, Daria Belov's family."

"But you can be wrong," I argue.

He shakes his head. "No, I've been thinking about it, this is the likeliest reason. They could've handed this information to any prosecutor, but they chose you. The first reason is you're one of the very few crime attorneys that doesn't possess any sort of protection, and the second reason is you're a Campbell. We were waiting for the information, so when it reaches your hands, we'd be the first to know. The first reaction from anyone in the Mariano family is to kill the Campbell."

I throw my head back.

This shit keeps getting crazier.

With my shoulders slumping and the grimness of the situation dawning on me, I lock my eyes with Elio and ask, "What's going to happen to me now?"

"I don't know," he sighs and rubs his face. "The only thing I'm certain about is that whoever planned this, either Vasiliev, Sokolov, or Belov, they want you dead. And whatever the aftermath of killing you might be, I'm positive it's not in my Cosca's favor."

"So that's the only reason you're keeping me alive?" I tilt my head, my gaze unwaveringly latched on him.

A long beat of silence passes between us. An undecipherable emotion flickers in his features for a heartbeat before it dies out. "Yes."

"But if they're after you, why use me? Or my dad?"

A cynical smile arches his full lips. "Your father is not as good as you think. But you're too blinded by the unreasonable trust you have towards him that no matter what I tell you, or show you, you won't believe it, so I'm not wasting my breath. You'll understand everything once you allow your narrowed mind to let go of this foolish, blind trust."

I purse my lips and glare at him. "You don't know him. In fact, you're the one who is blinded. He did his job by throwing your father in prison." I cross my arms in front of my chest.

"Whatever you wish to believe." He shoves his hands into his pockets. "I don't know the entire plan, nor do I know what this person's endgame is. I need more time to find out who this person is and what's their motive. For the time being, all I know is, you are the spark."

I frown with confusion. "Spark?"

A corner of his lips lifts upwards. "As Dante put it, 'Poca favilla gran fiamma seconda', A great flame follows a little spark."

With a long stride, he plants himself in front of me, invading my personal space once more today. Leans down to me, a noticeable gleam brings out the depths of his chestnut eyes as he finishes, "And you Cerise, are that spark."

❈ ☯︎ ❈

Well, now you know why he's keeping her alive xD I hope this answers all the questions regarding this matter =)

I hope the chapter wasn't confusing (and too long), and you enjoyed reading it (don't forget to vote if you did ^^) and comment your thoughts.

Stay safe, lots of love, happy reading ♡