Chapter 3 - The Golden Cage
Lorenzo didn't pull a gun. He didn't summon his guards. Instead, he walked past Alina, slammed the heavy oak door shut, and locked it from the inside.
"Pack your things," he commanded coldly over his shoulder.
Alina’s heart stopped. "You're firing us? You're throwing us out?"
"I am moving you," Lorenzo turned, his gaze boring into hers with absolute authority. "From the servants' quarters to the master suite wing. Starting tonight, you are no longer a maid, Alina. And Mia is no longer a secret."
Panic surged through her. "I don't want your charity! I don't want a gilded cage! Just let us walk away—"
"You think you can walk away from a Morty?" Lorenzo laughed, a dark, humorless sound. "You survived in my house for six months under an assumed name, Alina. That takes either a rare kind of brilliance or a suicidal death wish. Either way, you belong to this house now. Both of you."
He crouched down again, looking at Mia, who was happily playing with the gold fringe of the Persian rug.
"Would you like to live in a big room with toy castles, little one?" Lorenzo asked her.
May you like
Mia beamed, clapping her hands. "Can Daddy stay there too?"
Lorenzo’s jaw tightened. He looked up at Alina, his expression a mix of dangerous fascination and heavy realization. "You heard her. The verdict has been cast."
