Bianca's POV
The car stopped so fast that I hit my head on the window.
"Get out," Marco said.
I looked through the glass at the biggest house I'd ever seen. It was dark gray stone with tall windows that looked like eyes watching me. Iron gates surrounded it like a prison.
"I can't do this," I whispered.
"You already agreed," Marco said. "Too late now."
My hands were shaking as I opened the car door. The cold air hit my face like a slap. I wanted to run, but where could I go? These men would find me. They would hurt Mama.
"Walk," the big man said behind me.
My legs felt like water, but I forced myself to move. Each step on the stone path sounded too loud. My heart was beating so fast I thought everyone could hear it.
The front door opened before we reached it. A woman in a black dress stood there. She had gray hair and sharp eyes that looked me up and down.
"So," she said. "You're the replacement."
"I'm Bianca," I said.
"Not anymore." She stepped back to let us in. "You're Alessia now. Remember that."
The inside of the house was even scarier than the outside. Dark wood everywhere. Paintings of serious-looking people staring down at me. It smelled like old money and secrets.
"Where is he?" Marco asked the woman.
"His office. He's been waiting."
Marco grabbed my arm. "Come on."
We walked down a long hallway. My shoes made clicking sounds on the marble floor. I tried to remember everything Alessia had told me about her life, but my mind was blank with fear.
"Remember," Marco said quietly. "You love him. You've been excited about this wedding. You're happy to be here."
"But I'm not happy," I said.
"Pretend."
We stopped at a big wooden door. Marco knocked twice.
"Enter," a voice said from inside.
The voice was deep and cold. It made my skin crawl.
Marco pushed open the door. The room was dark except for a lamp on a huge desk. Behind the desk sat a man.
Even in the shadows, I could see he was tall. His hair was black, and his shoulders were wide. But it was his eyes that made me freeze. They were golden like a wolf's eyes. And they were staring right at me.
"Alessia," he said. But he didn't sound happy.
"Hello, Leo," I said. My voice came out as a whisper.
He stood up slowly. Now I could see how big he was. He had to be over six feet tall. His suit was expensive, but it couldn't hide the fact that he looked dangerous. Like he could hurt someone without thinking twice.
"Come closer," he said.
I took a step forward. Then another. My legs felt like they might give out.
Leo walked around his desk. Each step was careful, like a hunter stalking prey. When he got close enough, I could smell his cologne. It was dark and woodsy.
"You're beautiful," he said. But he said it like he was talking about a painting, not a person.
"Thank you," I whispered.
He reached out and touched my face. His fingers were cold. I tried not to flinch.
"You look exactly like the pictures," he said.
"I hope that's good," I said.
"It's perfect." But his eyes were studying me like I was a puzzle he was trying to solve.
Marco cleared his throat. "I'll leave you two alone."
"No," I said too quickly. "Don't go."
Leo's eyes got colder. "Afraid of me already?"
"I'm not afraid," I lied.
"Good. Because fear is weakness. And I don't marry weak women."
Marco left anyway. The door closed behind him with a soft click. Now it was just me and Leo in the dark room.
"Sit," Leo said, pointing to a chair.
I sat down quickly. The chair was leather and too big for me. I felt like a little kid in it.
Leo went back behind his desk. He poured himself a drink from a crystal bottle. The liquid was brown and looked strong.
"Want some?" he asked.
"No thank you."
"Smart girl. This isn't for children."
The way he said it made me angry. I wasn't a child. I was twenty-six years old. I'd been taking care of myself since I was eighteen.
"I'm not a child," I said.
Leo smiled for the first time. But it wasn't a nice smile. It was sharp and cold.
"No," he said. "You're not."
He sat down and looked at me for a long time. I tried not to fidget, but it was hard. His stare made me feel naked.
"Tell me about yourself," he said finally.
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything. Your favorite color. Your favorite food. What you do for fun."
I thought about what Alessia would say. "I like blue. I love pasta. I read books."
"What kind of books?"
My mind went blank. What did Alessia like to read? I couldn't remember.
"Romance," I said finally.
Leo's eyes got even colder. "Romance. How sweet."
"Don't you like romance?"
"I like reality. Romance is for people who can't handle the real world."
"The real world is hard," I said. "Sometimes people need something beautiful to believe in."
"Beauty is a lie," Leo said. "And lies get people killed."
The words hit me like a punch. Did he know? Did he know I was lying about everything?
"I'm not lying," I said.
"Everyone lies," Leo said. "The question is whether you're good at it."
He stood up again and walked to the window. Outside, it was getting dark. The shadows made his face look like a mask.
"Do you know what I do for a living?" he asked.
"Business," I said.
"What kind of business?"
I thought about what Marco had said. About the Cavalcanti family and their reputation. About the fear in people's eyes when they heard the name.
"I don't know," I said honestly.
"I hurt people," Leo said simply. "When they don't pay their debts. When they betray my family. When they lie to me."
My blood turned to ice. "I'm not lying to you."
"Aren't you?"
He turned around and looked at me again. This time, his stare was different. It was like he could see inside my head.
"You're scared," he said.
"A little."
"Of me?"
"Of this whole situation."
"Good. You should be scared."
Leo walked back to his desk and picked up a photograph. He looked at it for a long time, then put it down.
"I've been thinking about this wedding," he said. "About whether it's what I really want."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean maybe I should call it off."
My heart stopped. If he called off the wedding, what would happen to Mama? What would Marco do to me?
"Please don't," I said.
"Why not?"
"Because I..." I stopped. I almost said because I needed this. Because my mother was dying. Because I had no choice.
"Because you what?"
"Because I want to marry you," I lied.
Leo laughed. It was a cold, bitter sound.
"You want to marry me? You don't even know me."
"I know enough."
"What do you know?"
"I know you're successful. I know you're strong. I know you'll protect me."
"Protect you from what?"
From you, I thought. From Marco. From this whole nightmare.
"From whatever comes," I said.
Leo studied me for another long moment. Then he picked up the photograph again.
"This was taken last month," he said. "The woman in this picture. She was supposed to be my wife."
I knew it was a picture of Alessia. But I pretended I didn't.
"She's beautiful," I said.
"She was beautiful. She was also curious. She asked too many questions."
"What happened to her?"
Leo's eyes met mine. "She died."
"I'm sorry."
"Are you? Because you're here to take her place."
"I'm here because I want to be."
"No," Leo said quietly. "You're here because someone made you come."
I opened my mouth to deny it, but no words came out. How did he know?
"You're not her," Leo said. "You look exactly like her. Same face, same body, same voice. But you're not her."
"I don't understand."
"She moved like she owned the world. You move like you're afraid of it."
"I'm not afraid."
"She would have asked me about my business. About my family. About what I expect from a wife. You're just sitting there hoping I don't figure out whatever secret you're hiding."
My mouth went dry. "I'm not hiding anything."
"Everyone is hiding something," Leo said. "The question is whether it's worth killing for."
He walked around the desk again. This time, when he got close, I could see the danger in his eyes. Real danger. The kind that ended with people disappearing.
"You're not Alessia," he said. "You're nothing like her."
Then he walked to the door. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it might break my ribs.
"Wait," I called after him.
He stopped with his hand on the doorknob. "Yes?"
"Where are you going?"
Leo looked back at me one more time. His golden eyes were like fire in the dark.
"To make a phone call," he said. "Someone needs to pay for this deception."
Then he was gone, leaving me alone in the dark office with the terrible knowledge that he knew I wasn't Alessia. And if he knew that, then he knew I was lying about everything.
Which meant I was about to die.