In His Grasp: A Mafia Romance novel Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Agreed to Move

Isabella sighed as she realized it was time to pay the rent. In the past, her mother had taken care of the rent, sending her the money each month to cover it. But now, with Emanuele in control of everything, the thought of asking him for rent money was a disaster in itself.

Isabella decided to pay the rent with her credit card for now and planned to find a part-time job on weekends to make extra money. She was confident that once she became a full-time employee at the hospital, her salary would increase.

She didn't believe for a second that she couldn't make it on her own.

Today, she had been involved in a critical patient's rescue at the hospital, which kept her working until nine in the evening.

Isabella made her way home with her tired body.

To be honest, although these days were exhausting, she found herself content as long as Emanuele wasn't interfering. She enjoyed the simple busyness that made her feel grounded.

But now, she wasn't alone. Two bodyguards were constantly trailing her. While she had found them annoying before, today, after the near-accident with the car, she realized how their presence had potentially saved her life. She had started to appreciate their company again.

Isabella reached her apartment's door and pulled out her keys to unlock it. However, as she glanced at the rug on the floor, she suddenly became alert.

Isabella looked at Harry and Tony. They were professional bodyguards and immediately picked up on her change in demeanor.

Both of them discreetly drew their pistols, slightly crouching as they approached the door. They gestured for Isabella to step back and urged her to call Emanuele.

Call that devil? Isabella didn't want to, but she knew this wasn't the time to act on emotion. The rug on her doorstep was skewed, and the potted plant by the wall had been moved. She had been living here for a while, and this was the first time something like this had happened. It seemed likely that someone had tampered with her apartment.

Isabella reluctantly made the call to Emanuele.

He answered quickly. Isabella spoke softly, "Emanuele, there's someone in my apartment."

"Wait there; I'm coming over. Tell Harry and Tony not to make any sudden moves," Emanuele replied, showing his ruthless and calculated nature. He knew exactly how to handle a situation like this.

Isabella promptly typed Emanuele's instructions on her phone and showed them to Tony and Harry. They both signaled their understanding with an OK sign.

They didn't know how many people were inside, armed with mysterious weapons. With only two professional bodyguards, they would be at a disadvantage. Their best course of action was to wait at the door for Emanuele and his team.

Isabella's muscles tensed with anxiety. She had never been this vigilant before. But recent events had made her paranoid. What if someone believed she was the mafia princess and had infiltrated her apartment for revenge?

Finally, Isabella gritted her teeth and called Emanuele. There was no room for irrational emotions. Her rug was displaced, and it was the first time she had encountered such a situation. She was sure more than one person was involved.

As Isabella nervously made the call, her heart raced. She couldn't return to her old, ordinary life anymore.

Emanuele received Isabella's call and rushed over immediately with a small team. Some climbed along the windows, as her apartment was on the sixth floor, while others charged in through the front door.

Before taking action, Emanuele told Isabella, "Go wait in the car."

He handed her the car keys.

As she looked at Emanuele's intense face in the dark of the night, Isabella's heart inexplicably quickened. He had always threatened to kill her before, but when real danger arrived, he had come to her first.

Isabella realized she didn't know anything. She knew nothing about what was happening here. Staying here would only cause trouble for others. With that thought, she went downstairs, clutching the car keys.

As the elevator doors closed, she saw Emanuele's men forcefully enter her apartment. Gunshots echoed.

God, please keep Emanuele safe.

Isabella had never imagined that she would be praying for Emanuele.

She sat in Emanuele's car, anxiously staring out of the window, waiting for nearly an hour before Emanuele finally emerged from the apartment.

In the dimly lit night, Emanuele's imposing figure resembled a towering mountain, robust and powerful. He held a gun in his hand, radiating an aura of cold-blooded determination. Yet, in that moment, Isabella found herself not as afraid of him as before.

She immediately got out of the car and approached Emanuele. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt?" She could smell the strong scent of blood on him and was genuinely concerned that he might be injured.

"I'm fine," Emanuele replied, holstering his gun. "But those damn bastards paid a heavy price."

However, he couldn't help but feel regret that the intruders were not from the Sicilian mafia but a small gang trying to operate in his territory. Somehow, they had noticed Isabella and attempted to kidnap her to use as leverage against him. This had ended disastrously for them, with his entire gang facing the consequences.

Emanuele's disdain for Isabella had diminished somewhat. She had been perceptive enough to detect someone in her apartment. In his eyes, she was beginning to show the qualities of a mafia princess.

Isabella, upon hearing Emanuele's chilling words, didn't feel much sympathy for the intruders either. She was starting to understand Emanuele's perspective. Sometimes, when you were deeply embroiled in the underworld, if you didn't kill, you'd be killed.

She felt like the unluckiest person. Despite her efforts to avoid such situations, she found herself getting deeper and deeper into them.

"Isabella, do you still think you want to continue living here?" Emanuele asked her.

"I like living here," Isabella replied. She had been living in this place for years. Initially, she had shared the apartment with her mother, but her mother had moved out when she started a relationship with Leo. Isabella had lived here alone ever since. This danger was likely temporary, right?

"I regret to inform you, Isabella, that there's blood everywhere in your room now. Your lovely pale-yellow bedsheets are soaked in blood. I can't be sure if that guy we shot is still alive, but if he isn't, then your apartment now houses a dead body-a typical horror scene. Are you sure you still want to stay in a place like this?" Emanuele described the situation vividly, and Isabella's heart skipped a beat. This man would make a great horror storyteller, describing such a horrifying scene in such detail.

The thought of her warm, carefully decorated apartment now being tainted with death and her bed, where she had slept, being occupied by a corpse sent shivers down her spine.

This was beyond terrible; she was on the verge of losing her mind.

Emanuele extended his hand, gently running his fingers through her hair. With his touch, Isabella couldn't help but catch another whiff of the intense smell of blood that clung to him. She also noticed the dark stain on his black clothes, like a deadly poison, a gruesome reminder of what had transpired moments ago.

He had just taken someone's life, and his clothes were stained with the dead man's blood. Yet, he was so close to her now.

But even more pressing was the question of what she should do next.

Her apartment was no longer inhabitable, even if the immediate danger had passed. She was terrified to return there.

Isabella closed her eyes, trying to hide her vulnerability in front of Emanuele. After a while, she opened her eyes and looked at him. "I agree to move."