Chapter 3 - The Golden Cage
“You work for me,” Dominic said calmly.
Chloe stared at him, her chest heaving as she processed the proposal. “Work for you doing what? Tying up people in alleys?”
“I own legitimate businesses, Miss Miller,” Dominic replied, his tone ice-cold. “I own Laura, a high-end Italian restaurant downtown. Elegant. Fully legitimate. You have a degree in business administration, don’t you? I saw the papers in your jacket pocket when you dropped your bag back there.”
Chloe’s eyes widened slightly. She had completely forgotten about the folder containing her college transcripts.
“You handle the accounting, manage the floor staff, and oversee restaurant operations,” Dominic continued. “A generous portion of your weekly paycheck will go toward paying down the principal debt until our ledger is entirely clear.”
He paused, letting the weight of the offer settle over her. “Furthermore, you and Sam will move into a secure, fully furnished apartment in one of my residential buildings downtown. Rent-free. Sam gets enrolled in a proper private academy on Monday morning.”
Chloe stared at him across the table. The tailored designer suit. The terrifying bodyguard waiting outside. The black luxury SUV idling in the rain. The absolute quiet authority with which he commanded the room.
“You’re in the mob,” she said flatly.
“I’m a businessman with extensive interests,” Dominic corrected smoothly.
“I know what you are.”
“I am offering you a lifeline. You can say no right now, walk out that front door into the rain, and try negotiating your payment plan with Varga’s butchers.”
Chloe looked down at Sam. The boy was innocently scraping up the last pools of maple syrup from his plate, entirely unaware that his older sister was currently negotiating the entire course of their future across a greasy diner table.
If she walked out, Varga would find them by tomorrow night.
If she stayed, she was selling her soul to the devil in exchange for safety.
“If I do this,” Chloe said, her voice trembling slightly, “you leave Sam entirely out of it. He goes to school, he plays soccer, and he never, ever sees the inside of this world.”
“Done,” Dominic said without a second of hesitation.
“And when the forty thousand is paid in full every last cent?”
“When the debt is cleared, you walk away completely free. You can pack your bags and move to the other side of the country.”
Chloe closed her eyes for a long, agonizing moment. She knew there was no real choice here. She was trapped, but she was trapped with an exit strategy.
“I’ll work for you,” she whispered.
Dominic slid a clean paper napkin and a heavy silver fountain pen across the formica table. “Write down your current address and phone number. My men will pack your things and move you into the downtown apartment tomorrow morning by ten.”
May you like
As Chloe picked up the pen and began to write, her hand trembled slightly against the paper. Dominic watched her closely, feeling a strange, unfamiliar twist in his chest.
He had just purchased a debt ledger. But looking at her fierce, defiant eyes, he was already beginning to suspect that he had also purchased a massive, beautiful complication that his cold, calculated world was entirely unequipped to handle.
