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“No, that’s not true.” She blinks at me, her brows furrowed as she takes out her phone. “Oh shit. Um, the email has been sitting in my drafts folder for over a year.”

Joey shows a rare emotional reaction. “What the hell? How the fuck could you forget to send something like that?”

She puts her phone down and locks eyes with him. “Because as I was writing out the reply, a man burst into my office and put a gun to my head, my building blew up, and I had a concussion, hired your cousin, and rebuilt my business from the ground up.”

Joey sinks back into his seat. “That’s fair.”

She turns to me. “My apologies, Dimitri.”

I dismiss it. “No big deal. We haven’t been struggling, and I like my job. Accidents happen.” Alana doesn’t admit defeat or error often. Going with the instant forgiveness approach is fine.

She continues, “The Olympians are aware of the danger this incident has put the rest of you in.” This causes a stir from the Four Fathers. Arms are crossed and grumpy death stares are aimed at her. “They’re willing to offer each of the Four Families twenty million dollars to invest in security as you see fit.”

Instead of looking at this tremendous offer as a gift, the Four Fathers grumble. It’s my uncle who slams his hand on the table. “We wouldn’t need this gift if you just stayed in your fucking lane and let us handle our family business.”

Alana’s silence is deadly. They should know how dangerous disrespecting her will be. But no. Stuck in their old ways, they’re terrified to share power.

A chair screeches against the floor, and everyone stops what they’re doing. All eyes turn to Nonna—the last grandma. She’s diminutive, but has lived through more death and destruction than all of us combined. “Alana did exactly what I paid her to do.”

There is a collective confusion. Mouths hang open, drying out tongues, and no one moves in case they were to cause the sleeping lioness to stir.

Nonna points to the other fathers. “And what your mothers paid her to do.”

She’s half the size of most of the men in the room, but what this grandmother lacks in stature, she makes up for in authorityand intimidation. “You spent most of your sons’ lives in prison, Carlos.” The head of the Mexican cartel hangs his head. “You kept our best asset out of the fold because you were scared of what she could become.” Duncan McLeod opens his mouth but closes it again. “My own son let his daughter think she was unwanted and couldn’t be bothered to drive a few states away to bring her scared and confused ass home.” Then, with laser-pointed anger, she stares across the table at my uncle. “And you are the biggest disgrace of all. You sent your own son to die because you didn’t like who he loves.” She spits on the table. “Your mother would be horrified if she knew how many of her predictions about the future came true. On her deathbed, she begged us to find someone who could protect the future of our family.” Nonna puts her hand on Alana’s and her tone softens. “Babushka would’ve loved you.”

“I wish I could have met her.” Alana nods.

Nonna’s eyes narrow on the four men again. “I won’t be here forever, and clearly, you are incapable of preserving our legacy.”

The men drum their fingers on the table, glance up at the ceiling or grumble under their breath, but they collectively do what they can to avoid eye contact with the last of the mothers.

She glances over to us, the next generation, the future. I’ve never felt like I really belonged—more like I was an imposter or someone people took pity on. But she locks eyes on me as she states, “You are our future, no matter what form it might take.”

I feel the crushing weight of another responsibility I’m not prepared to take on.

“We are all family, no matter what our fate may be. But we are stronger and better together, because we bring in allies who are brave and have access to resources we do not.” Nonna says something in Italian and makes the sign of the cross.

And for a flicker of a second, Alana’s lips curl up in the corner. Did she just smile? What sort of a future do we have if even Alana has hope?