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“We need to get out of here,” I whisper. “Tony should be just outside.”

Ginny nods, her hand tightens around mine, and we take off for the door. The only thing I can think about is the promise I made to my husband before he left.

Stay alive…If I have only one reason to survive, then it will be him.

Ginny and I race to the door, our footsteps pounding against the marble floors of the penthouse. We rip the door open and see Tony already there with his weapon drawn. I let out a scream and move to the side.

Tony has his eyes set behind me, and he moves into the penthouse. “Boss is on the way, get out of here, Maria.”

I don’t need to be told twice. I race with Ginny down the hallway and toward the elevator. When the doors open, I am met with a pair of familiar eyes. Without a second thought, I launch myself at him, not sure how he got to me so quickly.

“Amore.” Matteo buries his nose into the crook of my neck. “Are you okay?”

I don’t speak. I simply allow him to hold me. My body trembles as the last of the adrenaline seeps away.

“Gin, I got your message.” Dario is beside my husband, and he gathers his wife into his arms. “What the hell happened?”

I pull away from my husband, now noticing that he’s holding the elevator door open. I walk out into the hallway, now feeling safe with him here. Tears brim in my eyes.

He always somehow makes it just in time to save the day. “You’re here.”

“I am.” He cups the side of my face. “What the hell happened, Maria?”

I shake my head, not even knowing where to begin. “Emily… she was behind it. The poisoning. From the start.”

I swallow hard. “And she… she said I was meant to die… like her.”

A beat of silence.

Matteo stiffens. His breath hitches.

Then his whole body tenses, like a loaded gun cocked and ready.

His grip at my waist tightens—not to hurt, but to anchor. To keep himself from shattering.

“What did you just say?” he asks, quietly. Too quiet.

His jaw is clenched, stone-hard. A storm flickers behind his eyes.

“She said I was meant to die like Beatrice,” I whisper again.

He exhales—slow and sharp. Fury coils around every line of his body.

Tony comes back, panting for breath. “Boss—she’s gone.”

“Gone?” Ginny and I say at the same time.

No, no, there is no way that she can be gone. I saw her unconscious body lying on the floor only seconds before he arrived.

“What?” Matteo’s tone is ice-cold, but I can hear the fury brewing underneath it.

Tony shakes his head, almost like he too is in disbelief. “I searched the house. She’s not there. I think she may have taken the secret elevator in the kitchen. There are no other exit points but the front door.”

A shudder runs through me. The last thing I saw was her body hitting the ground. She should still be there. A part of me thinks I should’ve killed her. I should’ve taken the chance—ended it then and there.

But I’m not a killer.

Matteo exhales sharply, his jaw clenching. His grip on my waist tightens as if grounding himself. “Don’t just stand there. Gather the fucking men and find her. I want eyes on every street, every alley. Lock this fucking city down. You find that bitch and you bring her to me alive. And get Valerio on this and debrief him. I need all hands on deck for this one.”