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Tony nods. “Yes, boss.”

All this time, the snake was in our backyard, and we had no clue. She was the one who taught me how to get close to Matteo. The one I confided in when the pain got too heavy. I thought she was my friend, but I was wrong.

Trust is a dangerous game in this world—and if today proved anything, it’s that putting it in the wrong hands can get you killed.

I shake my head in complete and utter disbelief. “She said I was meant to die… like the one before me.” I swallow hard, tears burning. “She killed her, Matteo. She killed her.”

I don’t realize I am crying until I taste the saltiness of the tears on my lips. As one tear falls, another comes in its place, and soon I am sobbing softly.

My husband pulls me closer into his chest. He soothes my back, holding me tight to his chest—and I cling to him like he’s the only thing holding the world together. Because right now, he is.

28

MATTEO

Maria is wrapped in the sheets beside me, her breathing soft, steady. One of her hands rests near my chest, fingers slightly curled, as if even in sleep, she’s reaching for me. I kiss the top of her head, and she stirs a little and moves in to capture more of my warmth. She sighs and settles back into her sleep.

After the debrief, I took her to our room and lay beside her until sleep finally took over. I held her while she stared at the windows that looked out to the skyline. She didn’t speak. She didn’t cry. She just allowed me to hold her.

She is struggling. I know that much. She trusted this woman, and I believe, to some extent, she was friends with Emily. It hurts to feel so betrayed by someone, to have them come into your life and then try to tear it all apart.

My blood seethes again as I think of the lengths Giacomo has gone to. He’s the one who sent her—Emily. The woman I’ve known for years—the one Beatrice trusted and hired—is the one who did this. Not only did she kill Beatrice, but she tried to kill Maria.

There will be hell to pay for what she did.

I am livid. How could I have been so blind?

The conversation from earlier replays in my mind, vivid and sharp as a blade. I had stormed into the study, and Dario and Valerio were already there, grim-faced, waiting.

I had barely stepped two feet into the room when Dario grabbed me by the collar.

I remove his hand and shove him away. “Watch it, Dario. You’re here because I let you be.”

Dario has always been a hothead. “How the fuck do you let this happen? The help? Really, Matteo? You used to be more vigilant than this.”

“Do you think that I don’t know? This caught me off guard, but make no mistake—I will have her head on a silver platter.”

“Not before I feed her to my dogs. The bitch pulled a knife on my wife. Someone will have to answer for that.” Dario is fuming, and for good reason. His wife was also caught in the crossfire. “First, you have your Giacomo mess, and now this? What the fuck is going on in your life, Davacalli? Were they working together?”

“It can be assumed so,” Valerio speaks up for the first time. “We went to her apartment, and we found some wire transfers on her computer from Giacomo.”

The rage scorched my muscles. I feel it take over every inch of my body. I feel like I am seconds away from exploding, so much so that I feel the steam coming out of my ears.

“Beatrice…” Her name leaves my lips, and I go still.

Valerio looks at me solemnly. “He planned her death, Matteo. Everything seems to point to that. It all makes sense. He said he was going to take everything from you that you took from him. Beatrice and—” He cuts himself off before he can say my son’s name.

Dario clicks his tongue on the roof of his mouth. “I know that he’s not your son. Talk.”

“What? How?” Valerio looks at Dario suspiciously.

“After you warned me about Giacomo and what he is peddling in the streets, I decided to do my due diligence. I uncovered a lot of shit that you all tried to keep hidden—like the fact that Beatrice was sold to Gia and you saved her from the abusive bastard and married her to place her under your protection.”

“Well shit, can no one keep a secret these days?” Valerio throws his arms up dramatically. “I don’t need to remind you that what you just said is extremely private information that should not be divulged to anyone, including your wife.”

“She already knows; in fact, she is the one who made the deduction when she saw Giacomo at the gala. She said that you look nothing like your only heir, while Daniele carries very similar features to Giacomo and your wife.” Dario looks at me like it’s the most obvious deduction. To be fair, he isn’t wrong. “The only question that remains right now is what the fuck are we going to do about this?”

“We?” I cross my arms over my chest.