Page 90

Leonardo takes the phone, his fingers brushing mine with reluctance. "If anything happens to her?—"
"You'll kill me. Get in line." I step back, giving him space.
Leonardo stares at the phone, hesitation written in every line of his body. His thumb hovers over the screen, not quite committing.
"I need to see her," he says finally, eyes hard with distrust. "Not just hear her voice."
This wasn't part of the plan but I understand his caution. In our world voice recordings can be easily faked.
"Fine." I take the phone back.
Leonardo watches me like a hawk, tracking every movement of my fingers.
The line connects after two rings. "Report." Damiano's voice comes through, crisp and authoritative.
"Change of plans," I say, keeping my voice neutral. "Leonardo wants visual confirmation."
There's a brief pause. I can picture Damiano's face—the slight narrowing of his eyes as he recalculates.
But it's Melania's voice that answers, surprising me. "Alessio? Is everything okay?"
My chest tightens at the sound of her voice. I fight to keep my expression neutral with Leonardo's eyes boring into me.
"Your brother wants FaceTime," I explain. "He needs to see you."
"Put it on speaker," Leonardo demands, stepping closer. I comply, holding the phone between us.
"Leo?" Melania's voice fills the space between us and I watch a crack appear in Leonardo's carefully controlled expression.
"Mel." Just one syllable but it carries a weight of relief. "I need to see you. Now."
"Of course," she says immediately.
Seconds later, the phone vibrates with an incoming video call.
I answer and hold it up, angling the screen toward Leonardo while keeping myself partially out of frame.
Melania's face appears and the change in Leonardo is immediate. His shoulders drop and the murderous strain leaks out of him as he takes in his sister's appearance.
"Thank God," he breathes, reaching for the phone. I let him take it, stepping back to give him the illusion of privacy while still monitoring every word.
"Leo." Melania's smile is watery but genuine. "I'm okay, I promise."
"Where are you? What happened?" The questions tumble out of him, his composure cracking further with each one.
"It's... complicated," she says. "But I'm safe. Safer than I was with Papa and Raymond."
Leonardo's eyes flick to me, then back to the screen. "You trust him?" He doesn't need to specify who he means.
Melania's answer comes without hesitation. "Yes. With my life."
CHAPTER 31
Istare at Leo's face on the screen, the familiar angles of his jaw, the same eyes that match mine but carry a harder edge. Seeing him gives me a ton of solace but tension still coils in my stomach.
"Now it's your time to trust me, Leo," I say.
His brow furrows. "What does that mean?"