Page 120 of Lupo

"Mama, how much longer?" Elena asks. "I want to see Daddy."

"Soon, baby." I press a kiss to her head, trying to memorize the feel of her. The smell of her hair. The weight of her against me.

In case this is the last time I get to hold her.

In case these men decide we're more useful dead than alive.

All I can do is hold my daughter and pray.

Pray that somehow Lupo knows we're in danger, that he's as dangerous as I suspect.

Because right now, we need the monster.

Not the gentle man who reads bedtime stories.

Not the patient man who teaches Elena how to collect eggs.

We need Don Rossi.

We need the man who built an empire from nothing. The man who kills without hesitation. The man who protects what's his.

We need him to remember who he is.

And we need him to come for us.

Chapter 33: Lupo

Finally, it’s time.

I've been preparing for this moment for days. Days of planning every detail, memorizing faces, positioning men, running through contingencies.

Tonight, it ends. We eliminate the Florence threat. And tomorrow I can go home. Can bring them here. Can start building the life Ciro promised is possible.

I just have to survive the next few hours.

"Ready, boss?" Ciro asks from the driver's seat.

We're in an unmarked van three blocks from the restaurant. Two more vans with our men are positioned at different points around the block. Everyone knows their role. Everyone knows the timing.

Nine PM. The Don arrives. His lieutenants follow within minutes. We wait until they're all inside, all seated, all comfortable.

Then we move.

"Ready," I say.

I'm wearing an expensive tailored suit. It feels strange after weeks in work clothes. But Ciro insisted. Said I need to look the part when this is over. When word spreads that I'm back.

The gun at my waist feels natural though. The Beretta Ciro gave me. The one that triggered my memories. The one I've carried into dozens of operations I can't quite remember.

My memory still hasn't fully returned. Just fragments. Flashes. Muscle memory and instincts.

But it's enough. It has to be enough.

"Boss." Elio's voice crackles over the radio. "Target one arriving. Don Vittorio's car just pulled up."

I watch through the tinted windows. A black Mercedes parks in front of the restaurant. Three men get out first. His security team. They scan the street, check the entrance, then one of them opens the back door.

An older man emerges. Silver hair, expensive suit, the appearance of someone who's been in power a long time.