Rain hammered the city with relentless force.
By the time the convoy left Luca's estate, the roads had begun to glisten like black glass beneath the fractured reflections of streetlights.
Three vehicles moved in silent coordination through the storm.
Precision.
Protection.
Preparation for war.
Elena sat in the rear of the middle car.
Luca beside her.
Alessandro directly across, having refused to occupy another vehicle despite Luca's clear lack of enthusiasm about the decision.
Neither man had argued.
Predators rarely wasted energy on arguments when dominance could be expressed through presence alone.
The interior of the car was dim, insulated from the chaos outside.
Yet the air inside felt heavier than the storm.
"You are very quiet," Luca observed.
"I am thinking."
"About running?" Alessandro asked.
The question was calm.
Too calm.
Elena met his gaze.
"If I intended to run, I would not announce it."
A faint shift touched Luca's mouth.
Approval.
Alessandro noticed.
His attention sharpened almost imperceptibly.
"You are adapting quickly," he said.
"I was always adaptable," she replied.
"You simply never needed to see it."
The truth landed between them with surgical precision.
Lightning tore across the sky, illuminating Alessandro's face for half a second.
In that flash, something unfamiliar surfaced.
Not the composed ruler.
Something more watchful.
As though he were reassessing a landscape he believed he already understood.
The convoy slowed.
Turned.
Then passed through a narrow iron gate that closed immediately behind them.
The property beyond it was hidden by towering cypress trees that swayed violently in the wind.
No neighboring lights.
No visible road.
Isolation by design.
"Where are we?" Elena asked.
"One of my quieter residences," Luca replied.
"You own many quiet residences?"
"The noisy ones tend to attract bullets."
The car rolled to a stop beneath a sweeping stone arch.
Before the driver could move, Luca stepped out into the rain and opened her door himself.
Water struck the ground hard enough to mist the air.
He removed his coat without hesitation and draped it over her shoulders.
The gesture was efficient.
Unceremonious.
But unmistakably intimate.
Alessandro exited the car a moment later and took in the sight.
His expression did not change.
Only his eyes cooled.
Territorial silence radiated from him.
Inside, the house felt older than Luca's primary estate.
Not neglected.
Preserved.
The kind of place built to endure generations of violence and reinvention.
Thick walls.
High ceilings.
Windows are narrow enough to discourage intrusion.
As they entered, Luca spoke quietly to the waiting staff.
"Double the perimeter."
Already done, came the reply.
Good.
He turned back to Elena.
"You will take the room at the end of the eastern corridor."
"I will choose my own room," she said calmly.
A flicker crossed his eyes.
Then he inclined his head once.
"As you wish."
Alessandro watched the exchange without comment.
But something unreadable gathered beneath his composure.
Control recognized control.
And perhaps, for the first time, he was realizing she possessed more of it than he had allowed himself to see.
A sudden crackle cut through the entrance hall.
One of Luca's men lifted a radio.
Then another voice burst through, strained.
"Movement at the north wall."
Every muscle in Alessandro's body went still.
"How many?" Luca asked.
"Unclear. Thermal picked up three. Possibly more."
The storm swallowed smaller sounds, making the world feel dangerously close.
"They followed us," Elena said quietly.
"Yes," Alessandro replied.
No alarm in his voice.
Only confirmation.
Luca's gaze shifted toward her.
"You will stay inside."
"I am not hiding in a room while men hunt me."
Before he could answer, Alessandro spoke.
"She stays with us."
The statement was not protective.
It was absolute.
Luca studied him briefly, then nodded once.
"Stay behind me," he told her.
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then steadied.
"The generator is secured," someone called from deeper in the house.
A gunshot cracked somewhere beyond the walls.
Closer than before.
Elena felt the sound in her ribs.
Don't panic.
Awareness.
She turned toward the men.
"You expected this."
"Yes," Alessandro said.
"Then stop treating me like fragile glass."
His gaze dropped to her fully.
"You are not fragile."
"Then let me see what is happening."
A long pause followed.
Then, unexpectedly, Alessandro said,
"Fine."
Luca's brow lifted slightly.
But he did not object.
They moved toward a reinforced viewing corridor overlooking the northern grounds.
Rain distorted the world beyond the glass, but shapes were visible.
Movement among the trees.
Dark figures.
Too coordinated to be random attackers.
"They are not testing defenses anymore," Luca said.
"This is an extraction attempt."
"For me," Elena realized.
"Yes."
A strange calm settled inside her.
If someone wanted her this badly…
then she was far more important than she had ever been told.
Gunfire erupted again.
Short bursts.
Professional.
Alessandro watched with frightening stillness.
Then he spoke softly.
"They are not here to kill you."
Luca glanced at him.
"You are certain?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because if Morelli wanted her dead, she would already be dead."
The certainty in his voice sent a chill through her.
"They want her taken alive."
The implication tightened the air.
"Which means," Luca said slowly, "she knows something."
Elena searched her memory.
Faces.
Meetings.
Conversations overheard but never understood.
"What could I possibly know?" she whispered.
Neither man answered.
Below, one of the attackers broke toward the wall.
A shot rang out.
The figure dropped instantly.
No hesitation from the guards.
No wasted movement.
Alessandro turned suddenly.
"Bring one in alive."
"You assume that is possible in this weather?" Luca asked.
"You employ excellent men."
A faint smile touched Luca's mouth.
"So do you."
Their eyes met.
War generals acknowledging each other again.
Another burst of gunfire.
Then silence.
Gradual.
Heavy.
A voice crackled over the radio.
"Perimeter secure."
The tension in the corridor eased by a fraction.
Only a fraction.
Luca turned to Elena.
"You see now why hiding is sometimes wisdom."
She did not respond immediately.
Her gaze remained fixed on the rain soaked darkness beyond the glass.
"They are risking everything to reach me," she said.
"Yes."
"Then I am done being the last person to understand why."
She turned back to them.
Something in her posture had shifted.
Subtly.
But unmistakably.
"I want access to everything you know about Titus Morelli."
Both men went very still.
Alessandro spoke first.
"You are not prepared for that world."
"I lived in it for five years," she replied.
"No," he said quietly.
"You lived near it."
The distinction cut deeper than insult.
Good.
Let it.
"Then perhaps it is time I stop living near it."
Silence stretched.
Then Luca said something unexpected.
"She is right."
Alessandro's gaze snapped toward him.
"You would drag her into this?"
"She is already in it."
A long pause followed.
Then Alessandro exhaled slowly.
The sound carried a rare concession.
"Very well," he said.
"But from this moment forward, you do exactly as I say."
Elena held his gaze.
"No."
The word landed softly.
Immovable.
"You do not command me anymore."
For a second, something almost dangerous flashed behind his eyes.
Then it faded into something else.
Recognition.
Slow.
Reluctant.
But real.
Outside, thunder rolled again.
And as Elena stood between the two most dangerous men in her world, one truth settled into place with terrifying clarity.
They had tried to erase her.
Instead…
they had awakened her.