The silence that followed felt suffocating.
I stared at the screen in Alessio's hand, unable to tear my eyes away from the photograph.
"We found her."
Four simple words.
Yet they carried enough menace to send a chill down my spine.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Alessio's arm remained around my waist, but his body had gone completely still.
Too still.
A dangerous stillness.
The kind that always appeared before a storm.
My gaze slowly lifted from the phone to his face.
His jaw was clenched.
His eyes were fixed on the image.
Not with fear.
Not with shock.
Recognition.
My stomach tightened.
"Alessio?"
No response.
The silence stretched.
Heavy. Uncomfortable.
Wrong.
"Alessio."
This time, he blinked and finally looked at me.
Something dark flashed across his face before disappearing just as quickly.
"What is it?" I asked quietly.
He hesitated.
That alone made my pulse quicken.
Alessio never used to hesitate.
Not when making decisions.
Not when issuing orders.
Not when facing enemies.
But now...
He looked uncertain.
As if he were fighting against a thought he didn't want to acknowledge.
"Nothing."
I rolled my eyes.
"You're a terrible liar."
A faint smile touched his lips for less than a second.
Then it vanished.
His gaze returned to the photograph.
The garden.
The estate.
Me.
And somewhere within that image...
Something that had caught his attention.
Something I couldn't see.
"What are you looking at?"
Still no answer.
Frustration began replacing my fear.
I stepped closer and took the phone from his hand.
I studied the picture.
The fountain.
The roses.
The stone pathway.
Nothing unusual.
Nothing except—
I froze.
A black sedan.
Barely visible behind the trees.
Half hidden in the shadows.
My heartbeat stumbled.
The car wasn't familiar.
And judging by the expression on Alessio's face...
It was familiar to him.
"Who does that car belong to?"
The question hung in the air.
Alessio's gaze hardened.
"No one."
"Alessio."
"Drop it."
I stared at him in disbelief.
Drop it?
Someone was stalking me.
Someone had infiltrated the estate grounds.
And he wanted me to drop it?
"No."
His eyes met mine.
Dark.
Cold.
Conflicted.
For the first time since receiving the message, I saw genuine emotion break through his carefully controlled mask.
Fear.
Not for himself.
For me.
And somehow that terrified me more than the message ever could.
A knot formed in my stomach.
"Who owns that car?"
The silence was answer enough.
Slowly, realization began creeping into my mind.
Not fully.
Just enough to make my pulse race.
Enough to make my skin grow cold.
Enough to make me dread the answer.
My voice dropped to a whisper.
"Someone you know."
His jaw tightened.
I had my answer.
"Oh my God."
"Adriana—"
"Someone close to you."
His eyes closed briefly.
Just for a second.
But it was enough.
My breath caught.
No.
No, that wasn't possible.
The thought was ridiculous.
Impossible.
And yet...
A memory surfaced.
A conversation.
A glance.
A feeling I had ignored weeks ago.
Then another.
And another.
Tiny moments that suddenly didn't seem so insignificant.
The way he had questioned my movements.
The way he always seemed to know where I had been.
The way his smile never quite reached his eyes.
A chill raced down my spine.
"No."
Alessio looked away.
My stomach dropped.
"No."
The word came out stronger this time.
Almost desperate.
Because there was only one person my mind was pointing toward.
One person neither of us wanted to suspect.
One person who should have been family.
"Tell me I'm wrong."
Silence.
The room suddenly felt too small.
Too quiet.
Too cold.
"Alessio."
His eyes finally met mine.
And in that moment...
I knew.
I knew before he even spoke.
Because I had never seen him look so conflicted.
Not even when facing rival families.
Not when facing death.
Not when facing war.
Only now.
Only when the enemy might be someone he loved.
"I don't know," he said quietly.
The lie was obvious.
He knew.
Maybe not completely.
Maybe not enough.
But deep down...
He knew.
A bitter laugh escaped me.
"This is insane."
"Yes."
"This can't be real."
"No."
The answer came too quickly.
Too automatically.
As though he was trying to convince himself.
I looked back at the photograph.
At the hidden car.
At the message.
At the three words that had shattered the illusion of safety.
We found her.
Not I.
Not me.
We.
Meaning there was more than one person involved.
An entire operation.
An entire plan.
A plan centered around me.
Suddenly another thought struck me.
A horrible one.
"If it's him..."
Alessio went still.
"...then this wasn't recent."
His eyes darkened.
Because we both understood.
If our suspicion was correct...
This hadn't started yesterday.
Or last week.
Or even last month.
It meant someone had been watching.
Waiting.
Planning.
For a very long time.
The realization settled over us like a dark cloud.
A silence followed.
Then Alessio made his decision.
I saw it happen.
The uncertainty vanished.
The hesitation disappeared.
And the Don returned.
Cold.
Decisive.
Dangerous.
He took the phone from my hand.
Slipped it into his pocket.
Then reached for my face.
His thumb brushed gently across my cheek.
His eyes were saying a lot more than his mouth could.
"Stay here."
I immediately shook my head.
"No."
"Adriana."
"No."
His expression darkened.
I crossed my arms.
"Whatever you're about to do, I'm coming with you."
A muscle ticked in his jaw.
For a moment, neither of us backed down.
Then unexpectedly...
A small smile appeared.
The kind that always meant trouble.
"Stubborn."
"Takes one to know one."
The smile vanished.
The darkness returned.
He leaned forward and pressed a kiss against my forehead.
A silent promise.
A silent goodbye to whatever illusion remained.
Then he stepped back.
"Get your coat."
My heartbeat accelerated.
Because I knew exactly where we were going.
And judging by the look in Alessio's eyes...
So did he.
An hour later, the black gates slowly opened before us.
The familiar estate stood beyond them.
Elegant.
Silent.
Deceptively peaceful.
I stared through the windshield.
A feeling of dread settling heavily in my chest.
Alessio killed the engine.
Neither of us moved.
Neither of us spoke.
Then the front door opened.
A figure appeared.
Waiting.
Watching.
As though he had known we were coming.
As though he had been expecting us all along.
My blood ran cold.
Beside me, Alessio's hands curled into fists.
And for the first time that night...
I saw hatred in his eyes.
Pure hatred.
The figure smiled.
Calm.
Unbothered.
Almost amused.
Then he spoke the words that shattered what remained of our world.
"I wondered how long it would take you to figure it out."