I follow my mother out of the dining room. The quiet of the manor’s corridors feels heavier after the tension at the table, where I left Eva to hold her own against Linda.
My jaw tightens. I trust Eva to handle herself but leaving her alone with that viper doesn’t sit right with me.
But when Isabella Bellacino beckons, even I don’t argue. She glides past oil paintings of long-dead ancestors, her dress whispering over the marble floor. At the end of the hall, a pair of ornate double doors stand open, leading to her private study.
She enters first and I follow, shutting the doors behind us. Instantly, the atmosphere becomes more intimate, more relaxed. She moves behind her hand carved mahogany desk, gesturing for me to sit in a high-backed chair opposite.
I look to the imposing portrait of my late father behind her as I take my seat. His stern expression, frozen in time with practiced brushstrokes, still seems to watch over these meetings.
My mother settles into her leather chair, fingers steepled beneath her chin. The warm desk lamp softens the fine lines of age on her face but her eyes remain sharp—keen and calculating—untouched by time or grief.
“You’re uneasy, Dante,” she observes.
I roll my shoulders, trying to shake off the tension. “You know why,” I reply. “Eva’s in there on her own.”
She smiles warmly, and I know that look all too well. It hits me instantly—this was intentional. She left Eva with Linda, Luca, and Sarah on purpose.
I sigh, dragging a hand down my face. “You’re testing her.”
“Of course I am,” she says calmly, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. “I want to see how she handles herself.”
I shake my head. “I get it, but it doesn’t mean I like it.”
“I didn’t ask you to join me to talk about the little spat that happened back there. I want to talk about the Lombardis.”
I fall silent, bracing for whatever she’s about to say.
She leans forward, her eyes sharp. “I told you I was going to dig deeper into the Lombardi’s affairs and I have. You’re aware they come from the old country, but they’ve never grown as powerful as our family has, until they made certain alliances during the war.” Her voice drops, reflecting on those violent days. “They lost quite a few men. So did we.”
She continues, “Vito Lombardi has never been as ruthless as some of our other rivals, but he’s cunning and smart. And always underestimated. After the war, he tried to go legit, but with limited success. Gianni, however, seems determined to push boundaries in a bid for greater power.”
I nod. “He’s made that much clear.”
The look in her eyes turns to pity. “Yes, well, apparently Gianni thinks humiliating you in public or forcing you to stand down is his path to glory. Meanwhile, Vito is backing him, if only to keep up appearances, as a reminder that the Lombardi’s aren’t weak.”
I think of Vito threatening me in front of my apartment and my jaw tightens. “They nearly started a war right there in my neighborhood. They didn’t give a damn who got hurt.”
A shadow crosses her face. “I know. I’ve arranged a private meeting with Vito. On our turf, of course. He’ll come to me. If he’s half as smart as I suspect, he’ll keep Gianni on a leash for the evening.”
My stomach clenches. “I’m not comfortable letting you face Lombardi alone. He’s proven he’ll resort to anything.”
A small, wry smile tugs at her lips. “I’m well aware. But rest assured, I won’t be alone. Our best security detail will be accompanying me, and the meeting is set in one of our safest locations.” She lifts a hand when I open my mouth to argue. “I’m not asking for your permission, Dante. I’m telling you. This is what must be done.”
I press my lips together, not trusting myself to speak. She knows me all too well.
Her voice softens. “Dante, you’ve told me more than once you’re tired of the violence. That it’s a ‘new age’ and you want to keep blood off the streets. That’s what you need to focus on.”
“That’s easier said than done. Gianni’s irrational and out of control. They’re pushing me. Hard.”
She nods. “Which is why I will talk to his father. The old man has his pride, but he’s no fool. He knows he can’t win an all-out war against the Bellacinos. We’ll appeal to whatever sense he has left. And if that fails…” She lets the words fade, the implication clear.
I let out a frustrated sigh. “If that fails, we do what we have to.”
She nods solemnly, acknowledging the dark truth. “Yes.”
For a moment, neither of us speaks. The only sound is the faint tick of the grandfather clock in the corner. Eventually, she taps a polished fingernail against the desk.
“Dante, I need you to trust me on this. Support is crucial. If our family sees I’m endorsing a less violent approach, they’ll follow suit, at least for now. But you must keep your anger in check.”
“I can do that,” I say through gritted teeth.
She studies me a moment. “You’d better. Because we have bigger battles to fight, and if we waste our energy on petty feuds, we’ll risk losing everything we’ve built.”
My stomach knots. She’s right. As much as I want to crush Lombardi, risking open war would destabilize our family. The older I get, the more I realize how delicate our empire is—one wrong move could topple it.
I can’t let that happen.
My mother leans back in her chair, folding her arms elegantly. “Now, let’s talk about what else you brought home tonight.”
I blink. “Meaning?”
Her brow lifts, a slight smirk on her lips. “I saw the way you clung to Eva at dinner. And how fiercely you defended her when they all tried to undermine her. I may be old, but I’m not blind.”
My chest warms at the mention of Eva. “It’s different this time, Mother. She’s different. You saw for yourself. She’s nothing like Linda.”
She raises a palm. “Oh, I know that. Linda was a conniving, gold-digging nightmare from the start, as I recall. What surprises me is how suspicious you become whenever I mention Eva.”
“Suspicious? I just don’t like having her under a microscope.”
“Mmm-hmm. That’s precisely why I’m suspicious,” she says. “But suspicious in a curious way. She’s bright, she’s composed, and she clearly cares for you. I admire that. Yet she’s very evasive about who she really is.”
I press my lips together. “She’s told me some things. She’s an orphan, her parents were killed when she was young. She’s been working in cybersecurity since she was a teenager—freelancing, hacking, breaking up phishing scams, you name it. But she hasn’t opened up much about anything else.”
My mother’s expression is unreadable. “I defended Eva at the table because I like what I see so far. But something about her still sets off my intuition. You may recall I had a similar intuition with Linda. I warned you, and you ignored me.”
“Because Linda wasn’t half as genuine as Eva.”
She shrugs. “Still, I’m your mother. I reserve the right to be wary. Any woman who enters into this family should do so with eyes wide open and a clear conscience. No secrets.”
I straighten my shoulders. “I won’t let you chase Eva off because of rumors or if she doesn’t pass your tests. She’s not Linda.”
Her gaze holds mine, unwavering. “You sound awfully certain.”
“I am certain. She’s smart, kind, determined, and she doesn’t want the spotlight or the money. She’s with me because…” I trail off, not wanting to bare my soul in front of my mother, no matter how close we are.
“Because you fascinate her? Because she wants a piece of your power?”
I scowl. “No. Because we make sense together, in ways I can’t fully explain. She sees the version of me I want to become.”
A brief silence follows. “All right. I believe you. Just remember—even Linda managed to fool you for a time. Don’t be too trusting until that trust is earned.”
Annoyance prickles at the back of my neck. “You were fierce in defending Eva earlier. Now your questioning her motives?”
She waves her hand dismissively. “I can do both, Dante. I defended her because Linda and Sarah were making insipid comments about her body, and I won’t tolerate that. But that doesn’t mean I won’t keep an eye on her until I’m satisfied she is who she claims to be.”
I grind my teeth but hold my tongue.
She rises gracefully, signaling the conversation is nearing an end. “Now, trust me about the Lombardis. Let me talk to them. If that fails, we’ll do it your way. Understood?”
I stand as well, giving a curt nod. “Understood.”
She steps around the desk, stopping in front of me, affection in her eyes. “I want you to succeed, Dante. This is a new age, like you said. I want you to reign over a peaceful kingdom, if that’s even possible.”
Grief rises in my chest as I recall the father and brothers I lost, the nights I spent cleaning blood from my hands. “Thank you.”
She gives me a small smile then turns toward the door. “I suspect you want to get back to your Eva before Linda eats her alive.”
The corners of my mouth twitch in a wry smile. “She can handle Linda. But I’d better get back to keep them from clawing each other’s eyes out.”
“See that you do.” She reaches for the doorknob, pausing to glance back at me. “And Dante… trust your instincts, but don’t let them blind you. Sometimes we see only what we want, not what is.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
