a

soft, final sound. She leaned against the polished wood, her watchful eyes

in our world, did you not?" she a

to finish my shift, get my daily wage, and pay the collectors b

push it down the long, empty corridor, a single

mmanded, her voice suddenly l

s turning white on

he small canvas bag I kept on the bottom sh

ping with fake panic. "It is a priceless Familia heirloom.

tomach, and a fine sweat brok

id quickly, my voice shaking. "

ched my canvas bag off the cart with a triumphant look. She unz

eavy, glittering gold bracelet clattered onto the ground

ier by the elevators-Serena had feigned shock at my presence, her hands brushing against my

yelled, my panic rising like bi

nicured hand to her chest as if wou

out into the corridor, his tailored suit immaculate, his expression unreadable. His pres

d bag, the gold bracelet on the floor, and

e?" he demanded, his

"Dante, she stole from us," she cried, playing the victimized Mafia Queen perfectly.

raised his eyes to meet mine. The utter coldness in h

opeless step toward him. "You know me. You kn

He looked at me not as a woman he had spent two years wit

over my fiancée?" he asked, his voice low and dangerous. "You ar

o hold it. I looked at the man I had starved for, the man I had bled for, and finally understood the cha

," she said with a show of mercy. "Let us teach her a lesson. Make her kneel at the entran

unyielding gaze. My legs felt weak, and my breathing

ered, my voice breaking. "Tell them w

is shadow fell over me. He looked down at me, his eyes empty o

stepped her bounds," he declared loudly, ensuring the armed Soldiers s

r leaving my tear-streaked face. "Blacklist Mia from working anywhere in

o down to the entrance," he ordered. "Kneel on the concrete until nine

isappointment at my supposed betrayal, bu

tinging tears, and walked toward the elevator,

me leave. He didn't care if I lived or died. And for the first time, I realized he never had. I pressed m