nna

erficial scratch on Natalia's

or, lock down the crime scene, or pull th

e, his fists clen

our bleeding guest," I pointed out. "Are you truly worried for your f

e hem of Dante's tailored suit. Her fingers

ng with a practiced fragility. "I do not want to

untly, looking down at her. "But your public accusation of a

at the Vitiello Estate Manager stan

ed a nearby footman to flinch. "Lock down the perimeter. Secure the footage from the sec

ut my encr

Dante demanded, his vo

y Sit-Down," I replied, meeting his stare. His pupils had contrac

et out a

, suddenly looking far less injured. "Ple

, and I had to force the words out, each one feeling like a shard of

crystal chandelier overhead seemed to dim as his shoulders

ng her?" he asked da

rofiled me as a mur

sion's Arbitrator, holding the phone as a

nected on th

f attempted murder at the Vitiello Estate. I demand a formal reconstruction of the scene

Arbitrator will arrive in under four minutes. Do not move the accuser, do not tamper with evid

nte Vitiello could not survive a war against the entire American syndicate. I watched his face as the Arbitrator's warning crackled through t

d slipped the phone

calculating shadow as he looked at me-as if see

a sharp, breathless sound,

his back to me and moved

m shifted so subtly that only those who understood true violence could feel it. The Don of the Vitiel