THE MAFIA BOSS WATCHED ME WRAP MY COAT AROUND HIS LATE WIFE'S SEVENTY-SIX-YEAR-OLD MOTHER DURING HIS ENGAGEMENT DINNER—THEN HIS FIANCÉE SAID, “SHE CAME HERE BEGGING FOR MONEY,” BEFORE HE EVEN ASKED WHY THE ELDERLY WOMAN HAD BEEN LEFT STANDING IN THE RAIN FOR TWO HOURS.**

"Marco, no!" I screamed, lunging forward.

But my mother grabbed my arm, her grip suddenly like iron.

"Don't move, Hannah," my mother hissed, pulling me back against the side of the car.

I stared at her in shock. "Mom! What are you doing?"

Marco didn't even flinch. He kept the rifle raised, looking through the scope.

Luca heard my scream. He turned around, shielding Caroline and Sophia behind his broad shoulders.

When he saw Marco holding the rifle, his expression shifted from pure joy to absolute betrayal.

"Marco?" Luca yelled. "Put the gun down!"

Marco lowered the weapon slightly, looking at Luca with a sad, tired expression.

"I can't do that, Boss," Marco said. "Your father gave me an order before he died."

"My father is dead!" Luca roared. "And Eleanor and Vanessa are gone! The threat is over!"

"They weren't the real threat, Luca," Marco said quietly.

Marco looked at my mother.

My mother reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a small black remote.

She pressed a button.

The sound of an engine roared to life behind the cabin.

A black helicopter rose from behind the treeline, hovering loudly above the lake.

I stared at the woman who raised me, completely horrified. "Mom? What is going on?"

My mother didn't look at me. She looked at Caroline.

"You were smart, Caroline," my mother said, her voice completely devoid of the warmth I had known my entire life. "Faking your death to escape Eleanor and the Bellinis. But you made one mistake."

Caroline gripped Luca's arm, her eyes wide with terror. "I trusted you, Mary."

"You trusted a nurse," my mother smiled coldly. "But you didn't know who that nurse really worked for."

Luca stepped forward, his fists clenched. "Who do you work for, Mary?"

"She works for me," a voice echoed from the helicopter's loudspeaker.

The side door of the chopper slid open.

Sitting inside, dressed in an immaculate white suit, was an older man with piercing blue eyes.

Luca went completely still.

"Don Vincente," Luca whispered.

The boss of the Five Families. The most powerful mafia don on the East Coast.

The helicopter landed gently on the grass near the cabin.

Don Vincente stepped out, flanked by heavily armed guards.

"Hello, Luca," Vincente said, buttoning his suit jacket. "It’s been a while."

Luca didn't move. "What is this, Vincente?"

"This is business," Vincente said simply. "Your father and I had an arrangement. The Moretti and Vincente families would merge. But then you fell in love with Caroline. A woman with no power. No legacy."

Vincente looked at Caroline with disgust.

"Your father tried to fix it," Vincente continued. "He hired Eleanor to sabotage the marriage. But Eleanor got greedy and brought the Bellinis into it. When Caroline faked her death, I thought the problem was solved. You were finally ready to marry a proper mafia bride."

Vincente gestured toward the empty space beside him.

"But you rejected Vanessa, too. And now, you’ve found Caroline again."

Vincente looked at Marco. "My patience has run out. Finish them, Marco. Leave the kid alive. We’ll raise her properly."

Marco raised the rifle again.

"NO!" I screamed, breaking free from my mother's grip.

I ran toward Luca, putting my body between the rifle and the family.

"Hannah, move!" Luca yelled, trying to push me behind him.

"No!" I cried, staring down Marco's barrel. "You want to kill them? You have to kill me first!"

Don Vincente laughed. "How touching. A maid playing hero. Marco, shoot the girl."

Marco’s finger tightened on the trigger.

I closed my eyes.

A deafening gunshot echoed across the lake.

But I didn't feel any pain.

I opened my eyes.

Marco was standing completely still.

He looked down at his own chest. A massive red stain was spreading across his white shirt.

Marco dropped the rifle and collapsed onto the grass.

Don Vincente froze. "Who fired?"

Another gunshot echoed from the woods.

One of Vincente's guards dropped to the ground.

From the treeline surrounding the cabin, dozens of men in black tactical gear stepped out into the morning light, their weapons raised.

Leading them was a man with his arm in a sling, holding a smoking handgun.

Daniel.

Luca’s head of security walked slowly into the clearing.

"Daniel?" Luca whispered in shock.

Daniel looked at Luca and gave a painful smirk. "Sorry I'm late, Boss. Traffic was a killer."

Vincente glared at Daniel. "You work for the Bellinis!"

"I work for Luca Moretti," Daniel corrected, spitting blood onto the grass. "Everything tonight—my betrayal, the fight in the dark, letting Vanessa escape—it was all a setup."

I stared at Daniel, my mind reeling.

"Luca," Daniel said, "I knew there was a mole in the organization. I just didn't know it was Marco. We staged my betrayal to draw the real enemies out. And it worked."

Daniel pointed his gun at my mother.

"Put your hands in the air, Mary."

My mother raised her hands, trembling.

Don Vincente looked around at the dozen tactical rifles aimed at his head.

"You think you can kill me, Luca?" Vincente spat. "The Five Families will burn your empire to the ground."

Luca walked forward.

He didn't look like a grieving widower anymore. He looked like the King of New York.

"You broke the truce, Vincente," Luca said coldly. "You ordered a hit on my wife. The Families won't protect you. They'll replace you."

Luca turned to Daniel. "Take him. Throw him in the deepest hole you can find."

Daniel nodded. His men swarmed Vincente, disarming his guards and throwing the Don to the dirt.

Luca turned to my mother.

She was sobbing, looking at me with pleading eyes.

"Hannah, I did it for us," she cried. "Vincente paid me millions. I was going to buy us a house on the beach. You wouldn't have to clean toilets anymore."

I looked at the woman who raised me. My heart shattered into a million pieces.

"You let them threaten an eight-year-old girl," I whispered, tears streaming down my face. "You aren't my mother anymore."

I turned away from her.

Daniel's men took her away.

The clearing fell silent, save for the wind blowing off the lake.

Luca stood there for a long moment.

Then, he turned back to Caroline and Sophia.