Chapter 2

Lucas finally came back.

His shirt was rumpled, and his hair was a mess.

He came over, but after his fingertips brushed my hand, he froze.

"Why aren't you asleep?"

I reached up and plucked a curly blond hair from his collar.

I held it up in front of his eyes.

"You fell asleep at Chloe's."

Lucas frowned.

He knocked my hand away.

"Don't be ridiculous. She has a bad cold. I just took her home."

I looked at him calmly.

"Lucas, if you've fallen for someone else, we can..."

"Elena!"

Lucas raised his voice sharply, cutting me off.

He finally took my hand and pressed it to his chest.

"After what happened to you, I couldn't live here. You were in every room. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw you lying in front of me covered in blood. Then headquarters needed someone there full-time, so I moved there."

He squeezed my hand tighter.

His heart was racing.

"Elena, I swear I won't fall for anyone else. Come back to the council with me. Your seat is still there. I'll help you make up for the six years you lost."

I looked into his eyes and didn't ask anything else.

The pain in my chest flared again.

The next day, the convoy drove into Palermo's old town.

Six years earlier, headquarters had been a rundown olive oil warehouse.

Now it was a fortress of steel and concrete.

Bulletproof glass. Electronic locks. Armed guard posts.

When I reached the entrance, a red light came on.

[Identity not registered. Access denied.]

Two young guards exchanged a look and tightened their grip on their guns.

Lucas's expression shifted.

"What's going on?"

Chloe came down the spiral staircase.

"I didn't know she was coming today."

She hurried over to another terminal.

She entered an administrator-level passcode.

The heavy metal doors opened.

I watched in silence, my expression cold.

She didn't just know the master access code.

She controlled who came in and out of the entire headquarters.

The lobby was full of strangers. None of the brothers I'd fought and bled with were there anymore.

They bowed their heads to Lucas and addressed Chloe as Director.

When they looked at me, they just gave me polite nods.

There were 12 black chairs in the center of the council room.

I walked to my seat.

But there was a half-finished latte sitting by the armrest.

Lucas's face darkened.

"Get up."

Chloe's tears started falling.

"Last week you promised you'd officially announce today that I'm joining the inner council."

"But Elena's back," Lucas said.

At that, Chloe dabbed at her tears as if she'd been deeply wronged.

"I get it. There was never a place for me here."

She covered her face and ran out.

Vito Greco, who ran East Port, set his glass down hard.

"Don Morandi, if I may. For six years, Ms. Bennett was here checking the books at three every morning. She passed out four times, and each time she woke up and went straight back to work without even drinking water. She may not deserve all the credit, but no one can say she hasn't put in the work."

Someone else chimed in.

"Ms. Conti deserves respect, sure. But we can't let a dead..."

He stopped and caught himself.

"I mean, someone who just woke up. We can't let her take everything away from the people who've been here. It's not fair to Ms. Bennett."

Lucas slammed his fist on the table.

"Shut up."

The glasses on the table jumped.

Nobody dared say another word.

I stayed where I was and surveyed them with a cold stare.

Six years.

With her tears and wounded act, Chloe had won them all over.

In the end, Lucas waved a hand.

"Bring in a new chair. Put it at the end of the table."

He turned to me, his voice gentler.

"Elena, your seat is still yours. Sit down for a moment. I need to sort out the council transition with Chloe."

He left in a hurry.

I didn't sit in the new chair.

I took the stairs up to the top-floor office.

I looked down through the bulletproof glass.

Lucas had caught up with Chloe.

The two of them slipped behind a shipping container.

If I hadn't been so high up, I never would have spotted the hidden corner.

Chloe was sobbing so hard she shook.

She pounded her fists against Lucas's chest.

This was the Don all of Palermo feared, a man who could order a killing on a whim.

And he just stood there.

He let her take it all out on him.

He didn't back away even one step.