8

DANTE'S POV

I pushed the dining room door open and went inside with my head held high ignoring the numbing pain in my side. Luckily, the sneaky little mouse seemed to know how to patch things up nicely even when she seemed better at destroying them. It’s easy to be intimidated by the leaders of the council. Most of them, my Granduncle included, have served time in jail. While that was disgraceful in the outside world, it is a stamp of honor for any member of the De Vale bloodline. Granduncle Gonzalez was seated at the head of the table. He was old, in his sixties. His once-blond hair had now completely gone white and washed by time. While cancer made him look frail and much older, it didn’t take his hair away, probably because of his stubbornness about refusing to undergo chemotherapy. I tried not to glare at him now that I know he was either trying to sell off Autumn. Or worse, kill her for what had recently happened. Nothing went unheard in the underworld. Any harm to one, is a danger for all. Dominic, my cousin, left my side and sat on Granduncle’s right, which is his position as the General commander. On his left, my eye met with my greatest enemy of all time. David. What the hell was the snitch doing here? He held the same level of power as Dominic, but instead of coordinating between the mafia forces, David held a more important role of securing the brotherhood. He knew the right people to bribe and had a line of intelligence that rivaled the CIA, probably because he has big connections within the police itself. But I didn't trust him.

“Where is she?” My granduncle had an impatient look on his rumpled face. It seemed like he could explode any minute.

From the corner of my eyes, I could see Dominic glance at me questioningly. My silence was enough to answer.

“She'll be here soon.” He wore a blank look that gave off no emotions. Good. This was not something that required the attention of the council. I wanted to handle it myself. But someone had just decided to butt in. I thought and glanced towards the bastard—David.

I suddenly felt like leaving the room and locking up Autumn in her room with me. Speak of the devil. The dining room doors creaked open and in walked the very girl whose name had started this whole fiesta. She paused in the doorway looking every bit surprised about the room filled with stone-cold faces. I expected her to freeze, to tremble, to realize just how far over her head she was. But she didn’t. She walked in with slow, calculated steps. Her eyes met mine briefly, and then quickly moved to the others. Smart. She knew I was the safest gaze in this room, but she didn’t bother to linger. Interesting. It wasn’t the first time I had noticed it. In the warehouse, when bullets were flying and blood was everywhere, she hadn’t fainted or run screaming. She had held her ground and remained calm when most trained men would be have cracked. And now, surrounded by the most powerful and dangerous men in our circle, she was still holding it together. I leaned back in my chair and allowed the ghost of a smirk to tug at my lips. She’s stronger than she looks.

“Autumn,” my granduncle said, his voice cutting through the tension like a barbed wire.

She turned to him with quiet respect. “Sir.”

She chose a neutral title. She was being careful. As if confirming my thoughts, my granduncle squinted his dimming eyes as if in curiosity and arched a brow.

“I hear you’ve brought trouble to our doorstep,” he continued, leaning forward with hands clasped as though he were a gentle old priest rather than a man who once led a massacre in Ontario.

Autumn’s jaw visibly tightened, but her words didn’t falter. “With all due respect, trouble came looking for me.”

Dominic lifted a brow. David, that bastard, chuckled under his breath like he was watching a comedy. I wanted to break his nose. Again.

“And why would trouble be looking for you, ragazza?” David asked lazily, swirling the wine in his glass and looking through its clear liquid not meeting my gaze.

Autumn blinked once. Then again. “You’d have to ask trouble, sir. I don’t know.”

Oh, damn. She had some bite to her too. It was my turn to chuckle now.

Granduncle’s eyes narrowed. “Enough games. Do you know why you’re here?”

Autumn glanced at me. She was trying to understand what the hell this was. I didn’t say anything. Let her think. Let her play the pieces in her head. She was good at thinking on her feet, I wanted to see if she could keep up now.

“I’m guessing I’m here to explain something. Or answer for something I didn’t do?” she said slowly, choosing each word as if it were a landmine.

David opened his mouth to speak again, but Gonzalez raised a hand, silencing the room.

“You’re here because you’re now under our protection,” he said, in a low voice. “And that means the choices you make… affect us all.”

Her brows pinched. I could tell she was trying to understand the deeper meaning behind his words.

“What happened last night put all of us in danger,” Dominic added, more calmly. “It was meant to be a hit. Someone knew where you were, and who you were with.”

“They were after me?” she asked in a soft voice.

“No, they were after me,” I finally spoke, my voice hard. “But they used you to get there.”

Her eyes dropped for the first time. Guilt. Confusion. Fear. It all passed through her expression at the same time like a shadow.

She straightened her spine. “So what now?”

I crossed my arms, still smirking slightly. “Now? You learn the rules. You follow them. And you don’t go anywhere without me knowing.”

A muscle in her jaw flexed and I could see how she was struggling with her annoyance. She didn’t say anything right away. She just blinked once, as if trying to absorb everything, then slowly turned her face away from me like I didn’t exist. Her blue eyes lifted to meet my granduncle’s. From the look of things, she was going to do something stupid.

“I don’t want your protection,” she spat. “I don’t want to be part of your world, or your rules, or your blood-soaked legacy. I didn’t choose any of this. So do the right thing, and leave me the hell alone.”

The room went quiet. David stopped swirling his wine, the glass frozen halfway to his mouth. I watched her carefully. Her hands were clenched at her sides, nails digging into her palms, but she didn’t flinch.

“And if you don’t…” she added, lifting her chin ever so slightly, “I will tell the world everything.The smuggling. The bribery. The hits you’ve ordered. The ones you’ve buried. You may have power, but I have something you fear.”

Jesus. She’d really gone there. She really was something. A soft wheezing chuckle from my granduncle broke the silence.

“You have guts, ragazza,” David said, eyes gleaming with cold amusement. “I’ll give you that.”

“Guts and no clue,” Dominic added, leaning back with a smirk.

“You’re not the first person to threaten us,” Granduncle said, his voice cracking like the creak of an old door. “But you might be the first to do it in front of us.”

Autumn’s face didn’t change. She had to know she had poked the bees hive. She really didn’t know when to stop. I should’ve been furious. I should’ve dragged her out of that room and locked her somewhere no one would hear her screams. But instead, I found myself… interested in her drama. I stood, slowly, calling attention to myself. All heads turned toward me.

“I think we’ve heard enough,” I said, voice calm but loud enough to silence even David’s snide grin. And then I looked at her.

She had no idea what she’d just walked into. And no idea who she’d just challenged.

“I’m the head of this council,” I said, letting the words drop like a hammer. “And my word stands.”