Chapter 5

Sofia was stunned after hearing my declaration.

It was then that I heard Leone's crying echoing from the lounge. I ran over and opened the door, finding him sitting on the floor with torn paper scattered all around.

Leone's eyes brimmed with tears as he pointed a finger at Lucia, yelling, "Lucia shredded the ledger that was on the table, Mamma! I told her not to touch it, but she pushed me anyway!"

I glanced down at the pile of torn scraps; they were the famiglia's latest money laundering records—it was evidence that could bring down the entire Moretti famiglia.

It was then that the sound of heavy footsteps came from outside. Dante appeared at the entrance with a group of high-ranking members of the famiglia, his expression grim as he asked, "What's going on?"

Leone was just about to speak when Lucia suddenly started sobbing. "Leone tore your papers, Zio Dante! He tried to hit me when I tried to stop him! He told me that he's the Principe of the Don and I don't have the right to touch anything!"

Dante's trusted confidant immediately paled. "It's over for us—those were the only original copies that we hadn't had a chance to back up yet."

Dante's gaze shifted from one child to the other before settling on Leone. "I have taught you that the rules of the famiglia take precedence over all else, Leone, so you must face the consequences for touching something you shouldn't have, Leone!"

"I didn't do it—you have to believe me, Papa!" Leone sobbed, tears falling in large droplets.

Dante yanked Leone by the collar and said, "You ought to know that lying is a coward's way out and that there's no room for cowards in the Moretti famiglia, Leone!"

He dragged Leone out to the training ground's open plaza and ordered coldly, "Get on your knees!"

Dante's forehead veins stood out as he barked, "Do you think Lucia is capable of doing it? She's four years old, for goodness' sake! Do you see what kind of child you've raised, Elena Caruso? He screws up and still has the audacity to lie!"

"Leone is only five years old, Dante!" I shrieked, rushing forward.

Dante kicked the back of Leone's knee, forcing the latter to fall hard onto the concrete. "Leone's only five and he's already learned how to ruin the famiglia's lifeline! He'll be the death of us all if he isn't taught a lesson today! He'll have to kneel here until he confesses his mistakes! Get the Donna out of here!"

"Leone! Leone!" I yelled as the two muscular bodyguards grabbed me and dragged me away—the last thing I saw was Leone's small silhouette swaying unsteadily under the scorching sun.

I was trapped in the room, hammering on the door with everything I had. "You'd better let him go this instance, Dante! You're going to kill Leone!"

It was getting late, with the sun setting, and the small figure on the plaza finally fell over.

It was only at sunrise that Dante opened the door. I ran out like a madwoman, holding Leone close. I noticed that he was burning hot to the touch, and his parched lips were bleeding. "I-It really wasn't me, Mamma… I wasn't lying…"

I gently kissed his forehead as my tears fell onto his face. "I know, Leone. I just need you to hang on a bit longer; we'll be able to leave very soon."

I finally received the message I had been waiting for the following day—our identities, Leone's and mine, had been officially erased. I knew then that once we left Novayork, Dante wouldn't be able to find us, regardless of his status as the Don of the Moretti famiglia.

I left the Moretti estate with Leone as a rare spring snow fell over Novayork. I never used a single card Dante had given me; every cent on them was soaked in the blood of the Moretti famiglia—and in his indulgence toward his so-called "sister-in-law".

I sold a private property left to me by my grandmother instead—a private asset that had remained entirely unknown to Dante.

It wasn't easy to vanish under the Mafia's surveillance, but I knew the ins and outs of Dante's security better than anyone. I found my opening while Dante was busy handling a territory dispute with the Illyrians, boarding a private plane to Lansport with Leone.