Chapter 2

Gabriel ended up staying behind—Lucas made sure of that.

Back in my room, I opened my laptop and submitted the overseas project approval form to the Zurich School of Business contact.

Nine days left. That was it.

At eight that night, my father came back to the estate. Gabriel knocked on my door and called me down for dinner.

He found me staring at the screen and leaned against my desk, rubbing his temple.

"Leah, you're not still mad at Seraphina, are you? You know how she is—she just likes to mess around."

When I was seventeen, my father brought Seraphina into the estate. She was the housekeeper's daughter—her mother had worked for us for years. A scholarship kid, my father called it. He arranged for her to attend the same private school as me, gave her a room in the staff wing, treated it like an investment in loyalty.

First exam after she transferred—she, Lucas, and Gabriel swept the top three spots. It sent shockwaves through the whole campus.

Some heiress from a rival family—one who'd never liked me—shoved my lunch tray aside and sneered:

"Looks like your glory days are over. Your father's little charity case is ten times better than you. She actually belongs next to those two men."

Seraphina happened to be passing by. She heard every word. Pulled out her tactical knife on the spot and cornered that girl against the wall.

The girl passed out cold. The whole board of directors went ballistic. Even the old Godfather got wind of it.

Back then, I was drawn to Seraphina's take-no-shit attitude. I really thought she was a sister I could trust with my back.

From that day on, the estate became a four-person operation. Even the firearms training and overseas asset management courses—all four of us took them together.

Until I slowly realized that, socially, I'd been edged out of the inner circle. Step by step.

Gabriel reached out and blocked my screen.

"Alright. The Don's already waiting at the long table. Come down for dinner."

I was hungry, so I got up, washed my hands, and headed downstairs.

At the table, my father Antonio was slicing into his filet. Gabriel casually brought up:

"A top-tier luxury cruise casino just opened downtown. There's a massive panoramic Ferris wheel on the top deck—bulletproof reinforced glass because of the location."

"Seraphina invited all of us to check it out tomorrow."

I was about to turn it down, but my father—seated at the head of the table—spoke first, his voice steady and firm.

"I've heard about that project. Leah, you should go."

"I remember when you were little, you'd watch those tourist Ferris wheels on TV with such envy. But back then, New York's underground was too chaotic—I never took you out much for safety reasons."

With my father saying that, I couldn't exactly say no.

Back in my room, our group chat was already blowing up.

Seraphina was agonizing over which haute couture gown to wear for tomorrow's cruise gala. She'd tried on several and flooded the channel with photos.

Gabriel and Lucas couldn't agree—they'd gone back and forth with over a hundred messages arguing.

Seraphina dropped a voice note, her tone teasing:

"Boys, stop. I didn't ask you to pick. I posted these so Leah could give me her opinion."

Then she added, more carefully:

"Leah... you're not still mad at me, are you? I promise—I'll never mess with your phone like that again."

Lucas jumped in and typed for me instantly:

"Relax. Leah's not that petty. She helped train the one instinct every mafia member needs—she should be thanking you. Right, Leah?"

Seraphina bought it. She sent back a heart emoji and started pressing me in the channel to pick the most stunning dress for her.

Lucas asked in the group:

"Leah, don't you think that navy blue backless gown suits Seraphina perfectly? When she tried it on at that private boutique on Fifth Avenue, even the head tailor there said she looked elegant."

Gabriel saw the message, pulled out a chair across from me, and started venting:

"That tailor was just sucking up because of the Carone name. Everyone knows that guy has zero taste."

"Navy blue washes her out. That ochre yellow gown I picked fits her vibe way better—Seraphina loved it when she tried it on too."

"Leah, we grew up under the same roof in this estate. You're my sister. You have to be on my side."

Something clicked in my head. I turned to look at him.

"These two gowns—you both went with her in person to pick them out?"

"When? How come I don't remember?"

Gabriel was typing back to Seraphina, not even glancing up, and it just slipped out:

"Wasn't it that top-floor boutique on Fifth Avenue? You were there that day too. Why are you acting like you forgot?"