Chapter 3

"Ms. Carter, the Viscontis have blacklisted you."

The captain handed me the lockdown order.

The order barred me from leaving New York. Anyone who assisted would be treated as a threat to the truce.

The signatory was Lucas.

I later learned that Adrian had placed three things in front of Lucas at once: photos of the dock ambush, an alternate route, and an escort plan awaiting my approval.

Lucas had walked to the west wing door with the confirmation in hand but never knocked.

After surveillance captured hawk vehicles entering the dock, he tore up the confirmation and signed the full lockdown order.

The danger was real.

But he knew he could have asked me first and still chose to decide for me.

By the time I returned to the estate, both families' consiglieri were conducting a pre-hearing evidence review.

Carlo was the first to go on the offensive.

"You gave a rival envoy the seat reserved for your wife, then locked down her movements. People are already asking whether the Viscontis can protect their own."

The port capo shot back, "The hawks were waiting at the docks. Letting her leave would have been a death sentence."

Roman slammed the ambush photos onto the table.

"You can warn her. You can provide an escort. But the choice should belong to her."

Lucas didn't rescind the order.

Sophia then submitted an evacuation route map.

"Evelyn, why did you leak the route?"

I scanned the chart.

"This uses the old Vitali format. My father never used it."

After Adrian verified the format, he struck the route map from evidence.

Sophia turned to Lucas, her eyes rimmed red.

"She's just jealous of me.

"If she admits she was wrong, I'll speak for her. I'll even make sure her father stays protected."

"You forged evidence, and you want me to confess?"

I demanded the records of her seat swap, her contact with the estate manager, and her entry into the west wing be retrieved.

Enzo didn't defend her. He only instructed the clerk to enter the challenge into the minutes.

The neutral observer also declared that until the evidence was verified, no family could restrict my freedom.

After the pre-hearing, Enzo took Sophia away.

I asked Adrian, "What are the Vitalis formally asking for?"

"Only that the route map be flagged for review and kept out of the main truce agreement."

"Do I need to withdraw my accusation?"

"No. And you don't need to apologize to Sophia."

But Lucas said, "Before the signing, you need to publicly retract your claim that she forged evidence."

Adrian objected on the spot.

"Boss, that's not a condition the Vitali family proposed."

I looked at Lucas.

"The route map has already been thrown out. The seating change and the west wing access are both compromised.

"You're not preserving the truce. You're preserving her dignity."

"The investigation takes time."

"So the cost still falls on me."

Carlo and Adrian both demanded he reverse the decision. Lucas wouldn't budge.

"When the truce is complete, I'll dissolve the marriage contract."

Lucas immediately signed a protection order.

"Evelyn is to enter the northern secure zone. All outside communication is suspended."

"What about my father?"

"He's already been moved to a safe house."

"I want to see him."

"After the investigation.

"Only if you cooperate will he continue to receive protection."

Adrian didn't execute the order immediately.

He stamped "Pending Review" beside the indefinite communications blackout, demanded a capo council meeting within six hours, and added an independent medical oversight clause.

Roman also warned that the safe house was switching chains of command and that medication approvals could stall.

Lucas only glanced at the time.

"Our doctor will suffice.

"There won't be any problems."

Six hours later, the capo council kept the temporary security measures but struck down the indefinite blackout. It also mandated that all external documents be witnessed by neutral personnel.

Lucas still pushed independent medical oversight off until after the truce.

He had ordered house arrest. He had never told anyone to withhold medication.

But by funneling medical decisions through layers of approval and refusing independent oversight, he had left a gap for someone else to exploit.

My father had designed the offline disaster response systems for the safe houses and the old port years ago.

Lucas could revoke everyday access, but he couldn't remotely deactivate the hardware-level maintenance codes burned into on-site equipment without shutting down every safe house and replacing each controller one by one.

The one-time response codes I held couldn't unlock doors remotely, but they could access alarm logs, shift-change records, and the medical terminal.

That night, I logged into the read-only account my father had left behind.

Lucas had sealed my door.

But my father's escape route was still in my hands.