Chapter eleven : Wolves at the door

The safehouse had grown way too quiet for Serenas taste.

Serena knew the silence wasn't peace. Rather, it was pressure. The kind that comes before the storm breaks. And this time, the thunder wasn’t coming from gunfire or a rival’s blade.

It was coming from the Council.

Matteo received the summons just after sunrise. No threat. No signature. Just a location, a time, and a symbol etched in the corner:

A serpent biting its tail.

The mark of the old blood.

He didn’t speak when he saw it. Just folded the note and tucked it into the inside pocket of his jacket.

Serena watched from across the room.

“You’re going, aren’t you?” she asked.

He nodded. “I have to.”

“They’ll punish you.”

He looked at her then—really looked—and said, “I’ve made my choice.”

---

The Council’s winter court met in a villa older than the De Luca name itself.

High in the Apennines, the building was carved from ancient stone, cloaked in mist and legacy. Here, rules were made in whispers, and death warrants signed with a nod.

Matteo entered alone.

No guards.

No weapons.

The chamber inside was as he remembered it—circular, echoing, lit by a skylight that cast the table in gold and shadow.

Nine men sat around it.

Only two of them mattered.

Don Cesare Mancini, the current council head—a relic of the old wars with eyes like knives—and Don Lucien Ardo, Matteo’s uncle by blood, but a serpent by soul.

Cesare spoke first.

“You defied a direct order, Matteo.”

Lucien followed, smoother, silkier. “You left protected territory. Took the Valentino girl into neutral ground. You were unescorted, and the journey was unapproved.”

Matteo stood tall. “I protected her.”

Lucien smiled. “You exposed her.”

Cesare’s voice rumbled. “And you allowed her to contact a traitor.”

“I allowed her to find her mother,” Matteo said. “Not for sentiment.It was for leverage.”

Lucien leaned back. “What leverage can be found in a ghost?”

“She’s not a ghost. She’s alive. Active. And still holds secrets from both families. Secrets Bianchi would kill to possess.”

Silence fell.

Cesare folded his hands.

“Then why didn’t you bring her back?”

“Because she wasn’t the target,” Matteo replied evenly. “We were.”

Lucien’s eyes gleamed. “You expect us to believe that rogue mercenaries just happened to strike the moment you arrived in Geneva?”

“No,” Matteo said. “I expect you to ask yourselves who stood to gain if both Valentino and De Luca heirs died in the same blast.”

The implication sank in.

A minute passed as all the men tried to digest what Matteo just said.

Then Cesare asked, “Are you accusing someone on this council?”

Matteo didn’t blink. “I’m saying this leak came from inside.”

Lucien’s voice turned to acid. “You’re reckless, Matteo. Always have been. And now you risk the entire alliance for a woman.”

“She is not just a woman,” Matteo said sharply. “She is Valentino’s blood. The last of that line. The girl you all ignored when her father died and let be raised like a civilian. The girl you would’ve left to rot in Bianchi’s war. I married her to protect the balance, and now you question my loyalty?”

Cesare stood.

“Your loyalty isn’t in question, Matteo. Your judgment is.”

---

Back at the safehouse, Serena stood by the fire.

She hadn’t slept.She couldn't sleep, she had a bad feeling she couldn't shake off and now it was clear that the council despised her.

The conversation with her mother haunted her. The attack followed her into every shadow. And now Matteo was walking into a council chamber that had executed men for lesser infractions than love.

Mara entered the room quietly.

“You should eat something,” she said gently, stroking Serenas hair.

Serena didn’t turn. “I’m not hungry.”

Mara whispered softly. “You think they’ll hurt him?”

“I think they’ll try.”

Mara’s face tightened. “Then they’d better pray he walks out alive.”

Serena finally turned to look at her.

“You believe in him?”

Mara nodded once. “He was raised by wolves and still came out human.”

---

At the villa, Cesare finally gave his verdict.

“You will return to Naples. Effective immediately. You are no longer permitted to act independently regarding Valentino affairs. Serena is to remain under direct council protection until we determine whether her bloodline still serves the alliance.”

Matteo’s fists curled into tight balls. He was getting aggravated by each passing minute.

“You’re stripping me of command?”

Lucien smiled. “Only until we can trust you again.”

“And if I say no?”

Cesare’s eyes turned cold. “Then we will consider it treason.”

---

Matteo returned by dusk.

Serena met him at the gate, barefoot on the gravel, her eyes full of questions she was too afraid to ask.

Matteo didn’t speak until the doors were shut behind them.

“They’re watching us,” he said. “Every step we take.”

She stared at him. “What did they say?”

“That I can’t protect you anymore.”

Her breath hitched. “So that’s it?”

“No,” he said, voice steel. “That’s not it.”

He stepped closer.

“I don’t take orders anymore, Serena. Not from them. Not from anyone.”

She touched his cheek.

She saw the fury behind his calm demeanour.

“I’m going to burn the whole damn table,” he whispered.

---

Later that night, Matteo stood alone on the balcony, hands braced against the railing, staring at the vast expanse of land ahead of him.

Serena came to him in silence, wrapping her arms around his waist from behind.

“They’ll come after you.”She whispered softly, burying her face in his back.

“I know.” Matteo said in a steely voice.

“For me.”

“I know that too.”

She leaned her head against his back.

“Then don’t do it for me.”

“I’m not.”

He turned to face her.

“I'm doing it because I’ve lived my whole life for duty. For blood. For survival. But you—” his voice softened, “—you remind me what it feels like to want something for myself.”

She didn’t speak.

She kissed him instead.

This time around, the kiss was slow and certain. They both knew what they wanted from each other, and they savoured each other to the best of their abilities.

Like choosing him was no longer a question, but a declaration.

Despite the fact that the council clearly had it out for her, Serena pushed the thought to the back of her mind and Let herself be pulled into Matteos' strong and steady hold. He comforted her. He kissed her like he needed her to survive.