chapter 3

The deal my father meant was a consignment of arms at the east dock.

The sum involved made the last one look like nothing.

At the meeting, my father opened the file. "Letitia will liaise with the buyer. Vito will handle security, Lorenzo will run backup, and Rocco will escort the shipment. Fiore..."

He paused. "You stay at the estate and keep the communications lines clear."

I looked at him. "Someone is already assigned to communications, Father. This is a major deal. I should be on site."

Rocco scoffed. "You, on site? If you question the buyer into silence, who will ever dare do business with us again?"

"That is basic security awareness. I have to judge whether a buyer can be trusted. Or is it that you simply don't care whether the deal is safe?"

Rocco's expression changed. "You're splitting hairs again!"

"I am not. I am confirming facts."

Letitia spoke at just the right moment. "Fiore, my health is poor, so all I can manage is the easy job of liaising with the buyer. If you want to participate, you can take my part. I'll stand beside you and carry your documents. I don't mind."

I looked at her. "Are you helping me, or reminding everyone that I'm deliberately taking your job?"

Letitia's eyes immediately filled with tears. "I-I didn't mean that..."

"Then what did you mean?" I pressed. "You said you'd give me your part of the operation. Why add that you'd stand beside me carrying documents? If you truly wanted me to take charge, you'd step away instead of staying there to watch me."

Tears spilled from Letitia's eyes.

My mother slammed a palm on the table. "Fiore! That's enough! Letitia meant well, and you won't be satisfied until you make her cry?"

"I didn't make her cry. She chose to cry. Every sentence makes it sound as if she's being wronged and sacrificing herself, and then all of you follow her lead and turn on me. She used this trick at the banquet. She's using it again, and you still can't see it."

The room went dead quiet.

My father finally broke the silence. "Meeting adjourned. The plan stands. Fiore stays behind."

When I woke the next morning, daylight flooded the windows.

I looked at the clock on the nightstand. Nine in the morning.

Before bed, I'd confirmed that the team was supposed to assemble at ten that night.

Knowing my father, there would be a short pre-operation briefing around five that afternoon.

I didn't need to be up early, but habit told me to inspect the equipment in the communications room first.

I went downstairs. The living room was empty.

Bruno stood to one side and inclined his head. "Good morning, Miss Fiore."

"Where is everyone?"

"Your father left at five this morning with your mother, Miss Letitia, and your brothers."

That early?

I turned immediately for the communications room on the ground floor.

I pushed open the door. The room was empty.

The main radio was gone from the desk. So were the backup handhelds beside it.

The wall-mounted monitoring panel had been stripped out.

I turned to Bruno. "Who removed everything?"

He answered carefully. "Miss Letitia said before leaving that she was taking it all with her to ensure smooth communications at the site."

"Is there anything spare in the house?"

Bruno shook his head. "No, miss. That's the only set on the estate. Miss Letitia said you should take the day off and not trouble yourself with the deal."

I called them one after another. Only my mother picked up.

I told her what had happened. "Mother, someone removed every piece of communications equipment from the estate."

She was silent for a few seconds. "Letitia was worried reception would be poor at the site, so she brought the equipment. Don't worry. The team up front will handle everything."

"By 'they,' you mean Vito, Lorenzo, Rocco, Letitia, and Father. Is that right?"

"That's right."

"Anyone else?"

"Who else?" My mother sounded puzzled.

"Me," I said. "It was agreed that I would go."

"Fiore, Letitia was trying to protect you. She said this was your first operation and worried you might panic and slow the team down. She thought you should get used to things at the estate first and wait for our good news."

"Get used to things at the estate? There is no communications equipment here, no monitoring feed, and even the files on the target are gone. Mother, did you leave me here to let me adjust, or because you never intended to take me?"

My mother lost patience. "Why do you have to question everything? Letitia was worried about you. She barely touched her breakfast. She was afraid you'd panic and make a mess. She was thinking of you."

"I don't need—"

My mother cut me off. "Enough! Fiore, stop. You're not the only person in this family.

"If I could choose, I would rather not have you for a daughter!"

I ended the call, then turned to Bruno. "What do I need to do to have my name struck from the Family?"