“Why shouldn’t you be here?” Sam took a long sip before answering. “Because this is the first place they’ll come looking for you. And I don’t want to be around when they show up.”
Jazz’s blood went cold. If it was Titus, that meant he had already lost patience, and she wasn’t sure she was ready to face him. But if it was someone else—Vex, the Feds—then the danger was even worse. She had known walking away had consequences, but she hadn’t realized just how quickly they would come looking forher.
Lily’s gaze snapped to their father, her mouth tightening. “Why, Dad? What the hell did you do?”
Sam let out a breath that sounded almost like a laugh, only there was no humor in it. He gestured loosely with his glass, the whiskey sloshing over the edge. “It’s not what I did, sweetheart. It’s whatshedid.” His bleary gaze flicked back to Jazz. “You walked away from him. From all of them. And that’s not something men likeTitus Dante, Vex, or the Feds let happen without consequence.”
Jazz’s stomach turned tolead.
She hadn’t told anyone yet—not even Lily—that she’d temporarily left Titus. That she’d walked out of his mansion with nothing but a duffel bag and a fragile hope that she wasn’t making the biggest mistake of herlife.
“How do you know that?” she asked carefully.
Sam took another deep swallow of his drink, his gaze unreadable. “Because I know men like them. Because I’ve worked with men like them. Reported to them. Played their games just to survive.”
“Like Titus... Or like all of them?”
Sam wobbled slightly as he poured himself another drink, his fingers unsteady, guilt etched into every movement. He let out a humorless chuckle, shaking hishead.
“I guess it won’t matter soon, will it? Vex. The Feds. They’re coming for The Dante.” He glancedup, his eyes bloodshot and tired, meeting Jazz’s with something between defiance and justification. “I may have helped them take him down. After what he did to me? To you girls? You should be thanking me.”
Panic shot through her, avisceral need to reach for her phone, to warn Titus before it was too late. Her pulse pounded, her hands trembled. Fear clawed up her throat, not just for him, but for herself, for their baby, for the life they had barely begun to build. She had to call him. She had to tell him—
But then she froze. Titus already knew. He always knew. He anticipated threats before they fully formed. Would telling him now change anything? Would it help? Or would it just confirm what he had already been waitingfor?
A new wave of desperation swept through her. If she couldn’t warn him, she had to do the next best thing—gather every detail, every scrap of information that might help him stay ahead of this. To grab her phone, dial his number, and tell him exactly what her father had justadmitted.
But as her fingers twitched toward her pocket, she hesitated. He already knew, she reminded herself again. Of course he did. Titus was always five steps ahead, always anticipating the betrayal before it even happened. Would telling him change anything? Would ithelp?
Her gaze snapped to Sam. “Who else have you talked to? What exactly have you told them?”
Sam hesitated, his grip tightening around his glass. “It doesn’t matter now. It’s done.”
“It matters,” Lily cut in, her hazel eyes flashing. “It matters because if you’ve done something that puts Jazz in danger, we need to know. Now.”
Jazz watched as her father shifted uncomfortably, his bravado flickering under the weight of their combined stares. He had always been a survivor, someone who played every side to his own advantage. But now, he looked cornered—like a man who had run out of angles, out ofcards toplay.
He took another sip of his drink, fingers tightening around the glass as if searching for stability. Abead of sweat glistened at his temple, betraying the fear he wouldn’t voice. His eyes darted between them, evaluating, but for once, Jazz saw something she never had before.
Doubt.
“I gave them what they wanted,” Sam muttered, his voice rough. “Financial records, offshore accounts. Names of men tied to Titus’s operations. Ifed them enough to make them think they had something solid—something that could bring him down. But I didn’t give them everything. Not yet. They think they’re close, but they don’t know how much of it is real and how much of it is smoke.”
Lily’s expression didn’t change, but something in her posture stiffened. “Do you have copies of what you gave them?”
Sam scoffed. “Of course I do. I’m not an idiot.”
Lily’s voice sounded steady, but Jazz could hear the demandbeneath it. “Then I want to see them. All of what you have. Now.”
Jazz turned to her sister, confusion flickering in her chest. “Lily, why—”
Lily barely spared her a glance. “Because if there’s anything in those files that can hurt you, we need to know before the Feds use it against you. You can’t be pulled into this mess.”
Jazz hesitated. That made sense, didn’t it? Lily was always steps ahead, just like Titus. And wasn’t that exactly what worried her? Had Titus sent her away for a reason? Had he seen this coming? The thought unsettled her, gnawed at the fragile certainty she clung to. She swallowed hard. “We need to make sure Titus gets everything,” she said, her voice quieter now. “He has to protect himself.”
Lily met her gaze, unreadable for a beat before nodding. “Of course. I’m the computer geek, remember? I’ll make sure he gets what he needs.” She turned back to her father, giving him the evil eye. “Nowwhat about Vex?”
Sam frowned. “What about him?”
