I grab the envelope, my hands steady despite the rage building in my chest. The photos are clear, professional quality. Sofia walking around the property. Me standing guard. Even one of her looking out an upstairs window.
"How long have they been watching?" I ask through gritted teeth.
"Unknown. Could be since we arrived, could be longer." Vito's voice is carefully controlled, but I can see the fury in his eyes. "The point is, they know exactly where she is, and they're making it clear that our time for negotiations is over."
"So what's the plan?" Rafa asks. "We move her again?"
"To where?" Marco spreads his hands. "If they found one safehouse, they can find another. Besides, we're running out of places to put her."
"We fight," I say, surprised by the vehemence in my own voice. "We increase security, we prepare for an attack, and we defend our position."
"Against what? The entire Costello organization?" Rafa laughs bitterly. "Dante, be realistic. They outnumber us three to one, and that's just their soldiers. If we include their allied families?—"
"I don't care about the numbers."
"Well you should," Vito snaps, and the room falls silent. "Because I won't risk a war that destroys everything we've built over one person. Not even Sofia."
The words hang in the air like a death sentence.
"So what are you saying?" I ask, though I already know the answer.
"I'm saying we're out of options." Vito stands, beginning to pace behind his chair. "Four days isn't enough time to find an alternative solution. It's not enough time to relocate Sofia somewhere they can't find her. And it's not enough time to eliminate the threat entirely."
"There has to be another way."
"There isn't." Marco's voice is matter-of-fact, final. "We've exhausted every avenue. The marriage alliance is the only thing that ends this without total war."
I stare at him, feeling something crack inside my chest. "You're talking about handing over an eighteen-year-old girl to a family known for torturing their enemies. You're talking about sacrificing Sofia to save your own skins."
"I'm talking about saving hundreds of lives," Vito fires back. "I'm talking about preserving the family that has fed and sheltered you for over a decade. I'm talking about making the hard choice that needs to be made."
"The hard choice?" I step forward, my control finally snapping. "The hard choice would be fighting for her. The hard choice would be finding a way to protect someone under our care instead of throwing her to the wolves the moment things get difficult."
"Dante—"
"No, let me finish." My voice is deadly quiet now, more dangerous than if I were shouting. "You took me in when I was thirteen years old. You gave me a home, a purpose, a family. You taught me that loyalty meant protecting the people we care about, no matter the cost. And now you're telling me that was all bullshit?"
Vito's face hardens. "Watch your tone."
"Or what? You'll hand me over to the Costellos too?" I laugh, but there's no humor in it. "Tell me, boss—where does it end? Who else are you willing to sacrifice to avoid a fight? Rina? Elena? Gianna? Or just the ones who aren't married to you yet?"
The room erupts. Marco shoots to his feet, Rafa starts shouting, but all I can focus on is Vito's expression—the cold calculation that tells me he's already made his decision.
"Four days," he says quietly, and his voice cuts through the chaos. "We have four days to make a decision that I can't make alone."
I stare at him. "What do you mean?"
"I mean this decision affects more than just Sofia. It affects every family in our network, every soldier under our protection, every business we run." Vito's voice is carefully controlled. "A decision this big—one that could lead to all-out war—can't be made by one man."
"So what are you saying?"
"I'm calling a summit. Tomorrow night. All the families under our protection, all the major players in our network. They'll vote on whether we hand Sofia over or go to war."
My blood runs cold. "You know exactly what they're going to say."
"Do I?"
"Yes, you do." I step forward, my control finally snapping. "They're going to choose the option that protects their own interests. They're going to vote to sacrifice one girl to save their own skins. And you know it."
