Chapter 2 2

Alessa POV

The engine of the Pagani hummed a low, vibrant note against the base of my spine, a beast waiting to be unleashed. Chicago's skyline loomed ahead, a jagged jaw of steel and glass ready to chew me up and spit me out. Or so they hoped.

I was cruising down the main artery of the city, the winter sun glinting off the dirty snow piled on the curbs. My grip on the leather steering wheel was relaxed, but my eyes scanned every shadow, every movement. Sicily had taught me that: paranoia is just another word for survival.

Up ahead, the traffic flow stuttered. A delivery truck had jackknifed awkwardly across the right lane, forcing cars to bottle-neck. It looked like a mundane city inconvenience, the kind that made businessmen late for their mistresses.

But then I saw them.

Three men in heavy coats lingering near the truck. They weren't checking the engine. Their hands were busy near the ground, and a glint of silver caught the light. A steel cable, pulled taut across the only open gap.

It was a trap. Crude. Amateurish. Designed to rip the carbon fiber bumper off my car and leave me stranded, a humiliated princess with a broken toy.

"Predictable," I muttered.

I didn't brake.

Instead, I downshifted. The engine screamed, a high-pitched wail that made pedestrians on the sidewalk flinch. I jerked the wheel hard to the left, cutting into the oncoming lane for a split second, then whipped it back. The rear tires lost traction, sliding across the asphalt in a controlled, beautiful drift.

The smell of burnt rubber filled the air. My car danced inches from the steel cable, the rear fender missing the trap by a breath. With a surge of acceleration, I straightened out, leaving the stunned men in a cloud of exhaust smoke.

I glanced up through the windshield as I passed *The Velvet Shadow Club*, a notorious watering hole for the city's degenerate elite. There, on the second-floor balcony, stood Kinsey Blair.

He was leaning over the railing, a glass of scotch in his hand, his face twisted in a mixture of shock and disappointment. He had wanted a crash. He had wanted a show.

I slammed on the brakes, bringing the Pagani to a screeching halt right in front of the club's entrance.

Silence descended on the street. The Associates who had set the trap froze. The doormen stiffened.

I pushed the door open and stepped out. The cold Chicago wind bit at my face, but the heat of my rage kept me warm. I smoothed the lapels of my Milanese jacket, taking my time, letting them look.

"Is that the best you can do, Kinsey?" I called out, my voice calm, cutting through the quiet street like a razor. "A tripwire? You've been watching too many cartoons."

Kinsey's shock morphed into a sneer. He leaned further over the railing, flanked by his sycophants. "Look who it is! The Nun of Palermo returns." He laughed, a grating, wet sound. "Did you pray for forgiveness, Alessa? Or did you just learn how to kneel properly?"

The men around him snickered.

I didn't flinch. I simply stared up at him, my expression bored.

"You should have stayed in the convent," Kinsey shouted, emboldened by his audience. "At least there you wouldn't embarrass your grandfather. Though, let's be honest, Felton Moreno is just a glorified secretary for the real men of this city. Maybe you can take notes for him."

The air around me seemed to drop ten degrees. Insulting me was one thing. Insulting the Consigliere, my blood, was a death wish.

"Are you finished?" I asked.

"I'm just getting started, *puttana* (whore)," Kinsey spat. "Go back to your car before I have my boys drag you out of it."

I sighed, a small puff of white breath escaping my lips. I didn't look at Kinsey anymore. I looked at the shadow cast by the club's awning, a patch of darkness that seemed deeper than the rest.

"Kris," I said softly. It wasn't a shout. It was a command.

Movement flickered in the periphery.

Kris, my Enforcer, materialized from the gloom of the balcony behind Kinsey. He was a ghost in a suit, silent and lethal. I had brought him back with me from Italy-a man with no tongue for gossip, only hands for violence.

Before Kinsey could take another sip of his drink, Kris surged forward.

The glass shattered on the pavement below.

Kinsey shrieked-a high, undignified sound-as Kris grabbed him by the back of his expensive cashmere coat and the belt of his trousers. With effortless strength, Kris lifted the Blair heir off his feet.

"Hey! What the-" Kinsey's protest was cut short as Kris slammed him against the railing.

"Throw him down," I said, my voice devoid of mercy.

Kris didn't hesitate. He tipped Kinsey over the edge.

Kinsey flailed, his hands scrabbling uselessly at the smooth metal bars, his legs kicking in the empty air. He was dangling now, held only by Kris's iron grip on his ankle. He hung upside down, twenty feet above the concrete sidewalk, his face turning a mottled purple as blood rushed to his head.

"Alessa! Are you crazy?" Kinsey screamed, swinging wildly. "Pull me up! My mother will kill you!"

I walked closer to the building, looking up at him like he was a particularly ugly gargoyle. The Associates on the street made a move to intervene, but I shot them a glare so venomous they halted in their tracks. They knew the rules. This was between high-ranking families. Interfere, and you die.

"You wanted my attention, Kinsey," I said, tilting my head. "Now you have it."

Kris held him there, a silent statue of judgment, waiting for my next word. The street held its breath.