Chapter 1 1

Alessia POV

The dim haze of the neutral speakeasy clung to my skin like a bad omen. Smoke curled from cigars, and the air reeked of cheap whiskey and desperation. Across the scarred oak table sat Marco Falcone, Capo of our sworn enemies, his smile sharp as a switchblade.

"To peace, Alessandro," he toasted, sliding the glass my way. Harrington's last scrap of dock territory hung in the balance. Refusing meant weakness. I lifted the tumbler, the liquid burning my throat like West Sicilian fire-familiar, deadly. Poison.

I cut the talks short. "We're done." Vision blurring, I stumbled out, heart pounding. The Gilded Cage's antidote waited. No time to lose.

Rain lashed Chicago's industrial streets, turning them to sludge. My battered Ford Model A fishtailed as I floored it, poison twisting my gut. Then-bam. Metal screamed. The truck flipped, hurling me into the mud. Left arm snapped like dry twigs, agony exploding.

Headlights pierced the downpour. A black Cadillac V-16 idled, unscathed. Damien Cobb stepped out, pristine in his tailored suit, sword brows furrowed. Chicago's Don, untouchable kingpin.

"You blind, Harrington? Or just stupid enough to scam me?" His voice dripped venom, eyes raking my mud-caked form. "John Harrington's son? More like a sissy who can't drive straight."

He loomed over me, his gaze flicking across my face. I could only imagine what he saw-mud, blood, and lips likely turning purple from the poison, though he'd probably mistake it for the cold or a wound from the crash. "Up you get, kid. Before I leave you for the rats."

"Don't touch me," I rasped, scrambling back with my good arm. His hand shot out anyway, fisting my collar-too close. Far too close to the bindings hiding my chest. A surge of pure panic, cold and sharp, shot through me. I swung my good fist, fueled by desperation, and felt the satisfying crack as my knuckles connected with his jaw.

His head snapped back, shock flashing in his eyes before it was consumed by pure rage. He lunged, grabbing my collar again, this time with intent. Fabric tore. My secret, my life, teetered on the edge of a ripped seam.

Luca, his Soldier, hovered nearby. "Boss-"

My breath hitched, caught in my throat. Desperation clawed at me, giving my words a sharp edge. "Ripping a boy's clothes in broad daylight, Mr. Cobb? Afraid those rumors about you will stick?"

I watched his fist tremble, inches from my face. His eyes, a moment ago filled with cold anger, now blazed with a more personal fury. The whispers about his "tastes," a weapon used by his rivals, was now a shield in my hand. He shoved Luca aside without looking at him, his charming gaze fixed on me, and I saw raw murder in it.

But before he could act, my body betrayed me completely. A violent convulsion seized me, and I spewed a foul mixture of black bile and gall. It splattered across the front of his immaculate, thousand-dollar suit, a grotesque stain on the pristine silk.

The blazing rage in his eyes vanished, replaced by something far more terrifying: a chilling, absolute stillness. His expression became a mask of cold calculation. He looked from the mess on his suit, to my face, then to the wreckage of my Ford, as if connecting invisible dots. A conclusion settled in his features, and it was a death sentence. Slowly, deliberately, his hand moved to the Colt holstered at his waist. The click of the safety being flicked was deafeningly loud over the drumming rain. The gas lamp flickered, illuminating the barrel of the gun as he raised it, his aim steady.