Chapter 3

I ignored their pathetic attempts to control the narrative. My eyes scanned the room, landing on the doorway where a new figure had just appeared, drawn by the commotion.

Antonio "Snake Eyes" Perez. My mother's right hand, the enforcer, the man who knew all the family's secrets. And, as I'd learned too late in my previous life, Katherine's father.

"Antonio," I called out, my voice steady. "You've served my mother for decades. Surely you know her only daughter."

He strode into the room, his face unreadable, those snake-like eyes fixed on me. The staff visibly relaxed, expecting him to restore order. Alexander, Marco, and Rick looked relieved.

Antonio stopped a few feet away. He didn't look at Katherine, not yet. His gaze was entirely on me.

"Ava," he said, his voice a low rumble. "What is the meaning of this outburst?"

Then, his eyes flicked to Katherine, and a flicker of something – pride? calculation? – crossed his face before it was gone.

He turned back to me. "This young lady, Angelina, is who your mother designated. You are overwrought. Perhaps the pressure is too much for you."

His words were a cold slap. Last time, his betrayal had been a brutal shock. This time, it was an expected pain, but it still cut deep. He was in on it from the start. Of course, he was. He was Katherine's father.

"Men," Antonio said, his voice hardening, no longer avuncular, now pure steel. "Take Miss Ava to her rooms. She needs to rest. She is not to attend the party."

Two of Antonio's personal guards, burly men I'd known since I was a child, stepped forward.

I didn't flinch.

The first one reached for me. I moved like smoke. A block, a twist, an elbow strike to his throat. He choked, stumbling back. The second one lunged. I used his momentum, redirecting him into a priceless Ming vase, which shattered with an explosive crash. He went down in a heap of porcelain and pain.

I stood amidst the chaos, breathing easily.

The remaining staff, and even Alexander and Marco, stared. They knew I'd been trained, but they'd never seen me fight like this. This wasn't sparring. This was lethal.

Giacomo, the old butler, whispered, his voice trembling, "That... that was the Corleone Viper strike. Only direct blood learns that."

A seed of doubt. I saw it in their eyes.

Katherine, however, was not to be outdone. Under Marco's almost imperceptible guidance from behind Alexander, she suddenly launched into a clumsy, telegraphed imitation of a Corleone defensive stance.

"I learned from the best!" she declared, her voice a little too shrill. "Ava was always watching, lurking. She must have stolen the moves when I practiced with Marco!"

My gaze snapped to Marco. His face was impassive, but his eyes avoided mine.

He had taught her. He had given away our family's most guarded secrets to this... this parasite.

The rage that had been simmering within me boiled over. I lunged at Marco, grabbing the front of his expensive silk shirt.

"You dare?" I hissed, my face inches from his. "You dare betray our blood, our legacy, for *her*?"

He didn't even flinch, his eyes cold. "She is to be protected. Mother's orders."