Jeris 'The Eraser' Bianchi would handle the cleanup. Bank records, surveillance backups, transit lists—none of them would retain my name. Every trace of Elena Ashford would be scrubbed clean, as though she had never drawn breath in this world of blood oaths and broken promises.
I would not be found.
"Elena?"
Giorgio's voice cut through my calculations like a blade through silk, pulling me back from the depths of my planning. He stood too close—close enough that I could smell his cologne, that expensive blend of sandalwood and ambition. His hand reached out, the gesture meant to appear comforting, proprietary.
I stepped back. Fast enough to make him pause. Fast enough to see the flicker of confusion cross his handsome features.
"I'm fine," I said, my voice carrying the perfect weight of exhaustion. "Just a little tired."
I did not wait for a response. I left the dining room with measured steps, neither hurried nor hesitant—the walk of a woman who had nothing to hide and nothing to prove.
The night air hit my skin like a benediction. Cold. Clean. Carrying only the sound of wind through the cypress trees and the distant rhythm of waves against the estate's private dock. Standing in the shadows of the colonnade, I felt a clarity I had never known before—sharp as a stiletto, absolute as death.
For the first time in years, I could breathe.
I woke early the next morning, but still did not manage to avoid him.
Giorgio stood by the window, silhouetted against the gray dawn light, his tailored jacket already in place. The excitement on his face was barely concealed—the look of a man who believed his victory was assured, his conquest nearly complete.
"Today's schedule is packed," he announced, turning to face me. "The gowns need their final approval, and the ceremony arrangements have to be reviewed with the Capos."
His tone carried the weight of a declaration—not a request, but a pronouncement of how things would be.
"You're handling it with Silvia, aren't you?" I asked softly, letting the question hang in the air like smoke.
The atmosphere stalled for a fraction of a heartbeat.
He recovered quickly, his smile sliding into place with practiced ease. "Of course. She's more familiar with many of the details. The guest protocols, the seating arrangements for the Commission members—these things require a certain... finesse."