Chapter 32 Consciousness returns slowly, accompanied by a wave of nausea that has nothing to do with the blow to my head. I swallow hard, fighting down the sickness. "Welcome back, principessa." Lorenzo's voice makes my skin crawl. "Comfortable?" I test my restraints without opening my eyes. Zip ties, amateur hour. They didn't even check my boots where Dante taught me to keep a ceramic blade. "I've had better accommodations," I say, finally looking around. We're in the warehouse's converted office space, all concrete and exposed pipes. James stands by the door, looking smug despite the obvious tension in his posture. "Still so sharp-tongued." Lorenzo circles my chair. "Even now, you can't help but challenge authority." Another wave of nausea hits. I breathe through it, using the discomfort to focus. "Even now, you can't help but monologue like a second-rate villain." The backhand isn't unexpected. I roll with it, tasting blood. "I made you what you are," Lorenzo spits, pacing. "Everything you are⁠-" "You really believe that?" I laugh, buying time as I work on the zip ties. The capture wasn't part of my original plan, but I'd prepared contingencies for exactly this scenario. "You think this strength came from you?" "I orchestrated everything!" He's really angry now. Good. Angry people make mistakes. "Your kidnapping, the auction, all of it to destroy your father's precious legacy⁠-" "Into what?" The zip tie starts to give. "Your revenge fantasy? Your petty jealousy?" My stomach rolls again, but I push through. "You didn't make me strong, Lorenzo. You just showed me exactly what I never wanted to become." Movement catches my eye-James shifting uncomfortably. Interesting. "And what's that?" Lorenzo demands. "Someone who betrays family." I meet James's eyes. "Someone who hurts innocent girls to feel powerful. Someone who thinks they can control others through fear." I double over as nausea hits hard. "Sofia?" Real concern colors James's voice. Old habits die hard, I guess. "She's fine," Lorenzo snaps. "Another act to⁠-" I vomit on his expensive shoes. The moment of chaos is all I need. The zip tie breaks. My hidden blade finds James's thigh as I dive past him. His gun clatters to the floor-I grab it as I roll. "Don't," I warn as Lorenzo reaches for his weapon. "Unless you want to see how good a shot I've become." "You won't shoot me." His smile is confident. "You don't have it in you." I squeeze the trigger. Lorenzo screams, staggering back. The gunshot rings in my ears-god, why are guns always so damn loud. My hands are shaking. "A lot has changed," I say as he crumples, clutching the wound. "I'm not who you think I was anymore." James moves. I spin, but he's not attacking. He's...laughing? "What's so funny?" I ask, the hairs on the back of my neck rising. His laughter is fucking creepy. "You really think this was about you?" Blood seeps through his pants where I cut him. "That this whole operation was just about breaking the Renaldi family?" I know it's about taking over the Council, but it's nice to hear them admit it. "The Council meeting," I say, checking my broken watch and feeling my stomach drop. How long have I been out? "Tonight. It's tonight, isn't it?" "Started an hour ago," Lorenzo confirms, smiling despite his wound. "Where Viktor is currently presenting evidence of widespread corruption among the old families. Evidence James has been collecting for years." "Financial records, security breaches, unauthorized operations," James continues with satisfaction. "Every family's dirty laundry, all pointing to the same conclusion-the current Council system has failed." "While the families are distracted fighting each other..." I fake, keeping them talking. "Viktor's people take control of everything," Lorenzo finishes. "Using legitimate Council authority to restructure the entire organization. No more autonomous families. No more old guard resistance." I'd sent intelligence to Mario before we left the estate. Detailed files about Lorenzo's communications, Viktor's network, the connections between them all. If the Council meeting started an hour ago, Mario should have had time to... Another wave of nausea hits, but I fight it down. "You really think I didn't prepare for this possibility?" Their smiles falter. "You're bluffing," Lorenzo says, but uncertainty creeps into his voice. "You couldn't have known⁠-" "About Viktor's coup? About the Council meeting?" I think about the intelligence packages I'd transmitted before our mission began. "About James feeding you information for years while also building a case against all the families?" The color drains from James's face. "I may have been captured unexpectedly," I continue, "but I made sure my father had everything he needed before we left tonight. Every communication log, every financial transfer, every piece of evidence showing your coordination with Viktor." "That's impossible," James snarls. "The Council meeting-Viktor's presentation⁠-" "Is probably being presented to an audience that includes very prepared family representatives," I interrupt, hoping my timing is right. "Did you really think we'd let Viktor walk into that room without warning them what to expect?" The warehouse's emergency sirens suddenly blare. Gunfire erupts outside. "And that," I say conversationally, "would be Dante. Right on schedule." An explosion rocks the building. Close. "But the evidence Viktor has," Lorenzo starts desperately. "Is real. And damning. And exactly what we needed to prove there was a systematic campaign to frame the families." My smile is smug and satisfied. "Funny how evidence of a conspiracy actually proves there was a conspiracy." James lunges, and we grapple for the gun. His training against mine. But I have something he never expected. I have everything to fight for now. My family, my future with Dante, my ability to stand on my own two feet and fight for me. I'm fighting harder than I ever have before. The shot echoes through the office. James stumbles back, eyes wide. "You actually..." "I actually did." I keep the gun trained on him as he slides down the wall, clutching his shoulder. Not fatal, but he won't be fighting anymore. Lorenzo makes a break for the door. I let him run. Right into Dante. The satisfying thud of Lorenzo hitting the ground, followed by Dante's knee on his back and zip-ties securing his wrists, is almost worth everything he put me through. Almost. "Sofia!" Dante's eyes find mine over Lorenzo's prone form, quickly checking for injuries. "I'm okay." Mostly true. "But we need to⁠-" "Viktor's presenting to the Council," he says, pulling me close. "Your father and Mario are there, but they're outnumbered. Your intelligence package helped, but Viktor's presentation is convincing. The Council is starting to buy his version of events." Understanding dawns on Lorenzo's face, and his smile returns. "You're too late. Viktor's had an hour to make his case. By now, the Council believes the Renaldis are a threat to stability." "Maybe," I say, fighting down another wave of nausea. "But Viktor's about to get some unexpected visitors." More explosions outside. Marco's voice comes through comms, "Building secure. Transport ready. We need to move if we're going to make it to the Council chambers." I look at the men who tried to break me. Who thought they could control me. Who have no idea what I've become. "Shall we end this?" I ask Dante. His kiss is quick but fierce. "I thought you'd never ask." James's bitter laugh cuts off as Dante secures Lorenzo's restraints. "You really think they'll believe you over Viktor? You have no idea what you're walking into." I don't respond, but my mind is racing. An hour. Viktor's had an entire hour to make his case to the Council, to present his carefully crafted evidence, to turn them against my family. How much damage has already been done? How many Council members have already made up their minds? "We need to-Dante, we have to move," I tell him, my voice tight. "Like, now. Right now." He curses. "Let's go." I don't say anything else with Lorenzo and James listening. I can't let them know how worried I am about the timing, about whether we're already too late. Marco's voice crackles through comms again: "Let's go, Sofia-traffic to the Council chambers is getting heavy." More people arriving for Viktor's presentation. More witnesses to whatever narrative he's spinning about my family's "crimes." We have to hurry. Every second counts. In a romance-themed observation show, several participants undergo a series of interactions and conflicts filled with love, misunderstandings, and power struggles. In the end, one couple rises to over...