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"Absolutely not." Leonardo grasped my shoulders almost desperately. "Please, stay here where it's safe. If anything happened to you..." His voice broke rawly.
My heart wrenched, but I stood firm. "We face this together, remember? I can't sit here useless while Enzo and you are in danger."
We stared each other down in tense silence. Finally, Leonardo exhaled harshly. "You leave my sight, and I will tie you down myself," he warned darkly. But we both knew I had won.
Outside, eerie twilight blanketed the once-vibrant city, now a battleground. The streets were ominously deserted, making every scuffle or popped shot echo. I stuck close to Leonardo as we wound our way toward the last location Enzo had radioed from. But no signs of life greeted us there.
Leonardo's jaw tightened. "There!" He pointed toward a smattering of gory corpses sprawled just inside a storefront. The carnage turned my stomach. "Maybe Enzo managed to hole up somewhere nearby," Leonardo murmured.
We crept forward warily, senses on high alert. The sheer destruction was staggering. If Enzo had been caught in this bloody ambush... No, I couldn't think it. We would find him.
A sharp crack split the air, followed by two more Dad. Gunshots, close. Leonardo and I dropped into instant crouches, eyesscanning for the shooter. I spotted a shadowy figure slipping down a debris-strewn alley and tapped Leonardo urgently, gesturing.
With hand signals only, we moved to flank the alley's entrance from both sides, careful not to crunch glass underfoot. As the figure turned the corner toward me, I reacted on pure instinct.
In one smooth motion, I seized the man's wrist, locking his arm brutally back and using leverage to drop him hard face-first. I snatched the pistol from his grip before he could retaliate, jamming the muzzle under his chin.
"Where's Enzo Moretti?" Leonardo demanded harshly, materializing from the other side. When no answer came, he ripped off the downed attacker's mask.
I gasped, immediately releasing my brutal hold. "Enzo! What the hell?"
My brother groaned, sitting up stiffly. "Of course you two are together out here. Should've known that ambush wouldn't slow Leonardo down." Despite his grumbling, relief shone through seeing we were both unhurt.
I helped Enzo stand, guilt warring with lingering fear that he had been lost to us. But the scolding could wait. Right now, we needed to get back behind secure walls. The streets were clearly not safe tonight.
Staying alert for more hidden assailants, we raced back to the safehouse in record time. Only once the reinforced door was bolted behind us did I finally start to relax slightly.
Rounding furiously on both men, my earlier dread erupted. "What were you thinking going back out there wounded and alone? You could've been killed!"
"Slow your roll, firecracker. We're still standing, aren't we?" Enzo retorted, though not unkindly.
Beside him, Leonardo was sheepish. "Forgive me, amore. My only thought was finding your brother."
My anger deflated at this show of loyalty between the two, despite every code telling them they should be sworn enemies. Here they were, putting themselves at risk for my sake. I truly didn't deserve these men.
I pulled them both into a fierce hug, feeling their solidness. We had survived the crucible once more, thank God. "No more reckless solo acts, either of you," I mumbled thickly. "We look after each other from now on. Promise me."
"Of course, little sister," Enzo rumbled. Leonardo just nodded against my hair, his blood-stained shirt reminding me how narrowly we'd escaped tragedy today. But we had come through again together against the odds.
For tonight, that was enough of a miracle for me.
After tending to Enzo's and Leonardo's assorted injuries as best I could, we all collapsed exhausted around the rickety kitchen table. The safehouse was secure again, at least temporarily. Time to take stock of where things stood after the day's brutal chaos.
Enzo scrubbed a weary hand over his face. "It's getting uglier out there by the hour. Whoever takes out Don Moretti will control the whole damn city." His eyes were bleak. "And Father has many enemies eager for that throne."
I shivered. "He's still at the estate though, right?" The thought of the invincible patriarch laid low made me queasy. No matter our differences, he was still family.
"For now. But they'll storm the castle before long," Enzo said grimly. "I got caught in that ambush trying to get within striking distance and assess their plan."
Leonardo's face was grave. "How long do we have?"
"A day at most. Maybe less." Enzo's massive shoulders seemed to slump under some invisible weight. "He's too proud to run though. The only warning he gave was demanding I get Natalia away safe."
My stomach dropped, realizing what this meant. Not only my father's life was now at stake, but the entire family empire. Everything we had known teetered dangerously close to collapse.
Leonardo grasped my hand beneath the table, steadying me. To Enzo he said only, "Tell us how to help." No hesitation or caveats, simply unwavering support. My heart swelled for this man who had placed himself fully at my family's side, for me.
In that dim safehouse, the three of us began plotting urgently to intercept the imminent coup and save my father - the man who would condemn me as a traitor if he knew whose hand I now held. But none of that mattered in this moment.
