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And now the betrayal of our family by our own flesh and blood.
We found out when my brother Adriano married Bianca, my new sister-in-law.
A month before, a rival family in Florence – the Agrellas – had conspired against us.
Bianca had seen a stranger talking to one of the Agrellas just hours before the bastards sprang their trap.
Assassins showed up at a hotel to kill Adriano, Bianca, Lars, and me.
We escaped by the skin of our teeth…
But we never discovered who the mysterious stranger was that Bianca had seen.
That is, until he congratulated her at the wedding reception.
It was our cousin Aurelio –
The son of our uncle Fausto, who had been our father’s consigliere for 25 years.
Our world was turned upside-down in an instant.
3
As soon as we found out about Aurelio, all of us huddled in the study of our family estate.
Dario and his wife Alessandra…
His consigliere Niccolo…
Adriano and Bianca…
Niccolo’s twin, Roberto…
My youngest brother, Valentino…
And Dario’s best friend and the enforcer for our family, Lars.
Outside the house, our guests were still celebrating the new marriage.
Inside, though, we were preparing for war.
“Are you sure Aurelio was the same man you saw with Bautiste Agrella?” Niccolo asked.
“I’m positive.” Bianca shuddered. “I could never forget his eyes.”
Niccolo looked at Dario. Both of them were stunned into silence.
“Shouldn’t we ask him what he was doing there with Bautiste?” Valentino said. “Maybe it was a coincidence.”
“Aurelio was there three hours before assassins burst in and tried to kill Bianca, Adriano, Lars, and Massimo – and five hours before those same assassins killed the entire Agrella family.” Niccolo snorted. “That’s one hell of a coincidence.”
“Are you absolutely certain Aurelio didn’t recognize you?” Adriano asked his new bride.
“I’m sure,” Bianca said. “I didn’t even see a flicker on his face. He’d have to be the best actor in the world not to have reacted at all.”
“But what if he knew beforehand, and seeing you wasn’t a surprise?” Niccolo asked, playing devil’s advocate.
Roberto shook his head. “Why in the world would he come to the wedding, then? If Aurelio knew ahead of time who Bianca was… and if he thought there was any chance she could identify him… he would have just stayed away.”
