Chapter 10 - The False Victory
The Commission council stepped out onto the portico, officially recognizing the end of the alliance and backing Alessandro's play.
Vincent dragged a screaming, humiliated Isabella into his armored vehicle, peeling out of the driveway in a cloud of dust.
The heavy iron gates of the estate swung shut, locking with a definitive, satisfying clang.
The immediate threat was gone, and the devastating war had been miraculously avoided by a sheer show of force.
Alessandro turned around and walked back into the grand hallway, where Rosa was waiting with Lily in her arms.
He dropped his weapon onto the console table and pulled them both into a crushing, desperate embrace.
He kissed Rosa deeply, finally free from the toxic engagement and the political chains that had bound him.
He promised her that tomorrow they would arrange for a private wedding, securing her place as his true and only Queen.
Later that evening, after a warm bath and a lavish dinner, they tucked a smiling Lily into the master bed.
The mansion was completely quiet, filled with a profound sense of peace and absolute victory.
Alessandro went down to the wine cellar to select a rare vintage to celebrate their newly promised future.
Rosa smiled softly, feeling a chill in the master bedroom, and walked over to Alessandro's private mahogany desk to find a spare blanket.
She pulled the heavy metal bottom drawer open, expecting to find folded linens or cashmere throws.
Instead of fabric, her fingers brushed against a thick, dusty manila folder labeled with her mother's maiden name.
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She opened the file out of sheer curiosity, finding the official mafia execution order for her parents from ten years ago.
The signature at the very bottom of the blood-stained page belonged to Alessandro Moretti.
