Emma stared at the blinking message, her chest tight.
I'm alive. Matteo is lying. Meet me. — Isabella.
The coordinates pulsed beneath the text, deep within the forested zone Alexander had marked as a red zone—Dante's active territory.
Alexander leaned back from the terminal, his jaw tight, expression unreadable. "This could be a trap. It's too convenient."
Emma shook her head. "And if it's not? If she really is alive?"
"She was barely breathing the last time we saw her."
"And you said she was leverage," Emma snapped. "So if she's alive, she still matters—to Matteo. Maybe to Dante. Maybe to both."
Alexander hesitated. "We have no way of verifying this. That message could be from anyone."
Emma folded her arms. "I'm going."
He turned to her sharply. "Not without me."
"No. I need you here. You said it yourself—if this is a trap, someone needs to make it out to tell the truth."
"Emma, you're not trained for—"
She raised a hand, silencing him. "I've been hunted, manipulated, and lied to. And I'm still standing. That has to count for something."
He looked like he wanted to argue, but then he nodded, grim. "Then you'll need backup."
---
Fifteen minutes later, Emma stood outside the safehouse, dressed in dark fatigues, her hair tied back, a small pistol holstered at her hip. She felt like a stranger in her own body—stronger, colder.
Alexander adjusted the comms unit in her ear. "Keep the line open. If anything feels wrong, you abort."
"I'll bring her back," Emma promised.
He kissed her forehead. "And come back to me."
---
Emma followed the GPS signal through the dense woods. Dawn was breaking, casting the world in gold and red, but the forest felt more like a graveyard than a sanctuary. Every crunch of leaves beneath her boots was a warning.
Birds scattered as she moved through the brush, heart racing. The deeper she went, the more the world quieted.
A metal fence appeared in the distance, overgrown with ivy. Behind it, ruins of a forgotten observatory stood like a broken skeleton.
The coordinates ended there.
She moved forward, scaling the fence and dropping into the tall grass on the other side. The observatory was charred and hollowed, the dome half-collapsed.
And then she heard it—a faint cough.
"Isabella?" she called softly.
Silence.
Emma moved inside, stepping over rusted debris. A flicker of movement caught her eye.
Isabella was slumped against the wall, bruised but conscious. Her eyes widened at the sight of Emma.
"You came," she rasped.
Emma ran to her side. "We thought you were dead."
"I almost was. Matteo had me dragged out before the explosion. He didn't want me dying before I talked."
"Talked about what?"
Isabella looked around nervously. "There's more going on than you know. Alexander's past—it's not just about business. It's about blood."
"What are you talking about?"
"His father. The Blackwood legacy. It's soaked in crime. Dante isn't trying to steal power—he's trying to avenge it."
Emma blinked. "Avenge what?"
Isabella pulled something from her jacket—a flash drive. "This. Proof of what Alexander's father did to Dante's family. The lies go back decades. And Matteo? He's been working both sides, trying to take the whole empire for himself."
Emma stared at the drive. "Why give this to me?"
"Because you're the only one who doesn't belong to either side. And because if you don't do something, they'll both destroy each other—and you."
Suddenly, the crunch of boots outside.
Emma froze. She grabbed Isabella's arm. "We have to move."
But it was too late.
A figure stepped into the doorway.
Matteo.
"Well, well," he drawled. "Ladies' reunion?"
Emma raised her weapon. "Back off."
He smiled. "You don't want to shoot me, Emma. You still don't know which one of us is the real villain."
"I don't care," she said. "You hurt Isabella. That's enough."
"I saved her," he said calmly. "Because she knew too much, yes. But also because I knew you'd come. And now… I have all the players in one place."
He stepped forward. "You, me, Isabella. And the truth."
Emma's finger hovered on the trigger. "Why don't you tell me the truth, then?"
"Alexander killed Dante's brother. That's the real reason this war started. It wasn't about business—it was personal. And it was sanctioned by the Blackwood family to protect their own legacy."
Emma's breath hitched.
"He wouldn't—"
"He did. I have the proof. So does Isabella. And now, you have to decide, Emma. Who deserves to survive this?"
Before she could respond, a shot rang out.
Isabella screamed.
Emma ducked, pulling her down as gunfire exploded around them. From the treeline, Alexander burst in, returning fire. One of Matteo's guards collapsed.
"Get down!" Alexander shouted.
Matteo fled, vanishing into the trees as Emma and Alexander shielded Isabella behind a rusted desk.
Emma turned to him. "Is it true?"
His face was a mask.
"Did you kill Dante's brother?"
Alexander didn't answer.
And that silence… said everything.
Emma's chest tightened with betrayal. "You told me you'd protect me. That this was about saving lives—not ending them."
Alexander's voice cracked, low. "He was going to expose my father's crimes. Everything would've collapsed. I had to choose between justice and survival. I chose wrong."
Tears welled in her eyes. "You let me fall for you."
"I never meant to," he whispered. "But I did. I still do."
A low groan interrupted them. Isabella, pale and shivering, held up the flash drive. "Emma… this… take it to the press. To anyone outside this war."
Alexander reached for it. "We can contain the damage—"
Emma pulled it back. "No more controlling the narrative."
He stood, voice hardening. "You don't know the chaos that'll follow."
"Maybe chaos is better than living in lies."
Suddenly, a new figure appeared in the doorway. Not Matteo. Not a guard.
Dante.
"I agree with the lady," he said coldly, raising his gun. "Let's end this once and for all."