Morning in the mansion felt… strange.
It was quiet again, just like the day before the attack. Sunlight spilled through the tall windows, warming the polished marble floors. Staff moved through the halls with calm efficiency, as if nothing violent had shattered the night before.
But I knew better now.
Behind the elegant walls and perfectly polished floors, this place was a fortress.
And everyone inside it was part of a war.
I was halfway down the staircase when I noticed the men gathered in the large sitting area near the main hall.
Three of them stood around a long table covered with maps and documents. Their voices were low, serious, their expressions hard.
Luca was among them.
The other two I didn't recognize.
One was tall and broad-shouldered, with dark blond hair and a thick beard. He looked like the type of man who could break a door down with his shoulder and not even blink.
The other was slimmer, dressed sharply in a dark suit, his eyes sharp and calculating.
They noticed me almost immediately.
The conversation stopped.
Three pairs of eyes turned toward me.
For a moment, the air grew tense.
Luca broke the silence first.
"Well," he said, leaning back slightly in his chair, "looks like you survived the night."
"Barely," I replied.
That earned the faintest smirk from him.
The bearded man folded his arms.
"So this is her."
His voice was deep, skeptical.
I lifted an eyebrow.
"Should I be offended by that tone?"
He didn't answer right away.
Instead he looked me over carefully, as if trying to figure out how someone like me had ended up here.
"You're smaller than I expected," he finally said.
"Thank you… I think."
Luca gestured lazily toward the men.
"Elena, meet Marco."
He nodded toward the large bearded one.
"Head of security. He's the reason most idiots don't make it past the front gate."
Marco gave a short nod, still watching me with suspicion.
"And this," Luca continued, pointing to the man in the suit, "is Victor. Logistics and operations."
Victor gave a polite smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Pleasure to meet you."
Something about him felt… too smooth.
Like a man who always kept a secret behind his smile.
"Nice to meet you too," I said cautiously.
Marco leaned against the table, studying me again.
"So you're the girl who was in the hallway during the attack."
"Yes."
"Brave," he said bluntly. "Or stupid."
Luca chuckled under his breath.
"She stayed with Dante," he added.
Marco's eyes flicked toward Luca, slightly surprised.
"Did she?"
"Didn't run," Luca said. "Didn't scream either."
I folded my arms.
"I screamed internally."
That actually made Marco laugh once—a short, rough sound.
"Fair enough."
Victor tapped a pen lightly against the table.
"You must understand," he said calmly, "your presence here is… unusual."
"I've noticed."
"This house is not a place for civilians."
"I noticed that too when bullets started flying."
His smile returned, thin and polite.
"Exactly."
Marco looked at Luca.
"Does Dante know she's wandering around the house alone?"
"Oh, he knows," Luca said casually.
"And he's okay with it?"
Luca shrugged.
"If he wasn't, she wouldn't be here."
That seemed to settle the matter—for Marco, at least.
But Victor kept watching me.
Carefully.
Too carefully.
"What?" I finally asked.
"Nothing," he said smoothly.
"Your face says otherwise."
He smiled again.
"Just curiosity."
"About?"
"You."
I didn't like the way he said it.
Luckily, before the conversation could grow more uncomfortable, a familiar voice spoke from the hallway behind me.
"She's not here for your entertainment."
Dante.
All three men straightened slightly.
Even Marco.
I turned.
Dante walked toward us with his usual controlled stride, his presence instantly changing the energy in the room.
Power moved with him.
You could feel it.
"Good morning," he said to the group.
"Boss," Marco replied with a respectful nod.
Victor closed the folder in front of him quickly.
"Everything secure?" Dante asked.
"Yes," Marco answered. "Perimeter doubled. Extra patrols in the east garden."
"Good."
Dante's gaze shifted to me.
"Did you sleep?"
"Eventually."
He studied my face like he was checking for signs of damage.
Satisfied, he nodded once.
Then his attention moved back to the men.
"Report."
Marco leaned forward over the table.
"We found a vehicle abandoned two miles from the east wall," he said. "Probably how the two survivors escaped."
"Any identification?"
"Still working on it."
Victor spoke next.
"We've also been tracing communications from the attackers. Someone coordinated the timing very carefully."
Dante's eyes darkened slightly.
"Meaning?"
"Meaning," Victor said, "someone may have had inside information."
The room fell quiet.
Even I could feel the tension now.
Marco's jaw tightened.
"You think we've got a leak?"
"I think it's possible," Victor replied calmly.
Luca leaned back in his chair.
"Wouldn't be the first time someone tried to sneak a snake into the garden."
Dante didn't react outwardly.
But something about his stillness made the room feel colder.
"Keep investigating," he said quietly.
Victor nodded.
"Of course."
The meeting continued for a few more minutes, mostly about security measures and possible retaliation.
I stayed silent.
Listening.
Watching.
Trying to understand the strange world I had been dropped into.
Eventually Dante closed the discussion with a simple nod.
"That's enough for now."
Marco gathered the maps.
"I'll update you this evening."
Victor picked up his folder and gave me one last polite smile before leaving the room.
Marco followed.
Soon it was just Luca, Dante… and me.
Luca stretched his arms lazily.
"Well," he said, glancing between us, "that was fun."
Dante gave him a look.
"You're enjoying this too much."
"Maybe."
He stood from his chair and walked toward me.
Up close, I noticed the cut on his cheek from the night before had already been cleaned.
"Word of advice," he said quietly.
"Oh?"
"Don't trust everyone in this house."
My stomach tightened slightly.
"You mean Victor?"
Luca smirked faintly.
"I didn't say that."
"But you implied it."
He leaned closer.
"Let's just say… loyalty is very valuable around here."
"And rare?"
His smile widened slightly.
"Exactly."
Before I could ask another question, Dante's voice cut in.
"Luca."
Luca straightened.
"Yes, boss?"
"Stop scaring her."
"I'm educating her."
Dante's expression remained calm.
"She doesn't need your version of education."
Luca laughed softly.
"Fair enough."
He headed toward the hallway, pausing beside me for a moment.
"Still," he said quietly, "keep your eyes open."
Then he left.
Silence settled over the room again.
I turned slowly toward Dante.
"You have a traitor in your house."
"It's a possibility."
"And you're just… calm about it?"
His gaze met mine.
"I'm always calm."
"That's terrifying."
His lips almost curved into a smile.
"Good."
I sighed, rubbing my temples.
"I feel like I walked into the middle of a mafia chess game."
"You did."
"And everyone is a suspect?"
"Almost everyone."
I hesitated.
Then I asked the question sitting in the back of my mind.
"Am I a suspect too?"
Dante didn't hesitate.
"No."
"Why?"
His eyes held mine.
"Because if you were," he said quietly, "you wouldn't still be here."
A chill ran down my spine.
Somehow that answer was both comforting…
And deeply unsettling.
Just as I opened my mouth to respond, a voice echoed faintly from the hallway.
Two guards speaking to each other.
"…shipment arrives tonight…"
"…make sure Dante doesn't find out yet…"
My head snapped toward the door.
"Did you hear that?"
Dante had already turned.
His expression had gone completely still.
Cold.
Dangerous.
"Stay here," he said quietly.
But I was already moving toward the hallway.
Because whoever those guards were talking about…
It sounded like they were planning something Dante wasn't supposed to know.
And suddenly Luca's warning echoed in my mind.
Don't trust everyone in this house.