I turned to face her.
"They're right that you're hiding," she continued. "Right that this looks like weakness. Right that your empire is burning while you play protector down here."
"I'm keeping you alive," I said through gritted teeth.
"Are you?" She gestured around the apartment. "Or are you just giving them time to destroy everything before they come for usanyway? They're not just attacking your business. They're proving you're not the man everyone feared."
The words hit like physical blows.
"What would you have me do?" I demanded. "Walk into their trap? Get myself killed and leave you and our child completely unprotected?"
"I don't know!" Her voice cracked. "But I can't watch this. Can't listen to your men die, your empire crumble, your enemies win—all while you tell yourself this is protection."
She moved back toward the bedroom.
"Wake me if we're about to die," she said. "Otherwise, I'd rather not watch you destroy yourself one phone call at a time."
The door closed again.
I stood there, torn between following her and accepting the truth of her words. My father's voice echoed: "The moment you stop watching, Luca, is the moment they move against you."
But what good was watching if I was powerless to act?
I returned to the security monitors, checking each feed with methodical precision. My phone buzzed:Perimeter sweep complete. All clear.
All clear. The words mocked me.
Nothing was clear. My empire was crumbling, my men were dying, my enemies were circling—and I was trapped underground with a woman who'd just accused me of cowardice.
A woman who was right.
Hours passed. I made calls, issued orders, and reviewed footage. Sienna remained in the bedroom, the closed door a clear message I respected.
At 3 a.m., a soft notification chimed from the security system. I checked the feeds immediately.
There. A shadow moving along the western perimeter wall. The figure was dressed in black, face obscured, movements precise and professional. They disabled one of the exterior cameras before slipping into a blind spot.
My blood ran cold. No amateur would know about that particular vulnerability.
I hit the silent alarm, then grabbed my gun.
"Luca?" Sienna's voice came from the bedroom doorway. She stood there in one of my shirts, her eyes going immediately to the gun in my hand, then to the security monitors showing the breach.
"Someone's outside," I said.
"What's happening?"
Before I could answer, the security monitor flashed red. Another camera down. Then another.
"Someone's coming," I said, crossing to her and pressing a gun into her hands. "Someone who knows how to get in—because they've been here before."
CHAPTER 10
S
ienna
"Stay behind me." Luca's voice was deadly calm as he moved toward the door, gun raised. "If shooting starts, you get in the bathroom and lock the door. Understand?"
