I felt the words hit me like a physical blow. Banished. From my home, my family, everything I’d ever known. I opened my mouth to protest, but Enzo held up a hand.
“You made your choices, Dante. You undermined my authority for years. You put the family at risk with your mercy.” His eyes were hard now, all that earlier softness gone. “But you also protected us in ways I didn’t see coming. So, you get to live. You get to keep your husband and your ranch. But you do it far away from me and from the business.”
My throat tightened. I’d known there would be consequences, but hearing it said out loud made it real. I’d never see Jersey again. Never walk the streets I grew up on, never eat at my favorite spots, never visit my mother’s grave.
But then I felt Nick’s thumb stroke across my knuckles, grounding me, reminding me what I had now. What I’d chosen when I helped those families escape instead of killing them.
“I understand,” I said quietly.
“Do you?” Enzo leaned forward. “Because I’m not done. Angelo stays with you. Marco too. All three of you are out. You’re no longer part of my organization.”
Angelo made a strangled sound beside me. “Boss, please?—”
“You helped him deceive me for years,” Enzo snapped. “You’re lucky I’m letting you live at all. Montana is your home now. Make the most of it.”
I glanced at Angelo and saw the devastation on his face. He’d given up everything for me, followed me out here, helped me save all those people. And now he was paying the price.
“What about Marco?” I asked.
“Marco’s already on his way back to Montana,” my father said. “He’ll meet you at the ranch tomorrow. The three of you can play gay cowboys for the rest of your lives for all I care. Just stay the hell out of New Jersey.”
The finality in his voice left no room for argument. I nodded, feeling the weight of it settle over me. Banished. Exiled. Cut off from the only family I’d ever known.
But Nick’s hand was still in mine, warm and steady. And when I looked at him, I saw no judgment in his eyes. Just relief that I was safe, that I was coming home with him.
“There’s one more thing,” Enzo said, and something in his tone made me nervous. “Your mother would’ve been proud of you today.”
I froze. My father never talked about my mother. She’d died when I was twelve, and he’d locked away every memory of her like it hurt too much to remember.
“She always said you had too much heart for this life,” he continued, his voice softer now. “That you’d never be happy doing what I do. I didn’t want to believe her. Thought I could mold you into the perfect heir.” He shook his head. “But she was right. You were never meant to be a killer, Dante. You were meant to be something…else.”
Tears burned behind my eyes, and I had to look away. Nick’s arm came around my shoulders, pulling me close.
“Thank you,” I managed.
Enzo stood, straightening his suit jacket. “Don’t thank me. Just... be happy out there. Build something good with your husband. Make a life worth living.” He paused at the cabin door. “And Dante? Don’t make me regret letting you live.”
Then he was gone, disappearing into the front of the plane, leaving the rest of us in stunned silence.
Heather was the first to speak. “Well,” she said, “that was intense.”
I let out a shaky laugh that was half sob. “Yeah. That’s one word for it.”
“You okay?” Nick asked quietly, his hand rubbing circles on my back.
Was I okay? I’d just been banished from my home, cut off from my family’s business, told I could never return to the only life I’d ever known. But I was alive. I was free. And I had Nick.
“I will be,” I said, leaning into him. “As long as I have you.”
He pressed a kiss to my temple. “Always.”
Angelo cleared his throat. “So, uh, I guess we’re all ranchers now?”
I looked at him, saw the fear and uncertainty in his eyes. He’d just lost everything too. His position, his status, his possible future in the family. All because he’d helped me do the right thing.
“Yeah,” I said. “Guess we are.”
“Could be worse,” Angelo said, trying for his usual cheerful tone but falling short. “At least Montana’s pretty. And Heather’s there.”
