Every head turned.
"Explain," I said.
She stood, moved to the window—unconscious echo of my own pacing. "Bianca has always been the favored daughter. The chosen one. Father's golden child." She turned to face us. "ButImarried you. I got the alliance, the power, the position she was supposed to have."
“But it was your sister who drugged you,” Rocco murmured. “Why would she…?”
We all turned to look at Paola. She bit her lip, twisting the diamond necklace carefully between her fingers. “It… may not have been entirely her idea. Bianca and I haven’t been close in a long time, but I never would’ve guessed that she’d be capable of this. Maybe she was forced into it, by Viktor or my father, I don’t know. And one thing sheis,is vengeful. So if she went through with it and then realized that it all worked out perfectly for me and mademethe favored Lombardo daughter…”
Understanding clicked into place.
My mind raced through implications. "What could she possibly have on you?"
"I don't know. My life is…was…boring, before you."
"So she gives Viktor ammunition against you specifically," Piero said slowly. "But what would that accomplish?"
"It delegitimizes the marriage even further," I realized, the strategy crystallizing. "If Viktor can prove Paola is somehowunfit, unsuitable, or problematic—it gives him grounds to challenge the alliance again. To demand I annul the marriage."
Silence as everyone processed.
"But what could Bianca have?" Matteo asked. "Paola's not a criminal. She worked at a gallery. Taught art to kids. There's nothing scandalous there."
"Unless Bianca manufactured something," Rocco suggested carefully. "Forged documents. False evidence. Made Paola look guilty of something she didn't do. The best person to do that would be her sister."
My blood ran cold.
That's exactly what Viktor would use.
It didn't matter if it was real. In our world, the appearance of impropriety was enough. If Viktor had documents—real or forged—suggesting Paola was involved in some crime, some conspiracy, some betrayal... the families would demand I divorce her.
And if I refused, they'd question my judgment. My fitness to lead.
"We need to know what's in that briefcase," I said flatly. "Tonight. Before Viktor has time to verify, copy, or distribute whatever it contains."
Giulio, looked pained. "You want to hit Viktor's building? That's an act of war."
"We're already at war. Viktor just hasn't declared it yet."
Piero leaned forward. "If we go after Viktor and we don’t win, every family will turn against us. Especially after tonight. They're already questioning your judgment."
I moved to the table, pulled up building schematics on one of the laptops. Viktor's Tribeca building: twenty stories, luxury condos, he owned the penthouse and the two floors below it.
"Security?" I asked Giulio.
"Tight. Private elevator to his floors. Keycard and biometric access. Armed guards, cameras, the works."
"Weaknesses?"
Giulio pulled up security specs. "The building shares a basement parking garage with the adjacent property. A service corridor runs between them. Old infrastructure from when they were part of the same development."
"Can we access Viktor's floors from there?"
"Theoretically. But we'd need to bypass security, get through three locked doors, avoid cameras."
Rocco added: "And that assumes Bianca and the documents are still there. She could have left already."
"She's still there," I said with certainty. "Viktor wouldn't let her leave until he's copied everything, verified authenticity, secured the information. That takes time."
