Her posture stiffens.
“And the Bellandis want Northstar,” I continue, my voice dropping. “They want it badly enough that they’ll do anything to get it.”
I feel the exact moment the words land.
It’s subtle—her shoulders tighten, her throat works in a hard swallow—but her eyes change. Fear flickers there, quick and bright, followed by doubt like a shadow.
“What do you mean by that?” she asks, and now her voice is quieter.
I don’t soften this. I can’t.
“I mean they’ve already started watching you,” I say. “We picked up surveillance outside your apartment building.”
Her breath catches.
“And I just got wind of more outside your office building,” I add, watching her face as it goes still. “My team is still combing through all the video we can get our hands on. I’m willing to bet we’re going to find more. And we’ll probablyfind some on your team members too—Malcolm, David, Eleanor—because they’re part of the equation.”
Her lips part. She doesn’t speak.
“But I don’t think they’re in as much danger as you are,” I say, and the certainty in my own voice makes my stomach turn. “Because you’re the one who can make this real for them. You’re the one who can hand them the keys.”
Her eyes flash, angry again, because anger is easier than fear.
“How could they know it’s me?” she demands. “I didn’t introduce myself as the due diligence lead when I met them.”
Her gaze sharpens, like she’s replaying the whole Chicago meeting in her head and looking for the moment she slipped.
“I wanted to meet them without that influence,” she says, fast now, defensive. “So I told them I was a financial executive—which is true.”
I nod once, because I believe her. I can hear the logic in it. It’s exactly something she would do.
“They still know,” I say simply.
“How?” she snaps.
I let my hands ease on her arms, not letting go, but loosening, trying to keep her anchored without making her feeltrapped.
“Because they have their ways,” I tell her. “Because they would make it their business to know exactly that.”
She shakes her head, disbelieving. “That’s—”
“Otherwise,” I cut in, keeping my voice firm, “they wouldn’t be watching your building.”
She breaks away from my grip and starts pacing again. “How am I in danger? What is it you think they’ll do?” she asks, voice wavering a bit. “I can’t suddenly go missing. That won’t help them.”
This is not a discussion I want to have with her—all the ways that people like that can “influence” people like her. But I respect her enough to tell her what she needs to know.
“No,” I say quietly. “There are other ways. Not just threats against you. Against family, friends, people you love.”
“My family isn’t even in the country,” she says. “My mom is retired, but she still makes a lot of public appearances. And my dad is always with her. If either of them goes missing, it’ll just shine a light on this whole thing, right? They wouldn’t want that,right?”
I furrow my brows. Out of respect for Elsa, I haven’t looked into her background. I wanted to learn about her through her, and I haven’t had time since the meeting in Caterina’s office to learn, so I’m not really sure what she means by that.
“Els—”
She whirls back to me. “Right?” she asks, a bit desperately. “They wouldn’t go after my parents, would they?”
“Dolcezza, just relax a moment,” I say gently, willing her to calm down. “I’m not sure what you mean by that.”
