Page 129 of Auctioned Innocence
“Good.” Both men look at me sharply. I meet their stares. “Let them think they have us running scared. Divided. It’s exactly what we need.”
Marco’s face clears. “You want to spring the trap early.”
“Lorenzo’s desperate. Making mistakes.” I pull up the estate blueprints. “We use that.”
“It’s too dangerous,” both men say simultaneously.
I can’t help my laugh. “Nowyou agree on something?”
Marco studies me for a long moment—really looks at me, seeing not his little sister but the woman I’ve become. The fighter. The strategist. The equal partner standing beside Dante.
Then he looks at Dante. “You love her.”
It’s not a question.
“Yes.” Dante’s voice leaves no room for doubt.
“And if I ordered you to walk away?” Marco challenges Dante. “Choose your loyalty to me over?—”
“I’d choose her.” Simple. Final. “I’ll always choose her.”
The silence is deafening. I hold my breath, watching my brother process this new reality—that his best friend’s loyalty has shifted, that his little sister has grown into someone who commands that kind of devotion.
Finally, Marco nods once. It’s a small gesture, but it carries the weight of acceptance. Of recognition. Of letting go.
“The estate has tunnels,” he says quietly. “Ones Lorenzo doesn’t know about. Father showed them to me when I turned eighteen. Emergency escape routes from the old days.”
Relief makes me dizzy. “Show me.”
As we plan our counterattack, I catch both men watching me—Marco with dawning acceptance and something that might be pride, Dante with fierce protectiveness and love.
My brother and my lover.
My protectors turned partners.
“When this is over,” Marco says quietly, “we’re having averylong talk about appropriate age gaps and what happens to men who hurt my sister.”
I squeeze his hand. “After we save our family?”
“After.” His smile is grim but genuine. “Assuming Lorenzo leaves enough of us alive to have that conversation.”
Dante’s phone chimes again. His face goes ashen as he reads the message, all color draining from his features.
“What is it?” I ask, dread pooling in my stomach.
“Mario found something in Lorenzo’s old files.” Dante’s voice is tight with controlled fury. “He’s been building a case against the family for months. Documenting every ‘unauthorized action’ we’ve taken.”
I swallow heavily. “What kind of case?”
“Evidence that the Renaldis have gone rogue. That we’re operating outside Council authority.” Dante shows me the screen. “Your rescue from the auction house—he’s the one who has been framing it as an unprovoked attack on legitimate businessmen. The warehouse raid, the safe house raids—all of it documented as proof we’re destabilizing the peace.”
Marco goes very still beside me. “He’s setting us up to be declared enemies of the Council.”
“Gets worse,” Dante continues, scrolling through more files. “He’s already got three families ready to vote for sanctions. Tomorrow’s emergency meeting isn’t about protecting us from Viktor and Dominic—it’s about putting us on trial.”
My stomach plummets as I truly process the full scope of Lorenzo’s betrayal. It wasn’t just about selling me to Viktor. It was about destroying my entire family, piece by piece.
“Tell me everything,” I say softly, though part of me doesn’t want to know.
