**Mateo's POV**

I knew something was wrong the second I stepped inside her apartment. The air felt heavy-thick with fear, with secrets she wasn't ready to spill. Isabella stood frozen in the doorway, hair draped over the left side of her face like a shield, eyes wide and glassy under layers of makeup that couldn't hide the truth.

Something sparkled in me. The urge to protect her. To hold her tight and make sure notor no one hurt her again.

"What happened to your face, Angioletto?" I asked again, quieter this time. Deadlier.

She flinched at the nickname. Tried to step back. I caught her shoulders-gentle but firm. Turned her...