The villa was cloaked in an uneasy quiet, a fragile calm before the inevitable storm. Elena paced the marble floor of the war room, eyes scanning the maps spread across the table. Each red marker was a heartbeat in the city’s dark underworld — targets, allies, traps.

She’d never felt more exposed, more vulnerable. The battle for the throne was no longer just a fight against Lucia’s remnants or rival clans. A new adversary had emerged from the shadows — Vittorio, a ruthless kingpin whose ambition threatened to drown them all in blood and fire.

Her mind replayed the last intelligence briefing: Vittorio’s network was vast, his resources almost limitless....