A Little Girl Made Me Laugh for the First Time Since My Wife Died—Then She Pointed at the Locked Room and Said, “The Pretty Lady Told Me.”

The library erupted.

Marco lunged forward, not toward Dante, but toward the side terrace door. He drew a hidden snub-nosed revolver from his ankle holster, fired two shots into the ceiling, and shattered the floor-to-ceiling glass panel, disappearing into the dark gardens.

"Lock down the estate!" Dante roared to his loyal men. "Nobody leaves the grounds! Seal the gates!"

Two guards tackled Councilman Vieri to the marble floor, stripping his cane and cuffing his hands behind his back.

Dante turned to Rosa, who had rushed down from the upper balcony upon hearing the gunshots. "Are you alright? Where is Sophia?"

"She’s locked in the master bedroom with your guard Antonio," Rosa said, her chest heaving. "Dante... Marco helped her escape? Carmela is alive?"

Dante felt a tempest of rage and disbelief tearing through his chest. "I don't know what is real anymore. But Marco knows the truth."

Dante grabbed his tactical coat from the chair. Inside the pocket, Carmela’s ledger was secure. He pulled out his encrypted phone, dialing his docks commander.

"Salvatore. Lock down Pier 42 and the Chicago Harbor warehouse immediately. If Marco Falcone shows his face, take him alive."

"Boss," Salvatore’s voice crackled through the speaker, tight with urgency. "Marco’s already here. He arrived five minutes ago in a black SUV with six armed men. They’re breaching the old cold-storage facility."

"Hold your fire until I arrive," Dante commanded. "Do not let him leave the harbor."

Dante turned to Rosa. He took both of her hands in his. His touch was warm, firm, and protective.

"I have to end this tonight," Dante said, looking directly into her eyes. "You and Sophia stay inside this house. Vieri is secured. My loyal men have the perimeter."

He reached into his vest, pulled out a small brass key on a leather cord, and pressed it into Rosa’s palm.

"This opens the emergency safe behind the painting in my bedroom," Dante told her. "Inside is two million in bearer bonds, Canadian passports for you and Sophia, and the deed to a ranch in Wyoming. If I am not back by sunrise, take Sophia and run. Do you understand me?"

Rosa stared down at the key, tears welling in her eyes. She closed her fingers around it, then looked up at him with unexpected fierceness.