The sound of distant sirens hums through the Milan night, but Adonis barely notices. He leans against the hood of his car, eyes fixed on Juliet's apartment.
She doesn't trust him.
Good.
She shouldn't.
He runs a hand through his hair, tension coiling in his muscles. What the hell is he doing?
Giovanni gave the order. If Adonis were the man he was trained to be, he'd have handled it without a second thought.
But something about Juliet…
She doesn't break.
Most people crumble under pressure. They flinch. They hesitate.
Juliet? She looks him in the eye like she's daring him to make a move.
That's not just confidence. That's survival.
And he recognizes it because it's the same thing that kept him alive in prison.
A sharp knock on his window pulls him out of his thoughts.
Luca stands outside, arms crossed.
Adonis unlocks the door, and Luca slides into the passenger seat.
"You look like hell," Luca says.
Adonis exhales, rubbing his jaw. "Long night."
Luca smirks. "Juliet Moretti?"
Adonis doesn't reply.
Luca chuckles. "You've got problems, boss."
"No kidding."
Luca leans back. "I did some digging. You were right. Her parents weren't just cops. They were deep in the anti-mafia unit."
Adonis tenses.
Luca continues. "They weren't just killed in the line of duty. They were assassinated. And guess who gave the order?"
Adonis doesn't answer.
He already knows.
Don De Luca. His father.
Luca watches him carefully. "So now what?"
Adonis grips the wheel.
He needs to be smart. He needs to play the game like he always has.
But this time… the stakes are different.
He starts the engine.
"We find out just how much Juliet knows."
Juliet's Investigation
Juliet flips through the files spread across her table, her mind racing.
She's been chasing the mafia for years, but something about this case—the way everything keeps leading back to Adonis—it's different.
Her instincts are screaming at her.
Adonis isn't just another criminal.
He's the key.
She pulls out an old case file, her fingers tracing the names on the page. Her parents.
The official report called it an ambush. A tragic loss of two dedicated officers.
But Juliet never believed that.
She turns to another page. A list of suspected mafia associates.
Her heart stops when she sees the name.
Don De Luca.
Her blood runs cold.
She knew the De Luca name carried weight, but if Adonis' father was directly involved in her parents' murder…
Then Adonis is either her greatest lead—or her deadliest enemy.
Her phone buzzes.
Unknown number.
She hesitates, then answers.
"Moretti."
A low, familiar voice comes through. "You need to stop digging."
Juliet's grip tightens on the phone.
Adonis.
She doesn't reply, letting the silence stretch between them.
Finally, he sighs. "Meet me. One hour."
"Why would I do that?"
Adonis' voice darkens. "Because if you don't, you won't live long enough to finish this case."
Click.
The line goes dead.
Juliet stares at the phone, her heart hammering.
She should run. She should call for backup.
But instead, she grabs her gun and heads for the door.
Because if Adonis De Luca has the answers she needs…
She'll face the devil himself to get them.