Page 123 of Diavolo

Around 6 am, they leftSversoand returned to the palazzo, bleary-eyed and groggy-headed, to catch up on sleep. Even though Elyse wasn't drunk or high, she couldn't recall ever staying out all night at a club. This shit was exhausting.

Later that afternoon, when Elyse and Alessandro finally stirred from their blacked-out state of exhaustion, Monte and Luca came to them bearing good and bad tidings. Both Elyse and Alessandro had listened to the report with similarly cool, unwavering expressions stretched taut across their faces like generals receiving status updates on the battlefield.

"Not a single Berlusconi was in attendance," Luca relayed with a grimace.

Elyse frowned. Invitations had been extended to Cara and Domenico. This intentional absence felt like a slap in the face. Alessandro murmured, "Fucking traitor.Domenico is making his position known to everyone."

Monte grunted in agreement,"Fottuto traditore."

Calculations clicked through Elyse's mind. The Berlusconi bastard was likely going to rally support from their allies to turn against them.

"What about the others?" Elyse asked, "where do they stand?"

She learned from Luca that the Svizzis had stayed quiet, neutral, unreadable, observing the drama unfold from the sidelines. The De Leóns, however, proved themselves to be trustworthy, for now, at least. Not only had Mariposa De León and her men kept their mouths shut about Alessandro and Elyse's questionable behavior, they even defended them against Carlo Moretti and Tara Trevisano.

Apparently, Carlo had remarked to Tara that, at his core, Alessandro Vitale was stillVincenzo Vitale's spoiled, unbridled son, that his new wife seemed to beevery bit as hopeless. Apparently, Tara had commented back that the pair of them madea perfectly imbecilic match. Apparently, talk of new business deals and backstabbing had swirled between the Morettis and Trevisanos all night.

After Monte and Luca took their leave, Alessandro and Elyse were, again, alone in their room. They glanced at one another grimly. A shared, unspoken thought passed between them: It hadn't taken the Morettis and Trevisanos very long at all to show their treachery.

"At least," Alessandro drawled, "we have lured the dissenters from hiding."

"Yes."

He cast an expectant look in her direction. "What comes next, wife?"

"We must hold onto the Svizzis and the De Leóns," Elyse said, "and find a way to set the Berlusconis and Morettis and Trevisanos at each other's throats. Until they're too weak to stand against us."

Her husband nodded. "I agree. They cannot be allowed to unite with Domenico. They must remain divided. Fractioned. At odds."

"I'll work on securing and reinforcing our ties to the Svizzis and De Leóns. Through their women."

"Sounds like a good start," Alessandro grunted, "I will work with your grandfather to set our trap for the other three clans."

"I want to help as well."

Alessandro's black eyebrows went up in surprise. Amusement gleamed from brown and blue-gray eyes. "What happened to the good surgeon who saved my life in Queens? She seems changed somehow."

"That surgeon married into the mafia," Elyse retorted quietly, "and now she must become a different woman altogether."

His hand reached over to cup her face. "Do you resent it,cuore mio?"

"What?"

"Being forced to adapt."

"Of course."

He swallowed uncomfortably. "I see."

His hand fell away from her cheek. She offered him a brave smile. "But I've been forced to do many things against my will. For survival. As a daughter, granddaughter, and wife. I'm used to it."

Alessandro paused with some hesitation before asking, "You once said that you will always resent me. Do you still feel this way?"

"No," Elyse answered, surprising herself in the process, "I'm beginning to see that you're not the enemy. It's the ones whokeep fucking with my peace of mind that I must fight against.Cosa Nostrastole our freedom. I want to make them pay."

"But," Alessandro reminded her, "the mafia is in our blood.We are Cosa Nostra."

She hummed noncommittally. A sudden wickedness rose in her. For her own sake, Elyse wanted to see the mafia self-destruct from the inside out. The irreversible harm it inflicted on her and her father's life, especially, had burrowed a profound and savage grudge inside her. The Mancinis destroyedPapá. They probably would've wrecked her, too, if Alessandro hadn't stepped in. "I'll be honest, Alessio, if your enemies end up killing each other by the end of this bloodbath, I won't shed a fucking tear."

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