Page 130 of Diavolo

Elyse blinked in surprise. "Chess?"

"Yes, chess."

"Ah." Elyse hadn't played the game since she was a young girl.

"Your grandfather told me that he used to play with your mother," Mariposa continued, "and now he wants to play with you."

She could barely recall the rules of the game, but—

"Please tell my grandfather," Elyse responded with a genuine smile, "that I'd love to play with him."

29

Late that evening, afterall of Elyse's guests had left and Alessandro returned to the palazzo, husband and wife lay together in the quiet darkness of their bedroom. It was well after midnight.

"How did your meeting go?" Elyse asked as she snuggled up to Alessandro.

"As well as we could have hoped," he replied as his arm wrapped around her. His fingers tangled into her hair, affectionately combing through the dark, silky strands in a pleasing, soothing manner. "Aberto seems game to take down Domenico and Carlo, but he does not want to touch the Trevisanos."

"Why?"

"They are working together to rig a few seats in the upcoming regional election."

"I see."

Her thoughts raced backward. Alessandro's heated words from their first-ever fight dashed across her mind.We are all ruled by money and power.Corruption was everywhere, and,unfortunately, politics and crime often worked hand in hand to get richer and grow their influence.There is no such thing as a noble cause.

Elyse inquired, "Do these arrangements happen often between the mafia and the government?"

"More often than you think."

"I thought so."

"In many ways, it is a mutually beneficial partnership. We protect their interests, and they protect ours."

"A fucked up symbiosis," she mumbled faintly.

"What?"

Elyse shook her head. "Nothing."

The mafia is not so different from legal but corrupt institutions when all is said and done.Just because something was legal didn't make it good or right. Elyse felt her moral compass spin yet again. From the beginning of time, in every corner of the world, the rich and powerful minority continually profited off the oppressed majority. But criminals were no longer criminals when they were the ones who wrote the laws.

On flip side, laws often failed to protect those who needed the most protection. This was a form of corruption as well. Especially when people chose to be heartless assholes. Back in the States, Elyse had personally seen critically ill, dying patients turned away from life-saving procedures in the ER. This wasn't legal, but it was done on the sly. Simply because some patients were poor and powerless. They couldn't afford the medical bills, therefore, no one cared enough to help them.

A heaviness poured over her. It didn't matter which team she played for at this point. Legal or not. Mafia or not. There were elements of ugliness in everything and everyone—some more than others, of course—but darkness was always lurking beneath the shiny enamel of civilized society.

Elyse's resolve hardened by a fraction. Perhaps, at the end of the day, the only thing that mattered was survival. She'd need to find a way to keep her shine even in darkness. Surely, she could live within the fuckery without succumbing to it? Elyse chose to cling to this belief, this symbolic set of door locks, to help her sleep at night. Sometimes, half-truths and almost-lies were necessary for one's sanity.

"So," remarked Elyse, "the Trevisanos are out of the picture. For now."

"Yes," he confirmed, "for now. We will need to determine where the Svizzis stand before making our next move."

"I'll reach out to Antonia Svizzi. Malina has told me that she's well connected in their clan."

"Grazie."

Their plan was well underway. There would be no turning back. People were going to die. She was going to become a killer and a criminal. Much in the way the Mancinis had preyed on her and her father, she would now target her husband's enemies. A sudden shock burst through her.

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