Page 56 of Angelo

"I’m glad you killed him, too," Elyse agreed, "but I can’t help but worry about the repercussions."

Gaspare must hate Alessandro now. Hell, he was probably plotting their murders already. Elyse suspected that it wouldn’t take too much convincing for Valentina to join forces with him.

Alessandro shrugged. "We will have to put out the fires as they come. There is no going back now."

The day’s events replayed themselves in Elyse's mind. From the moment Gaspare shot Ronaldo, their plans had gone to shit. Yet, luck stayed on their side. Against the odds, they managed to stay alive and turn the tide in their favor. Untrustworthy allies and treachery still surrounded them, but it’d be easier toconsolidate power from the othercoscasnow that three of the leaders were dead.

He probed, "What about you?”

She blinked. “What about me?”

“Do you regret anything?"

Elyse realized that, as of today, she’d become a true criminal, an accessory to murder, and a damned soul. Did she feel remorse? A faint smile ghosted over her lips. "No."

Because change never came without sacrifice.

12

Over the next twenty-fourhours, authorities scrambled to keep the crime scene quiet as they cleaned up the leftover mayhem. Mountain roads leading up to the church were shut down. During this time, passing vehicles were sent on a detour. The public was barred from entry while bodies were removed and evidence vanished into thin air. The police and fire brigade did their job so well that, by the time they were done, Elyse began to question if the bloodbath at the funeral had been a mere figment of her imagination.

If curious eyes from the neighboring towns had witnessed the smoke rising from the mountains, no one seemed alarmed enough to voice their concerns out loud. For now, the truth was only known to the unlucky guests who’d attended Vincenzo’s funeral. Elyse’s thoughts swerved toward Gaspare. Had he reached out to Mariposa? Did she know her father was gone? Or that her other brothers were dead?

Elyse was scheduled to meet with Mariposa soon. Dread ate at her. She refused to run from confrontation, though. Aberto, Soren, and Orlando De León might be dead, their blood on her hands, but she was no coward. Mariposa deserved an explanation, face to face, woman to woman, for the violence committed against her family.

On Tuesday, Elyse visited the younger woman at Monte's apartment. He let her in and stepped to the side. Elyse greeted both Monte and Mariposa. The younger woman’s countenance tensed up the moment she saw Elyse.

Did she already know?

Monte cleared his throat. Elyse glanced over for a moment. His gaze was honed on Mariposa. The scarred man's signature scowl—the one that screamedfuck around and find out—had wavered at the sight of Mariposa's discomfort. With a flicker of surprise, Elyse took note of how her husband's toughestbodyguard appeared to be developing a soft spot for Mariposa.

“The look on your face makes me nervous,” Mariposa observed anxiously.

Hesitation clouded green eyes. With a downcast gaze, Elyse tried to break it to her gently, “I have news to share, and it won’t be easy to hear…”

"Sounds ominous,” muttered Mariposa.

A beat of tension passed between them as Elyse revealed, "There were some casualties at the funeral."

“Who were they?”

“Ronaldo was the first to go.”

“What a shame,” Mariposa commented without a shred of grief.

“Then Domenico killed Carlo.”

Mariposa shrugged. “To be honest, I never liked him.”

“But Domenico didn’t make it out alive, either.” Elyse took a long pause, not knowing how to continue.

Mariposa seemed to misread her silence. The tension in the younger woman’s shoulders eased slightly. “Only three dead bodies? That is not too bad.”

Intently, Elyse stared at Mariposa. “There were more than three, but I don’t know if you’re ready to hear the rest.”

"Tell me.”

“Are you sure?”

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