The sky over Naples was gray and heavy, as though the heavens themselves knew what was coming.
Amara stood in her father's former office, now hers. The air was thick with memory—oak and tobacco, rage and power. Every time she stepped into this room, she could still hear his voice echoing beneath her skin.
> "Trust only what bleeds for you."
That voice had once been gospel.
But even blood had betrayed her now.
She stared down at the photograph still lying on her desk — the one she'd received days ago. She and Luca on the chapel steps. Captured from a distance. No timestamp. No signature. Just the writing on the back:
> You're not the only ones with ghosts.
Veleno was watching her. That much was certain. But it wasn't enough to know she was being watched.
She needed to know by who.
And so, she set the trap.
24 Hours Earlier – Villa Moretti War Room
"False drop?" Enzo frowned.
Amara nodded. "We leak word of a fake shipment. One Chiara and I will create from scratch, new route, new codes, completely invented."
"Who do we tell?" Rocco asked.
"Only the inner circle," Amara replied. "No external hands. The intel will come directly from my mouth, to one of three people."
Chiara, seated nearby with headphones slung around her neck, raised a brow. "And you're watching who takes the bait."
"Exactly," Amara said. "The leak has to move fast. I'll give the intel tonight. The 'shipment' departs tomorrow at dawn. If someone's watching, they'll move immediately."
"And when they do?" Rocco asked.
Amara's eyes hardened. "We'll be waiting."
Present – Villa Moretti Rooftop Balcony
The wind tugged at her silk robe as she watched the city glitter beneath her. From here, Naples looked peaceful. Clean.
A lie, wrapped in gold.
Enzo stepped beside her, holding a phone.
"It worked," he said. "The route was activated. Someone relayed it within six hours."
Her pulse didn't quicken. She expected this.
"Who did you tell?" she asked.
"You," Enzo said. "Me. Rocco. And Chiara."
Amara turned to him. "Chiara created the fake logs. She never heard the drop location. I fed that part to you and Rocco only."
Enzo froze.
Amara nodded. "We just narrowed it down."
Villa Moretti – East Tunnel Access Point
The false shipment was already loaded. Five trucks. Empty. Guarded by men who thought it was real. Only Amara and Enzo knew it was bait.
Chiara had installed motion sensors and drone cams along the route. Nothing moved without her knowing. And still, Amara felt cold in her bones.
This isn't just about catching a rat, she thought. It's about proving you're not insane.
Because lately, even she had started to wonder.
Midnight – Chiara's Tech Station
"It's happening," Chiara whispered.
Amara and Enzo leaned over the monitor.
A single dark car was idling at checkpoint B — a blind spot between two hills.
"It's not ours," Enzo said.
The car moved. Down the trail. Toward the fake convoy. Moments later, two more shadow vehicles joined from the east.
Amara's chest tightened. "Who's tracking them from our end?"
Chiara zoomed in on a camera near checkpoint C.
What they saw turned her blood to ice.
A Villa Moretti vehicle. One registered to Rocco.
"Are you sure it's him?" Enzo asked.
Chiara tapped a button. License plate confirmed. Interior cam snapped on.
Rocco. Driving. Alone.
Heading straight toward the drop point.
Abandoned Warehouse – Trap Site
The three decoy trucks waited in stillness. Rain tapped the roof like a countdown.
Then the black cars arrived.
Men stepped out, dressed in black. No colors. No flags. Faces covered. Military movements, crisp, precise.
They scanned the trucks. Opened one. Then another.
Empty.
Just as they realized it was a trap, floodlights exploded to life.
Dozens of Amara's guards stepped from shadows, rifles raised.
"Drop your weapons!"
Chaos erupted.
Shots rang out. One black-clad man fired wildly before falling.
The rest surrendered.
All except one.
He ran.
But Amara was already waiting.
Her gun was steady as he burst through the back exit.
She didn't hesitate.
One shot. Clean through the thigh.
He dropped, screaming.
She approached slowly.
"Who sent you?" she asked coldly.
He spat blood, eyes wide. "You'll never find us."
She knelt beside him. "I already have."
Then, she pulled back his sleeve.
Branded on his forearm: a black serpent curled into a circle.
Veleno.
Later That Night – Villa Moretti Interrogation Room
The man was chained and gagged. No ID. No fingerprints in any system. A ghost.
Amara watched him from behind glass. Enzo stood beside her.
"What do you want to do?" he asked.
She didn't answer.
Instead, she turned away.
"I need to talk to Rocco."
Moments Later – South Corridor
She found him walking in, wiping rain from his leather jacket.
"You sent me into a war zone," he said, voice tense.
"You were at the drop," she replied. "Why?"
Rocco's eyes narrowed. "I was following orders."
"Whose?"
"Yours."
"No," she said, stepping closer. "I never told you the route. Only the general direction. And I never cleared surveillance."
Rocco said nothing.
"Why were you at checkpoint C?"
Still nothing.
"I want the truth, Rocco."
He stared at her. Then, finally, he said:
"I was protecting you."
She blinked. "What?"
"You're being watched, Amara. Not just by Veleno. By everyone. Cosa Nostra. Bratva. The feds. They all think you're going to crack. I was trying to stop them from seeing it happen."
"By leaking intel?" she asked.
"No," he said quickly. "That wasn't me. I was trying to intercept it. I swear."
She studied him carefully.
If he was lying, he was better than Gianni had ever been.
If he was telling the truth… then someone else was deeper in than they knew.
Hidden Alley, Naples Outskirts
A figure in a hooded coat approached a parked motorcycle.
They opened the seat and removed a burner phone.
One message waited on it:
> Phase Three confirmed. Greco is dead. Romano is compromised. The Rose is unraveling.
The figure smiled and tossed the phone into the sea.
Then climbed aboard and disappeared into the night.