Silent love

Chapter 64

On the previous chapter...

Her eyes rolled, but the smile stayed. "You're still on thin ice, Rico".

"Thin ice is better than exile".

"Debatable".

We sat like that for a beat close, but not pressed. Tethered by something old that had broken, maybe, but never fully died.

Then Seraphina stood and clapped her hands once. "Fun's over. Tomorrow, we start again".

A quiet chill slid into the room at her words. Not cold, just a reminder. The game was over, but the real one, the one that involved blood, vengeance, and power, was still waiting outside.

"I'll be ready". I said quietly.

Seraphina looked at me for a long second. Then nodded once.

"I hope so".

Yaqueline's hand found mine under the blanket between us, fingers weaving through mine like it had always been that way.

And just like that, I knew this wasn't over. But for the first time in a long time, it felt like maybe I didn't have to face it alone.

  ʚ FEDERICO'S POV ɞ

"We need to talk".

So here we were.

Seraphina stood near the bookshelf, arms folded tight across her chest, while Fiorenzo leaned against the edge of my desk, chewing the inside of his cheek, eyes flicking between me and the floor. I hadn't even taken off my coat yet.

They'd both asked for this talk the second we walked through the doors of our home. No hugs. No welcomes. Just silence.

I leaned against the far wall, giving them space. My office hadn't changed since I left it behind dark wood, stacks of paper, maps pinned to the corkboard behind my desk. It all looked the same. Except now, the ghosts weren't just in the
corners. They were staring me in the face.

"Go ahead". I said, voice low. "Say what you want to say before the rest comes".

Fiorenzo looked at Seraphina first, like he was waiting for her permission. She didn't give it. She was staring at me with that razor-sharp quiet she'd always used when she was most dangerous.

"You lied to us". She said, cold and flat.

I didn't flinch."I know".

"For months, Rico". Her voice rose, cracking at the edges. "You let us believe you were dead. Do you know what that did to us?"

Fiorenzo rubbed a hand over his face, exhaling hard. "We burned your fucking coat, man".

That almost got a smile out of me but I knew better than to laugh. Not now.

"I didn't do it to hurt you". I said, steady. "It was the only way to get Valerio off my back. You saw what he was doing using everything I cared about as leverage. I had to disappear. Let him think he won. I had to make it real".

"You could've told us". Seraphina bit out. "You could've told me. I kept your goddamn house standing while you were out playing dead".

"You would've tried to stop me".

"You're damn right I would've".

I took a step toward her, careful. "And what would've happened if Valerio found out you knew? Or Fiorenzo? Or anyone else I loved? You think I could live with that? You think I could let him torture you for the truth?"