Scarpa was stunned. He looked as if he had been doused in ice water.
"That's impossible," he muttered. "You're making this up. You're lying to me!"
My smile widened. "Lying? You give yourself too much credit, Don Falcone. I met you when I was seven. You taught me to read and shoot. But my father took 11 bullets for you.

"Before he died, he told me that you were my new father. That my blood had to flow for you."
I lit a cigarette. Smoke blurred his ashen face. "So, I bled. I traded five years for the famiglia. Too bad I saved a thankless wolf."
Scarpa staggered as if he had lost all his strength. He stared at me. Agony and disbelief tore through his expression.
"So… This was all part of Chris's plan?"
"That's right. That shipment was never meant to land. It was a coffin he prepared for you," I said, crushing the cigarette under my heel. "Even he didn't expect me to break the board by sacrificing myself.
"He admired that. That's why he waited for me and made me his partner. We're allies. Soldiers. Unlike you, who only sees women as ornaments."

Scarpa clung to the car door to steady himself. "What about Elisa? Does she know about this?"
"Her?" I laughed. "She's a fool. She knows nothing. She cries, steals men, and enjoys whatever you hand her."
Scarpa shut his eyes and clutched his chest in agony.
The truth was a sharp blade that sliced apart five years of pride and illusion.

He thought he was the judge. The savior.
But in the end, he was just a clown.
I turned toward the elevator, unwilling to watch him crumble.
"Viviana!" he called out in a hoarse voice. "I'm sorry."
I didn't stop.
"Don Falcone, sorry is the most useless word in the world. It won't give me back five years. It can't erase the stain on my name. My debt is paid. Now watch closely as I grind you beneath my heel."
I saw him fall to his knees before the elevator doors closed.
I felt nothing.
This was only the beginning, Don Falcone.
I wanted everything.
…
When I got back to the apartment, Chris was there.
He was sitting on the couch, cleaning an old revolver. The laptop on the table displayed the Falcone casino ledgers in the red.
"You're back," he said without looking up.
"Yeah."
I shed my coat, then poured myself a glass of water.
"He didn't pull the trigger?" Chris spun the gun's cylinder. It clicked.
I sat beside him. "His gun is probably pointed at his own head right now."
Chris finally looked at me with approval in his eyes.
"You told him everything?"
"Yeah."
"That was faster than I thought," he said with a grin. "I figured you'd drag it out and make him suffer."
I wearily leaned back onto the couch. "No need for that. It's better to load the bullet than waste time on fools."
He chuckled and slid the polished gun toward me. "What's next?"
"The casinos. When I lost the ledgers, Scarpa panicked and shut them down. Truth is, he just froze the business. Elisa never even checked the cellar. She doesn't know the books exist.
"It's time to resurrect them."
Those casinos looked bankrupt, but they were my buried pieces. Before prison, I'd already cut deals with local famiglias. All I needed was the right moment.
Now, the time had come.
"I need the Corleones to open the Southern Igniterra shipping lane," I said, meeting his eyes.
"Consider it done," he replied instantly. "The guy in charge of Palermo's port will contact you tomorrow.
"Have fun, partner."
His gaze held admiration.
…
The next day, I flew to Nimbussa as Corleone's envoy.
News spread like wildfire:
"Falcone’s Former Consigliere Joins Rival Famiglia"
"Ex-Fiancee Returns as Queen"
"The Falcones' Wedding in Jeopardy"
Scarpa and Elisa were dragged into the storm. The Falcone famiglia panicked.
After spending a week in Southern Igniterra, I signed the papers on a sunny morning.
The two casinos reopened and unexpectedly secured special operating permits from city council members. These permits were worth far more than the casinos themselves.
Back in Nelcaro, the Falcone famiglia's three nightclubs saw a 30% surge in revenue overnight.
The famiglia toasted Scarpa's vision and praised Elisa's luck as the lady of the house.
Elisa basked in the glory. She raised her champagne glass at the banquet and claimed all the credit for herself. "Scarpa and I had always believed in those casinos. That's why we kept them."
I watched the footage with a smile.
Enjoy it while it lasted, Elisa. The higher you flew, the harder you fell.
…
When my flight landed back home, I brought a metal lockbox with me.
Inside it was a single key. It unlocked a vault holding documents for 31% of the Falcone famiglia's laundered assets.
I traced the cold grooves of the metal and laughed.
The tables were about to be turned, Don Falcone.