32

The city belonged to us now.

But power wasn’t just something you took.

It was something you had to keep.

And keeping it?

That was the real war.

Dante wasted no time. The moment Ricci’s empire was officially under his control, he started restructuring everything. New alliances were made. Old debts were collected. Anyone who had even thought about betraying him was either eliminated or reminded of why that was a mistake.

I watched it all happen from the inside, standing beside him as he tore down the old ways and built something stronger.

Something deadlier.

Something that no one could take from him.

One night, I found him on the rooftop of the safe house, a cigarette dangling between his fingers, the city stretching out below him.

I leaned against the railing. “You should be celebrating.”

Dante exhaled a cloud of smoke, his smirk faint. “Celebrating what?”

I raised a brow. “You won.”

He tilted his head, his gray eyes locking onto mine. “That’s the thing about winning, princesa.”

He flicked the cigarette away, his voice lowering.

“You never really stop fighting.”

A shiver ran through me.

Because I knew he was right.

And I wasn’t sure we were ready for what came next.

The first hit came two weeks later.

One of Dante’s clubs was bombed.

No casualties, but the message was clear.

Someone wanted to remind him that just because he had taken Ricci’s empire, didn’t mean it was secure.

I stood beside him as we watched the footage, the flames still fresh, the damage undeniable.

Luca cursed under his breath. “You know who it was?”

Dante’s smirk was slow, dark. “Not yet.”

Luca scoffed. “Then why do you look so fucking entertained?”

Dante leaned back in his chair, stretching. “Because I love a good game.”

My stomach twisted. “Dante, this isn’t a game.”

His eyes flicked to me, something unreadable flashing in them. “It is to them. And I’m going to show them what happens when you play against me.”

The retaliation was brutal.

Dante didn’t just strike back—he crushed them.

Whoever had thought they could test him learned fast that the man they were dealing with wasn’t Ricci.

He was worse.

Bodies dropped. Businesses crumbled. Every single person who had whispered against him was made an example of.

By the end of the week, the city was quiet again.

And Dante?

Dante stood at the top.

Unchallenged.

Unstoppable.

But power came with a price.

And Dante’s enemies weren’t the only ones who had to pay it.

The first time I realized what I had really gotten myself into was the night a man came knocking at the safe house doors.

Not a soldier.

Not a rival.

A politician.

One of the men from Ricci’s list.

One of the men Dante owned now.

Luca let him in, and I watched as he stood in front of Dante, sweating, nervous, already half-broken before the conversation even started.

Dante leaned back in his chair, swirling a glass of whiskey. “You’ve been busy.”

The man swallowed. “I...”

Dante tilted his head. “Lying to me right now would be a mistake.”

Silence.

Then....

The politician broke.

Spilled everything.

A deal he had been trying to make behind Dante’s back. A mistake he had been hoping to fix before it reached us.

Dante exhaled, shaking his head. “You should have come to me first.”

The man paled. “I—I can fix it.”

Dante’s smirk was cold. “No, you can’t.”

Then he nodded at Luca.

And just like that...

The man was gone.

I swallowed hard as I watched the body being dragged away.

Dante caught my gaze, his expression unreadable. “You wanted to be in this world, princesa.”

I exhaled shakily. “I know.”

His smirk was slow. “Then start acting like it.”

The moment we were alone, I turned to him. “He was already terrified of you. He wouldn’t have made that mistake again.”

Dante sighed, standing, walking toward me with slow, measured steps. “You still don’t get it, do you?”

I clenched my jaw. “Then explain it to me.”

His fingers ghosted over my jaw, his touch deceptively soft.

“In this world, you don’t punish people after they betray you.” His smirk was faint.

“You do it before they even think about it.”

My breath hitched.

Because I knew he wasn’t just talking about them.

He was talking about me.

The next few weeks passed in a blur of power and blood.

Dante was a king now, and I was standing beside him, watching as he turned the city into something new.

Something unshakable.

Something permanent.

But every night, as I lay beside him, feeling his warmth, hearing the steady rhythm of his breathing.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that nothing good lasted forever.

Because if there was one thing I had learned, it was this:

When you have everything, you have everything to lose.

And sooner or later.

Someone would come to take it.

The only question was...

Would we survive it?