Chapter 53 The Home-Changer.
I didn't reply to the text.
I couldn't. My fingers were frozen, hovering over the keypad.
The Viper.
The name stared back at me, glowing in the grey light of the ramparts. It was a warning, but I didn't know if it was for me or from me.
Was Selena trying to tell me she was in danger? Had Rinaldi’s men forced her to type that?
Or had she heard it somewhere else, in some dark corner of the city where whispered secrets cost more than a cup of coffee.
I turned and ran back toward the keep.
I didn't go to the War Room. Lucrezia had made it clear that I wasn't welcome there, and I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of throwing me out twice in one day.
Instead, I went to the East Wing. I needed to get to my room. I needed to hide the phone before anyone saw it.
The corridors were quiet. Too quiet. The usual sounds of the fortress, the heavy boots of the guards, the distant murmur of radios, were dampened.
It felt like the house was holding its breath.
I reached the corridor that led to my room. It was the same hallway that housed Jasmine’s nursery.
I stopped.
I heard a sound. It was soft, muffled, like an animal in pain.
I crept forward. The door to Jasmine’s room was ajar.
The sound was coming from inside. It was crying.
I pushed the door open.
The room was unrecognizable.
When I had first arrived, Jasmine’s room had been a chaotic explosion of color.
There were drawings taped to the walls, piles of stuffed animals in the corners, and a fortress of pillows on the bed. It was messy, but it was alive.
Now, it was white.
The walls were bare. The drawings were gone. The floor was clear of toys.
The bed was made with military precision, the corners tucked in so tight a coin could bounce off them.
In the center of the room, Lucrezia stood by a large cardboard box. She was holding a stuffed rabbit, Snowball, Jasmine’s favorite.
Jasmine was sitting on the edge of the bed. Her knees were pulled up to her chest. She was sobbing quietly into her hands.
"It is unsanitary," Lucrezia said. Her voice was calm, conversational. She dropped the rabbit into the box.
"No," Jasmine choked out. "Please."
"Jasmine," Lucrezia said, turning to look at the child. She didn't look angry. She looked disappointed.
"We discussed this. You are seven years old. You are too old for dolls and dust collectors. A young lady keeps her environment orderly."
She reached for a stack of sketchbooks on the nightstand.
"Stop," I said.
Lucrezia froze. She turned slowly to face the door.
"Ah," she said. A faint smile touched her lips. "The nanny arrives."
I walked into the room. My heart was hammering against my ribs, but my hands were steady. I walked straight to the box and pulled Snowball out.
I walked over to Jasmine and handed her the rabbit. She grabbed it and buried her face in its worn fur.
"What are you doing?" I asked, turning to Lucrezia.
"I am cleaning," Lucrezia said. She dusted off her hands.
"This room was a disgrace. It looked like a kennel, not the bedroom of a Caravelli."
"It looked like a child’s room," I said. "Those drawings were hers. You can't just throw them away."
"I can," Lucrezia said. "And I did."
She walked over to the window and adjusted the curtains.
"Dante has been too lenient with her," she said
.
"He feels guilty because she has no mother, so he lets her run wild. He lets her draw on the walls. He lets her eat sugar for breakfast. It is weak parenting."
"He loves her," I said.
"Love is not enough," Lucrezia replied. She turned back to me. Her eyes were cold chips of emerald.
"She needs structure. She needs discipline. If she is going to survive in this world, she needs to be tough. Not... this."
She gestured at Jasmine, who was shrinking away from her, clutching the rabbit like a shield.
"She is a child," I said. I stepped between them, blocking Lucrezia’s view of the girl. "She isn't a soldier."
Lucrezia laughed softly.
"We are all soldiers, Lilith. Even the little ones. Especially the little ones."
She walked toward the door. She stopped next to me.
"Enjoy your playtime," she whispered. "It won't last long."
"What does that mean?" I asked.
Lucrezia paused. She looked at Jasmine, then back at me.
"I have already spoken to Dante about her education," she said.
"The local tutors are incompetent. There is a boarding school in Switzerland. Excellent reputation. Very secure. They specialize in... difficult children."
My blood ran cold.
"You're sending her away?"
"I am sending her to get an education," Lucrezia corrected.
"Once the wedding is over, things will change around here. I cannot have a weeping child underfoot while I am trying to run an empire."
"Dante won't let you," I said. "He would never send her away."
Lucrezia smiled. It was the smile of a predator who had already eaten the prey.
"Dante will do what is necessary to save the family," she said.
"He will realize that it is for her own safety. Switzerland is very safe. Far away from the guns. Far away from you."
She opened the door.
"Get her cleaned up," she said over her shoulder.
"Dinner is at seven. And Lilith? Try to wear something appropriate tonight. The staff are starting to talk."
She walked out.
I stood there, staring at the empty doorway. Switzerland. She wasn't just taking over the kitchen. She wasn't just paving the garden.
She was dismantling Dante’s life. She was removing everything that made him human. First his home, then his niece.
And finally, me.
I felt a small hand tug on my jeans.
I looked down. Jasmine was looking up at me. Her eyes were red and swollen.
"Is she really going to send me away?" she whispered.
I dropped to my knees. I pulled her into a hug, squeezing her tight. She smelled like soap and fear.
"No," I said fiercely. "No, she isn't."
"But she said Papa agreed," Jasmine sobbed.
"Dante is just... tired," I lied. "He doesn't know what he's agreeing to."
I pulled back and looked at her. I wiped a tear from her cheek.
"I won't let her take you," I promised. "I swear to you, Jasmine. You are not going to Switzerland."
Jasmine nodded, sniffing. She clutched Snowball tighter.
I stood up. I looked around the sterile, white room.
I thought about the code in my head.
I had thought about using it to run. I had thought about taking the money and disappearing into the night, leaving Dante to his war and his Viper.
But if I left, Jasmine would be alone.
If I left, there would be no one standing between this little girl and the woman who wanted to turn her into a soldier.
I touched the pocket where my phone was hidden.
Selena was right. Dante was going to lose. He was going to lose because he was fighting a war on the outside, while the real enemy was rearranging the furniture inside his house.
I wasn't going to run. I was going to stay.
And I was going to make Lucrezia regret the day she touched that stuffed rabbit.