40

40

VIVIENNE

Lucian finally listened.

It took me almost dying—the poison slipped into my drink by some coward hiding in the shadows—for him to wake up and remember what our marriage was supposed to be for. Power. Strategy. War.

And yet, instead of relief, all I felt was anger simmering in my chest. He should have listened sooner. We should’ve been planning then, not waiting until enemies were already at our doorstep. He should never have doubted me.

.

I sat at the long oak table, staring at the men Lucian trusted most, what a joke they were. Maps, ledgers, and lists of names were spread in front of us,

Marisol sat beside me, cool and sharp, her eyes daring anyone to look down on us. Across the table, Bruno leaned back with his arms crossed. Leo tapped his fingers against the wood ,he was restless

And then there were the two I hated most. Vito and Davide. I remembered their faces too well.

I’d seen them at Lucian’s club months ago when I threatened him in front of everyone. They laughed. They made their little comments, dripping with the kind of sexism that made me want to put a bullet between their teeth.

My eyes lingered on them now, I didn’t bother hiding it.

Lucian caught me staring. He smirked, leaning forward like this was all a game to him.
“Alright, tigress,” he drawled. “Back to business before you burn holes through my men’s skulls. Let's be civil”

Vito chuckled, leaning back in his chair in a way that made me want to break his jaw.
“Civil? She looks like she’s about to chew your face off. Can’t imagine what it’s like sharing a bed with that kind of venom. Must feel like screwing a snake with its fangs still in.”

My knuckles twitched against the table, but Marisol beat me to it. She turned her head slowly toward him.

“Bold words from a man who couldn’t get a snake—or a woman—close enough to bite him. Keep running your mouth, Vito, and I’ll show you just how fast I can strike.”

Davide burst out laughing, in a loud and ugly way, slapping the table so hard the maps trembled.

“Ha! Vito, she gutted you clean. A woman half your size and you’re already bleeding.”

Vito’s smirk faded“Shut it, Davide.”

But Davide leaned in with a wolfish grin. “What? Embarrassed? You bark all day, but one sharp tongue and you roll over. Pathetic.”

Vito started to rise, his chair scraping back, but Lucian’s voice came through the room like a whip.

“Sit down.”

The tone was soft, almost even lazy, but Vito froze. Slowly, he sank back into his chair, his glare was still fixed on Davide.

I leaned forward, pressing my hand against the map. “Enough. This isn’t a circus. We’re not here to trade insults like schoolboys. Someone wants me dead. The Riveras think they can choke us out. Unless you all want to be next, you’ll shut up and focus.”

Lucian smirked, watching me claim the table. “Go on then, tigress. Show them your claws.”

I flipped open the ledger, pushing the pages wide so the men couldn’t ignore it. “Here’s where they’re vulnerable. The Riveras funnel their money through fake companies—clubs, warehouses, shipping fronts. Take away their money and their soldiers starve. No money, no bullets. No bullets, no war.”

Davide groaned, dragging a hand over his face. “Numbers, ledgers, accounts. You sound like a banker, not a Mafia. War isn’t won on paper. It’s won with fire and blood in the streets.”

I fixed him with a cold stare. “You can burn buildings, but you can’t burn debt. Their debts will choke them faster than your fire ever could.”

Bruno finally spoke“Our boss’s right. But you're not wrong either. Money feeds men. Men protect money. Cut one, the other falls. Cut both, the Riveras collapse.”

Leo’s quiet voice slipped in. “If you strike too loud, they’ll know it’s us. They’ll hit back fast. Too fast.”

All eyes shifted to him. He didn’t speak often, but when he did, it landed.

Lucian leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “The boy has a point. But you’re all thinking too small. I say we cut their soldiers down where they stand. Bodies in the street. Fear lasts longer than money.”

I met his eyes. “Bodies rot. Money lingers.”

His lips curved into a smirk. “Fear lingers longer than both.”

The table erupted into chaos.

Davide slammed his palm on the wood. “Yes! Fear is what rules. Kill enough of them and no one else will dare cross us.”

Marisol cut him down with a sharp laugh. “You’d be the first body on the ground, coward. Don’t mistake a big mouth for strength.”

He sneered. “At least I’d fight. You’d hide behind your pretty ledgers”

Her smile was cold. “Better a ledger than a corpse.”

Vito finally spoke, his voice was dripping with disdain. “Listen to yourselves. Women squabbling over numbers. You don’t win wars by talking. You win them by spilling blood.”

I turned my gaze on him “And yet we are all still sitting here alive because Lucian outsmarted the poison meant for me. If it had been you, Vito, you’d be rotting six feet under already.”

Davide laughed again, unable to help himself. “Ha! She’s got you again, brother. What’s next, she’s going to tuck you into bed too?”

Vito lunged half out of his chair, fury in his face, but Bruno’s heavy arm shot out, pressing him back with effortless force. “Enough. We don’t need another fight at this table.”

The noise was rising again—insults, curses, accusations, everyone shouting over each other. Surprisingly Leo kept quiet, he was usually energetic

I slammed my hand down hard enough to make the glasses rattle. “Stop!”

Silence fell like in the room.

I spread the ledgers across the maps, covering them. “We’re not choosing between brains and blood. We use both. I choke their money. Lucian bleeds their soldiers. While they scramble for coin, we’ll gut them in the streets. That’s how we win.”

Lucian’s dark eyes locked on mine. For a long moment, no one breathed. Then he smiled slowly “Brains and blood. Side by side.”

Something heated in my chest, but I didn’t show it. “Exactly.”

Bruno gave a short nod. “It works.”

Marisol smirked, leaning back with satisfaction. Davide muttered curses under his breath, but had no real argument left. Vito glared, but said nothing.

The meeting was over. The course of action was set.

One by one, they pushed back chairs and gathered papers. Their boots echoed on the floor as they left. Until only Lucian and I remained.

He leaned back, eyes fixed on me with that maddening grin. “You know, tigress, the way you take command… it's dangerous.”

I let out a laugh “Dangerous? Please. You barely spoke the whole time, Lucian. Sat there like a king on his throne while the rest of us did the work. And now suddenly you’ve got opinions?”

Lucian’s grin deepened, “Why waste breath when you do the speaking for both of us, tigress? I’d rather watch you bare those teeth—it’s far more entertaining.”

I pushed back my chair, standing without another glance at him. “Enjoy the view while you can.”

My heels clicked against the floor as I walked out, on the hand, Lucian low laugh chased me down the hall