Ava adjusted the earpiece, her fingers trembling as she stepped out of the car.
"Are you sure about this?" Bella's voice was laced with worry.
Ava exhaled shakily. "I have to be."
Damien's voice cut in through the earpiece. "Stay calm. Stick to the plan."
She nodded, squaring her shoulders as she approached the warehouse's guarded entrance. The two men standing there barely glanced at her before stepping aside.
They still trusted her.
She slipped inside, her pulse hammering.
The warehouse smelled of oil and metal, dimly lit with crates stacked high. Morelli's men moved in and out, loading weapons, exchanging orders.
Ava kept her steps measured, her breathing even.
She spotted Morelli at the far end, leaning over a table covered in maps and surveillance footage.
Of Damien. Of Bella.
And of her.
He knew.
Ava's stomach twisted. She forced herself to walk forward. "Boss."
Morelli's gaze lifted, sharp and unreadable. A smirk tugged at his lips. "Back so soon?"
She swallowed. "You were right. Damien doesn't trust me."
Morelli leaned back, watching her. "And yet, you're here."
Ava forced herself to hold his gaze. "I want to make things right."
A tense silence stretched between them.
Then Morelli chuckled, dark and knowing. "Oh, sweetheart." He stepped closer, lowering his voice.
"I already knew you'd come running back."
Ava's blood ran cold.
Morelli turned, gesturing to a nearby screen. It flickered to life—displaying live security footage.
Outside the warehouse.
Damien and Leo were there. Watching. Waiting.
They had walked straight into a trap.
Morelli smirked. "And now, so have they."
Ava's heart pounded.
She had seconds to decide.
To betray her sister.
Or to betray the man who had just sealed her fate