The gray light of dawn bled across the abandoned fields, turning the frost on the weeds into a shimmering carpet of glass. The fire we had started was nothing more now than a thin ribbon of gray smoke curling lazily into the morning air, swallowed up by the immense, indifferent sky. Beside me, the sleek black curves of the V12 looked entirely out of place—a predator resting in a graveyard of iron and rust."They'll have the satellite feeds by noon," Helen said, her voice cutting through the quiet hum of the cooling engine. She was leaning against the passenger door, her arms crossed over her chest, watching the smoke dissolve. The tattered silk of her gown fluttered slightly in the cold wind, a stark reminder of the glittering, blood-soaked world we had left behind just hours ago. "Julian isn't the type to lick his wounds in private. He’s going to weaponize every asset the twelve families have left.""Let him try," I said, pulling the silver lighter from my pocket and turning it over

My suspicions were quite absurd, but so was the reality. Sloane’s reports had extensively explained the lengths Camille and her son would go to have their feel of each other. Those reports had revealed they’ve had sex in Camille’s car, then Xavier’s car, at popular hotels, in swimming pools and the most damning of all that I personally found amusing, was a museum.The double doors swung open suddenly and Camille Castle glided into the hall. Her movements were unnervingly smooth, calm, and deliberate as she straightened the emerald silk of her dress, sliding seamlessly into a seat near the center.No one would ever suspect that she’d just had a session with her own son, but I did.My eyes narrowed, tracking her expression for a brief moment of disgust, before sweeping across the rest of the table.That was when the horrific puzzle pieces clicked into place with a chilling clarity: Lucia Rossi was the only daughter of the founding families present in the room tonight. Where the hell we