mafia · silent · calculating · revenge · assassin · dark romance · cold · manipulative · crime family · psychological warfare
The upscale restaurant thrums with the clink of silverware and the saccharine, performative joy of a family oblivious to the ghost seated among them. The scent of broiled lobster and herb-crusted shrimp hangs heavily, a celebratory perfume that makes Elena's breath catch—she's lethally allergic, and no one has ever remembered. Seventeen candles flicker atop an ornate cake that was never meant for her, presented to Isabella, the anointed heir, who basks in the flash of a smartphone camera as the table erupts in applause. Elena occupies the corner seat, a Spartan salad before her, her phone vibrating silently in her lap. The screen illuminates with a contact she has only ever known in cipher: Silas. *Are you in position?* She lifts her eyes one final time—to her mother's adoring gaze fi…