SIX MASSIVE MASTIFFS CHARGED STRAIGHT AT ME—BUT THE LARGEST ONE STOPPED, LOWERED HIS HEAD INTO MY HAND, AND MADE EVERY MAN IN THE MORETTI ESTATE GO SILENT.

Inside the warm, wood-paneled cabin, my father poured three cups of black coffee while Titan lay stretched out across the rug before a stone fireplace.

For two hours, Samuel laid out the full picture of the war that had spanned over a decade.

“When I discovered Marco was leaking Moretti intelligence to corrupt FBI Assistant Director Thomas Sterling,” Samuel explained, pointing to a pin-board covered in maps and photos, “I realized Marco was planning a complete purge. They intended to eliminate the elder Morettis, blame it on rival families, and take total control.”

“Why didn't you tell Luca back then?” I asked.

“Luca was too young, too hot-headed,” Samuel said gently. “If I had handed him the proof then, he would have confronted Marco directly and been assassinated within twenty-four hours. Luca needed time to grow into a formidable leader. He needed to secure the loyalty of the street captains. And you...” Samuel looked at me with immense pride, “...you needed time to grow into a woman who couldn't be broken.”

“Luca is in danger right now, Dad,” I said, laying the vault hard drive on the table. “Marco has surrounded him at the estate. He thinks he’s trapped.”

Samuel smiled—a sharp, dangerous smirk that reminded me exactly where my own tactical instincts came from.

“Marco thinks he has Luca trapped because Luca wants him to think that,” Samuel revealed. “Every move we’ve made over the last forty-eight hours was designed to force Marco to mobilize his entire secret network to the Moretti estate at once. Marco thinks he’s staging a coup tonight.”

“It’s a honeypot,” I realized, my eyes widening. “Luca drew Marco into revealing his entire loyalist squad in one place.”

“Exactly,” Samuel said, pulling a laptop from a footlocker and connecting the vault’s hard drive. He pressed his thumb against the drive’s biometric scanner.

A green light flashed: ACCESS GRANTED.

Streams of data filled the screen—recorded conversations, offshore bank transfers, illegal weapons manifests, and signed agreements between Marco Moretti and corrupt federal agents.

“This data stream is linked directly to the Department of Justice’s Internal Affairs database in Washington,” Samuel said, typing rapidly. “The moment I hit transmit, federal warrants will execute simultaneously across three states. But we need to deliver the hard copy proof to the Moretti Elder Council at the estate before Marco orders his men to execute Luca.”

Samuel stood up, reaching into his closet and pulling out a tactical holster. He buckled it around his waist and looked at me.