THE LAST HEIRESS OF THE MAFIA EMPIRE

Chapter 11: When Rivals Meet

Withassimo and Dante stood a few metres apart, their eyes locked on each other as though the rest of Milan had disappeared.

Around them, life went on as usual. Cars moved through the busy road. People walked past with coffee in their hands, and a bus pulled up to the nearby stop. No one paid attention to the two well-dressed men staring at each other. To everyone else, they were just strangers.

But to the men watching from both sides...

...this was the moment everything changed.

Luca remained a few steps behind Massimo, pretending to check his phone while quietly studying every movement around them. From the corner of his eye, he noticed one of Dante's men touch the earpiece hidden benea hair.

He wasn't the only one.

Enzo and the others had already spread themselves around the area, blending in with the morning crowd. Some looked like office workers. Others stood outside nearby shops as though they were waiting for someone.

Anyone looking at them would never guess they were armed.

Massimo slipped one hand into the pocket of his tailored trousers, his expression calm as he looked across the street at Dante. There wasn't a trace of fear on his face. If anything, he looked like a man who had arrived early for a business meeting.

Dante couldn't help smiling.

"So..." Dante said, taking a slow step forward. His polished shoes echoed softly against the pavement as he stopped at the edge of the sidewalk. "The famous Massimo Moretti."

He looked Massimo up and down before letting out a quiet chuckle.

"I've heard your name for years," Dante continued, folding his arms across his chest. "I imagined our first meeting would be a little more dramatic."

Massimo's expression didn't change.

He looked at Dante with the same calm eyes that had unsettled far more dangerous men than the one standing before him.

"I didn't," Massimo replied quietly. His voice was steady, almost casual, but there was something about the way he spoke that made Luca straighten slightly behind him. "I prefer to keep unnecessary drama out of my mornings."

A smile tugged at Luca's lips.

Even now...

His boss hadn't changed.

Dante laughed, genuinely amused by the answer.

"There he is," Dante said with a nod. "The man everyone says never loses his temper."

He tilted his head slightly, studying Massimo with open curiosity.

"Tell me... is that confidence, or are you simply good at hiding fear?"

Massimo didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he glanced briefly at Alessia, who was still standing near the hotel entrance with her suitcase beside her. She looked confused, completely unaware that every pair of eyes in the area was secretly watching her.

When Massimo looked back at Dante, the warmth that had briefly appeared in his eyes was gone.

"You came for the wrong woman," Massimo said calmly, meeting Dante's gaze again. "Walk away while you still have the chance."

The smile on Dante's face slowly faded, though the amusement in his eyes remained.

"You know," Dante replied as he slipped one hand into his pocket, "people always say you're a reasonable man."

He paused for a moment, letting the silence settle between them before speaking again.

"I was hoping that was true."

Massimo raised an eyebrow ever so slightly.

"It is."

"Good."

Dante nodded once, then smiled again.

"Then you'll understand that I can't leave without her."

The words were spoken politely, almost gently, but they landed between them like a loaded gun.

Luca's jaw tightened.

Across the street, Enzo slowly lowered the coffee cup he had been pretending to drink from.

Even the Romano men became more alert.

Massimo remained completely still.

He looked at Dante for several long seconds before speaking, and when he finally did, his voice was so calm that it almost sent a chill through the air.

"You've mistaken my silence for permission," Massimo said, taking one slow step forward without breaking eye contact. "Don't make that mistake again."

Dante's smile didn't disappear.

Instead, it grew.

"I was beginning to miss this," Dante replied with a quiet laugh, shaking his head as though he were speaking to an old friend instead of a rival. "The stories were right. You really do sound more dangerous when you whisper."

Neither man moved again.

Neither man looked away.

The people walking past continued with their morning, completely unaware that a single wrong move, a single careless word, could turn the peaceful street into a battlefield.

For several long moments, neither man spoke.

The silence between them was almost unsettling, yet neither Massimo nor Dante seemed eager to break it. Around them, Milan carried on without a care. The distant sound of car horns mixed with the chatter of pedestrians, a cyclist rang his bell while weaving through traffic, and somewhere across the street a barista laughed with a regular customer.

The city was alive.

Only the people standing on that pavement knew how close it was to becoming a battlefield.

Then, almost unnoticed, a faint vibration came from the communication device hidden beneath Massimo's collar.

"Boss," Enzo's calm voice came through.

Massimo didn't blink.

He didn't reach for the earpiece or shift his posture. Instead, he continued looking straight at Dante as though nothing had happened, refusing to give away even the smallest hint that a message had just reached him.

"Report," Massimo replied quietly, his lips barely moving.

Inside the black sedan parked half a block away, Enzo kept his eyes on the rearview mirror while pretending to scroll through something on his phone. Anyone watching him would have thought he was simply another businessman waiting for a client.

"We've got a problem," Enzo reported, his usually composed voice carrying an urgency that immediately caught Massimo's attention. "Another group just arrived."

Massimo's expression remained calm.

"Which group?"

There was a brief pause.

"The Vescari family."

For the first time since arriving at the hotel, a question crossed Massimo's mind.

The Vescari?

His eyes remained on Dante, but his thoughts moved rapidly.

That didn't make sense.

The Romano family's interest in Alessia was expected. Their history with the De Luca family gave them every reason to come looking for her. But the Vescari were different. They had spent years building their influence from the shadows, avoiding unnecessary wars and allowing other families to destroy themselves while they quietly gained more power.

So why would they suddenly risk exposing themselves?

Why would a woman who had lived twenty-four years without knowing her true identity be important enough to bring the Vescari into the open?

The questions came one after another, each more troubling than the last.

But Massimo forced himself to push them aside.

This wasn't the time to chase answers.

His priority was standing only a few metres away, completely unaware that three powerful families were now circling her like predators.

Without taking his eyes off Dante, Massimo spoke into the hidden microphone beneath his collar, his voice remaining as calm as ever.

"Enzo..."

"Yes, Boss?"

"Extract Miss Bellini immediately."

Enzo didn't hesitate.

"Understood."

The communication ended.

Massimo returned his full attention to Dante, who was still watching him with that same relaxed smile.

Something about that smile told him Dante had noticed the tiny pause.

Not the conversation.

Just the pause.

Dante folded his arms across his chest before speaking, his tone carrying the quiet amusement of a man who believed he had just solved part of a puzzle.

"You've become distracted," Dante observed, studying Massimo's face carefully. "That usually doesn't happen unless something important has changed."

Massimo met his gaze without the slightest sign of concern.

"You give yourself too much credit," he replied calmly. "Not everything that happens has something to do with you."

Dante chuckled, though his sharp eyes never left Massimo.

"I'd like to believe that," he admitted with an easy smile, "but my instincts have kept me alive for a very long time, and right now they're telling me you've just received information you weren't expecting."

Massimo simply looked at him.

Neither confirming.

Neither denying.

He knew exactly what he was doing.

Every second Dante spent trying to read his expression was another second Enzo had to reach Alessia unnoticed.

Half a block away, the black sedan eased quietly away from the curb.

Its engine barely made a sound as it blended naturally into the slow-moving traffic before turning smoothly toward the front of the Grand Milano Hotel. From a distance, it looked like nothing more than another luxury sedan pulling over to pick up a passenger, attracting no attention from the busy morning crowd.

Inside the car, Enzo's eyes never left Alessia. He watched her standing beside her suitcase, completely unaware of the danger closing in from every direction. As the sedan came to a smooth stop a few feet away from her, he took one last glance at the mirrors to make sure the path behind him remained clear before switching off the engine.

"Almost there," Enzo murmured under his breath as he stepped out of the car, straightening his suit jacket with the calm confidence of a man who had done this countless times. There was no rush in his movements and no sign of panic. To anyone watching, he looked like a professional chauffeur arriving to pick up an important guest.

Closing the door quietly behind him, Enzo walked toward Alessia with measured steps and stopped at a respectful distance before offering her a polite nod.

"Miss Bellini?" he called gently.

Alessia turned toward him, surprise flashing across her face as she looked at the unfamiliar man.

"Yes?"

"My name is Enzo," he introduced himself politely. "Mr. Moretti asked me to bring you to him immediately. We need to leave."

A small frown settled on Alessia's face as she instinctively looked across the street toward Massimo. He was still standing exactly where she had left him, facing Dante without taking a single step, yet for the briefest moment, he lifted his eyes and met hers.

He didn't speak.

He simply gave the slightest nod.

It was enough.

Although she still had countless questions racing through her mind, something about that silent reassurance made her tighten her grip on the handle of her suitcase instead of arguing.

Enzo noticed her hesitation and offered a reassuring smile.

"I promise you'll get your answers, Miss Bellini," he said calmly as he reached for her suitcase. "But right now, every second matters."

After a brief pause, Alessia finally released the suitcase into his hand and allowed him to guide her toward the waiting sedan, completely unaware that several pairs of eyes had already noticed the extraction.