Alessia Mancini
The glittering chandeliers cast a soft glow over the ballroom as Signora Vitale glided towards us, her silver-streaked hair gleaming. The scent of her expensive perfume reached me before she did.
"Giovanni, Alessia, how lovely to see you both again," she purred, her dark eyes sharp despite her warm smile. "I'd like to introduce you to my second, Lucia."
A statuesque woman in a perfectly tailored black suit stepped forward, her posture rigid and her gaze clinical as it swept over me.
"Delighted to meet you, Lucia," I said, summoning my most gracious smile even as unease prickled along my spine.
Giovanni's hand tightened almost imperceptibly on my waist as Lucia's lips curved into a cold smirk. "The pleasure is all mine, I'm sure," she replied, her cultured voice drippin
