Chapter 1
My mafia boss watched his family call me a thief, so I left his ring beside the stolen necklace and walked out
“Nothing,” Katarina said quickly.
Dante’s expression told her it was absolutely something.
At 8:54 p.m., dinner ended.
Coffee and dessert moved into the adjoining salon.
Isabella left her handbag on a small upholstered chair near the dining room doors.
She had done it dozens of times.
At 9:03, Carlo approached her near the fireplace.
“You remember the Bellucci restoration invoices?”
Her expression shifted.
Carlo supervised several charitable foundations connected to the Moretti family, including an art collection Isabella occasionally advised.
“Yes.”
“Finish reviewing them?”
“Almost.”
“Anything interesting?”
She studied him.
“That depends on what you consider interesting.”
“Art usually isn’t.”
“Then why ask?”
He laughed.
“Dante is corrupting you.”
“No. I’ve always been difficult.”
“That I believe.”
Carlo walked away.
Isabella watched him for a second longer than necessary.
The invoices had bothered her.
Three restoration payments.
Same vendor.
Nearly identical amounts.
But Isabella had personally inspected two of the paintings supposedly restored.
No restoration had been performed.
That afternoon, she had filed an internal verification request.
She had not told Dante.
Not because she distrusted him.
Because she wanted facts before accusations.
What Isabella did not know was that Carlo had seen the request.
Before dinner started, he already knew she was getting close.
At 9:12, Sophia’s voice cut across the salon.
“Katarina.”
Something in her tone made everyone turn.
Sophia stood beside the velvet case.
It was open.
Empty.
Katarina went pale.
“What happened?”
“The necklace is gone.”
Every conversation stopped.
Dante crossed the room.
“When did you last see it?”
“At dinner.”
“Who moved the case?”
“No one.”
Dante’s face changed.
Isabella knew that face.
The warmth disappeared first.
Then the fiancé.
Then the man who had teased her about touching her ring.
What remained was Dante Moretti, leader of the family.
He looked toward Marco.
Marco was already moving.
“Close the exterior doors,” Dante said.
A few relatives shifted uneasily.
Marco spoke quietly into his radio.
“No one leaves until we understand what happened.”
Sophia looked around the room.
“That necklace has been in this family for over a century.”
Carlo stepped closer.
“Maybe one of the staff moved it.”
Dante’s eyes turned cold.
“We don’t accuse anyone without evidence.”
Isabella heard the sentence.
Later, she would remember every word.
The search began.
Security checked the dining room.