"Aldric Valente is the last true power in this world. What he says goes. We never had a choice."
I gave a quiet "oh."
"If Master didn't agree to it willingly, then Aldric Valente deserves to die."
Donna Vittoria seized my arm, her voice tight with worry. "Nara, before your master drew his last breath, he told all of you to take care of yourselves. Don't throw your life away picking a fight with the Boss of All Bosses."
I pulled my wrist free, lifted my gaze toward the Valente compound on the hill, and smiled faintly.
"Donna Vittoria, Master said not to fight him. He never said anything about killing him."
——
I turned and walked back to my courtyard. Without a word, I dropped to my knees and began digging through the soil beneath the old fig tree with my bare hands.
Before long, a black-handled stiletto caked in dirt saw daylight again. Mietitore. The Reaper. My father's blade, broken once and reforged by a child who didn't yet know what she was reclaiming.
Donna Vittoria rushed after me and snatched the blade from my grip, tears brimming in her eyes.
"Nara, I know you want to avenge your master."