The Price of Choosing

The message did not fade.

It burned.

Vera stared at the phone long after the guard stepped away, long after Nicolas’s hand closed around hers, long after the estate’s night sounds tried to pretend the world was still intact.

You chose the child.

Now choose who dies for him.

Antonio Bellanti was not dead.

Worse—he was deliberate.

“This is psychological warfare,” Nicolas said quietly. “He wants fear. Hesitation.”

Vera’s voice was steady. “He wants ...