Chapter 71. Stay Tonight

The old quarter of the city slept uneasily. Rain slicked the cobblestones, the streetlamps cutting long, fractured reflections through the puddles. Adriano pulled his collar higher and stopped by the unmarked door wedged between a shuttered bakery and a pawn shop. One knock, then two. The door cracked open; a hulking man in a black coat gave him a brief scan before nodding him inside.

The hallway reeked faintly of smoke and damp stone. At the end, another guard opened a second door, leading him into the hidden bar—dim light, low music, the smell of whiskey and old wood. In a private corner room, Ezio waited.

He wasn’t dressed for intimidation this time—dark jeans, a hoodie, the familiar leather jacket, silver rings gleaming faintly as he poured whiskey into two tumblers. But even stripped down, the air around him felt heavy, watchful.

“Adriano.” Ezio’s voice was low. “You’re late.”

Adriano shrugged, taking the seat opposite. “Hard to slip out when your father