Chapter 75. Be Brave for Me

Margherita stopped fighting. Her eyes were wide, wet, and unfocused—the way fear hollowed a person out.

Rico chuckled low in his throat. “There we go,” he murmured, brushing a tear from her cheek with a mock tenderness. “See? You can behave.”

He tilted his head, watching her tremble. “Maurizio’s gonna lose his mind when he hears about this. Or maybe we don’t tell him, hm? Our little secret.”

He leaned closer, his grin turning feral. “Doubt he’d care, anyway. Ezio’s been screwing you long enough. What’s one more turn?”

He pressed his mouth against hers, rough, possessive—

Footsteps. Heavy. Too heavy.

The door slammed open.

Rico looked over his shoulder, half a smirk already forming. “Well, look who—”

The sound cracked the air before the word left his mouth.

Everything went white. Then black.

***

The gun’s echo still hummed in the air when Rico collapsed.

For a second, Ezio didn’t breathe. Then he saw her—Margheri