“That audit will expose our entire network to our enemies.”

I shook my head, trying to process the legalities.

“But I am not your wife yet.”

“You will be tomorrow,” he said.

“The marriage contract places my most valuable foreign holdings directly into your name.”

“Why me?” I asked, my voice trembling. “Why an American girl?”

“Because you have no ties to the Roman families,” Alessandro said.

“The traitor cannot pressure you through blood.”

“And because you are outside their reach.”

I looked down at the white silk of my dress, feeling the weight of the gold and blood it represented.

“And what happens to me when this is over?” I asked.

Alessandro stepped closer, his voice barely audible.

“Once the assets are legally secured and the traitor is dealt with, I will grant you your freedom.”

“A quiet divorce, a generous settlement, and a flight back to Boston.”

I stared at him, searching his old, wrinkled face for any sign of a lie.

“You expect me to believe you will just let me go?”

“I am an old man, Emily. I have no need for a young wife who hates me.”