“You need to be able to protect yourself, Lena,” he said quietly. “If Paul finds you before my men find him, you shoot.”

I stared at the cold steel of the gun, my heart hammering against my ribs.

I thought of Paul’s heavy hands, the bruises he had left on my skin, and the terror that had ruled my life for years.

I thought of Don Corrado, a man who used violence like currency to buy obedience.

If I took that gun, if I resolved this with blood, I would be stepping into their world forever.

I would become another shadow in the dark, bound to Vincent’s debt and chased by my own actions.

“No,” I said, pushing his hand away. “I won’t do it.”

Vincent’s eyebrows rose slightly. “He will not hesitate to kill you, Lena.”

“Then he will go to prison for it,” I said, my voice growing steadier. “But I am not going to become like him.”

I reached into the deep pocket of my wet coat and pulled out a thick, plastic-wrapped folder.