“While he is distracted by his own ego, your strike team can bypass his outer guards,” I said. “They will be looking for a convoy of black SUVs, not a silent infiltration.”

Dante stood silent for a long moment, the hum of the refrigerator filling the room.

He looked at the floor, his fingers twitching against his thighs.

“You would be completely unprotected,” he said, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Even for a few minutes, you would be at his mercy.”

“I have been at the mercy of men like him my entire life,” I said. “I am still standing.”

“Sophia…”

“This is for Lily,” I said. “I will do whatever it takes.”

Dante reached out and touched my face, his thumb brushing against my cheekbone.

“You are stronger than anyone I have ever met,” he said.

“I am a mother,” I said. “That is not strength. It is a necessity.”

The burner phone on the counter buzzed, the vibration rattling against the laminate.

A text message lit up the screen.

Dante picked it up and read the text aloud.