The next day. Don Salvatore Valente's 80th birthday celebration began at the Family's estate, every room lit and staffed, soldiers in dark suits stationed at every entrance like fixtures of the architecture itself.
Dominic arrived hand-in-hand with Daniela, publicly and confidently, as though they were a perfect couple. Associates and Capos noted it. Some looked away. Others filed it for later.
They remained side by side, affectionate and high-profile, until Salvatore Valente himself entered the venue. The old Don moved slowly, his cane striking the marble floor with each step, and every conversation in the grand hall died mid-sentence. Men who ran their own crews straightened their spines. Wives stopped talking. The gravity of the room shifted to a single point.
Only then did Dominic finally let go of Daniela's hand and walk over to his grandfather's side to help him welcome the important guests: allied family heads, old-world associates from Sicily, a federal judge who owed the Family three favors.
"Why didn't Seraphina come with you?"
Faced with his grandfather's pointed question, Dominic's lips pressed into a thin line. The old man's voice was quiet, but in this family, quiet was where the danger lived. For once, Dominic actually defended Seraphina.
"Sorry, Grandpa. Seraphina's been busy these past few days preparing your birthday gift. She's been exhausted, so I told her to rest and come a bit later."
Salvatore studied his grandson's face for a moment longer than was comfortable, then turned to greet the next guest without a word.
Two hours passed quickly.
The Patriarch's Feast had reached its final and most anticipated segment: the gift-giving ceremony, where every family member and allied house presented their tributes to the old Don.
But Seraphina still hadn't shown up.
Suppressing the growing sense of unease in his chest, Dominic stepped into a corridor off the main hall, pulled out his phone, and dialed her number. His back was to the room, but Marco stood six feet away, watching without appearing to watch.
"The number you dialed is unavailable..."
He redialed. Again and again. The same mechanical message echoed back each time, and with each repetition, the stillness in his jaw tightened by a fraction.
And then, a courier walked into the banquet hall.
He delivered three packages, each addressed from Seraphina. The courier looked uncomfortable surrounded by so many hard-eyed men in expensive suits, and he left quickly.
Under the curious gaze of everyone present, Salvatore smiled warmly as he opened the first gift.
Inside was an embroidered silk tapestry, a vivid and intricate rendering of the Valente family crest interwoven with a traditional blessing motif. Every stitch precise. Every thread deliberate.
It was clearly something Seraphina had poured months of effort into, hand-stitched with care and reverence. The kind of gift that spoke of loyalty so deep it lived in the hands.
Moved to tears, the old Don gently opened the second gift.
Inside was the heirloom jewelry set his late wife had gifted Seraphina when she married into the Family. Emeralds and diamonds set in old gold, pieces that had passed through three generations of Valente women.
The moment those jewels were revealed, the room fell dead silent. Glasses stopped halfway to lips. A Capo's wife put her hand over her mouth. Even the soldiers by the door seemed to hold their breath.
Everyone in this world knew what it meant when a woman returned her Family's ancestral jewelry. It was not a gesture. It was a severance. A declaration that the blood-bound union was over, delivered not in private but before every ally, every associate, every witness who mattered.
Before Salvatore could react, Dominic, face dark as storm clouds, strode toward the third gift. The silver lighter was nowhere in sight. His hands were empty and rigid at his sides.
Just as expected, he tore it open with frozen hands.
