"Everything okay?" Gio probed when Gael caught up to him.

"Yeah. Let's just get this over with."

The hostess led them towards the last door of the hallway. It was a massive double door with two Morelli guards flanking on each side. Just as the hostess was about to approach the door, it opened from inside and a woman walked out of it. Lia.

She came out of the room startled when she almost bumped into Alessandro. Her gaze lowered quickly, not daring to look him in the eyes, then she stepped aside to give way to him. Alessandro only spared her a glance before he walked past her and entered the room.

Giovanni was momentarily stunned. He did not expect to see her here at all. It was as if she would constantly appear out of nowhere to remind him of her existence just when he tried so hard not to think about her. He caught her eyes when she glanced up, but then she immediately let go and walked away, brushing past his shoulder as she did.

"I'll be back," he muttered in almost a whisper.

Gael couldn't stop his uncle. Not that he tried anyway. He was already cranky from not having slept for days, and he couldn't deal with the two at the moment. Whatever. "Don't take too long," he told him, though Giovanni was already far away.

Val said she'd wait outside, so she stayed behind, and he followed his father inside the private dining room. It had a tall ceiling with a classy and luxurious design. They walked down a short entryway until they reached the open space of the private dining room. To the left was a lounge area where one guard sat down dicking around his phone—he stood as soon as they entered—and to the right was a fourteen-seater round table where Mariano and Gabriella were seated.

"Papa!" Gabby ran towards Alessandro, jumping in his arms. He wrapped his arms around her, swallowing her entire frame.

"Cucciola." Puppy—he called her; his nickname for her. Alessandro pulled back and examined her, making sure she wasn't hurt. "Have you been well? You lost weight. Are they not feeding you?"

Gabriella's eyes were misty, but she was smiling as she shook her head. "They are. I'm okay, Papa. How are you? You haven't forgotten your medicines, have you?" she asked the last one with almost a hushed tone, only the three of them could hear.

Gael watched as the two exchanged a few more questions and answer to each other as though they were making sure they were both healthy. Then his sister looked at him, a small smile forming on her face.

She dressed up nicely, wearing a dark green long-sleeved dress that reached her ankles. His father was right. She lost some weight, but she looked classy today in that outfit, even donning a pair of pearl earrings but no makeup. Gabriella was beautiful no matter which angle you looked at her. He felt a prick in his chest, realizing that she was married to someone she wasn't supposed to marry. Anger bubbled inside him when he saw a huge diamond ring on her finger. The two really got married.

"It's good to see you." He pulled her into a tight embrace as if he didn't want to let her go, tempted to just kidnap her out of here and bring her back home. Was it still kidnapping when he was meant to save her?

"You look awful. Ever heard of sleep? Did you even shower?" She joked while brushing something off his hair.

Sleep no. Shower, yes. He could stay up for days without sleeping, but no shower for a day was where he drew the line. He couldn't stand being filthy.

"Where's Mom?" Gabriella asked, peering behind them even though the door was already closed and no other woman came in.

"She wanted to come," was all Gael could say. They didn't know what could go wrong today, and his father didn't want to risk his wife's safety.

Mariano crossed the distance and shook hands with Alessandro who took it professionally. The latter looked composed as he always did, but Gael could sense that he was holding back the urge to do something to the man who took his daughter away. Mariano gave Gael a courtesy nod.

They all sat at the table. It didn't go unnoticed to Gael that Mariano chose a round table and not a long one where he could sit at the head of it. It was a small detail, but the round table denied any of them to be the "head" or to showcase power. However, there was a clear distinction between sides. Gabriella hesitated as she went back to sit next to Mariano while Gael and Alessandro sat across from them.

No one spoke for a while. Two staff came in to serve them wine; Gabriella asked for just a glass of water. Once they left, the tension in the air was thick.

Alessandro was the first one to speak. "Tell me what you want."

"Many things," Mariano replied, a small hint of a smile ghosting his face. "Though I don't think you can help me with any of them."

"I can't let you stay married to my daughter. The order has been rescinded. There's no need for this sham."

Mariano paused. "My apologies for not holding up the tradition of a family meeting prior to the wedding; I didn't have a choice. But with all due respect, Don Alessandro, it was Gabriella's decision, and she signed a contract with me. You're well aware that our contracts are sacred."

Gael glanced down, seeing his father clenching his fist on his lap though his face remained stoic. If it were a decade ago, he had no doubt his father would have already shot this smug-looking man in the face for disrespecting him. The least someone could have done was ask permission from the Don, and the worst would be stabbing him in the back.

"Why are you doing this?" Alessandro hissed through gritted teeth. "What's in it for you?"

"You may find this hard to believe, but I have no grudge against you or your family."

"Why wouldn't you? Our families had been in a constant battle for decades. Your father and grandfather killed my father." Alessandro slammed his fist on the table, causing the cutleries to clang. Gabriella flinched.

Mariano swallowed and lowered his head. Gael's brow twitched at the sight of it, thinking that the other looked somewhat embarrassed or apologetic.

"I'm sorry for your loss. But I'm not my father, nor my grandfather. Their mistakes aren't mine. And I have no interest in taking over New York City when I'm perfectly content in Chicago."

Alessandro narrowed his eyes, a look of consideration passing by his expression quickly as he read the other's face. "Then why the hell did you trick my daughter into marrying you? Certainly, there are many willing women who'd do just fine, and your agreement with Mario would still be honored."

"That's true," Mariano agreed. "But it wouldn't guarantee our safety." He glanced at Gabby next to him. She bit her bottom lip, seemingly hurt from the easy admittance, but she quickly composed herself and stared at the empty plate in front of her. Gabriella looked down for a second and then directed a questioning gaze at Mariano, but he was already facing front, addressing Alessandro once again. "You would've retaliated from the loss of your family. And then we'd do the same. The cycle won't end."

Gael thought the same thing. After J's death, all he could think of was eradicating the Morellis. This was one of the reasons why his grandfather, Severino, made his 'desiderio morente' or 'dying wish', which was: to not cause any more losses by exacting revenge. Their family might not survive if their wives or children died too during a bloody battle. The De Lucas deeply cared for one another to sacrifice the family.

Looking at his father, Gael knew that Alessandro was thinking the same thing. The latter had been restraining himself for more than six years now—since Severino died. Because even though he wanted to finish the Morellis with an all-out war, his father's wish needed to be honored. This was why many of their enemies say they had become weak. They didn't know about Severino's wish before he died.

Alessandro stared at the other with a stern expression. His entire aura imposed that of a true Don of New York. "If you let her go now, you will have my word that this war is over. We have already lost lives. I can't lose my daughter."