Back to the present
Where May sits alone on her bed, the faint light of her phone casting shadows on the features of her face as she scrolled through this list, this information, these names, these figures and figures of influence.
The richest men in Milan.
She had said to herself that she would not let it bother her. Told herself that the man that night, that night alone, meant nothing. Was nothing. Was just irrelevant.
"I don't know what's happened." The irritation which lay beneath her calm
She paused on one profile, eyes narrowing slightly, before moving on.
Just curiosity, she told herself. Nothing more.
A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.
"Ma'am," said the voice, one which was both respectful and urgent, though not unkind. "The elders wish to see you. They claim it was urgent."
May exhaled softly and locked her phone.
What do those snakes want from me now? she thought, with irritation lurking behind her calm demeanor.
"I'm on my way," she said coolly. "Lead them to the study room."
"Yes, ma'am," the voice replied.
"May stands up, adjusting her countenance into an unreadable mask. Whatever the elders have come for—power, leverage, or blood—they are about to recall that."
She did not respond to urgency.
Urgency responded to her.
She walked downstairs, her high heels clicking softly off the marble floor. In the living room, May found her sisters sitting on the couch, totally relaxed, their eyes glued on TV as the different shows aired.
August looked up first.
'So,' she said casually, 'what do they want this time?'
April smirked, never taking her eyes off the screen.
"Oh, please. Let me guess, some strategic engagement? One of their sons or nephews, perhaps? Marriage alliance. Been done before,"
May stopped at the foot of the stairs.
"Whatever it is," she said firmly, her voice steady with a hint of steel, "they are free to express their opinions." "She paused, then added coldly," "And any person who believes that they should have opposition with my judgment should be prepared to face the consequences."
A smile had played across her lips, controlled, and dangerous
She turned to one of the maids.
"Daisy, get snacks. Wines, different types, for our distinguished visitors. Immediately bring everything to my study. There are no errors allowed."
Daisy slightly bowed upon hearing that and said, "
"Thank you," May said, already walking away.
The doors to the study opened as she came in, and the room arranged itself around her. People stopped talking. All elders in the room knew it, the sense of balance.
May seated herself with a deliberate calm, folding her hands lightly on the table.
Her eyes lifted, her gaze chilly and calculating. "So," she said. "To what do I owe this meeting? And why do the elders of the Phoenix Gang require my presence today?"
There was silence.
Because when May talked like this, everybody knew—
this wasn't a discussion.
It was a test.
"One thing that struck me," one of the elders eventually began after clearing his throat.
"The purpose of this meeting is to propose an engagement," he said, his words chosen with care. "With one of our sons.or nephews.and one of you, as a way of fortifying our alliance."
May slightly tilted her head.
"And for what reason should I comply with this claim, Don Malcolm?"
He stood up. "Because it is tradition. A tradition that spans for centuries. Your father—"
"Do not," May interjects sharply, her tone lethal, "drag my godfather into your nonsense."
All movement in the room stopped
"'I have no obligation to observe precedent from bloodlines to which I do not hold membership," she went on to say. "As you all very well know, I have no roots.'"
That did it.
Murmurs exploded into sharp, angry sounds until finally, an elder leaned forward, unable to contain himself. "This," he said accusingly, "is precisely the reason why I have been opposing Santos passing the command to a woman. To add insult to the injury, the pest is not even a relation!"
The word hung in the air.
May didn't raise her voice.
She smiled.
"This pest," she said calmly, "is the reason this organization is still breathing."
She fixed her gaze on him.
"For three years past-after the death of my godfather-I have kept this empire steady. Profitable. Untouchable."
She leaned back slightly.
"And this so-called pest will not be manipulated, bartered, or used as a tool for your personal ambitions, Don Mariano."
Her smile was gone.
"Do you understand me?"
Silence.
"Marriage," May rejoined composedly, "is not in my dictionary. That word does not exist for me. It never has—and it never will."
A knock broke the tension.
"Excuse me, ma'am," Daisy called from the doorway. "The snacks and wines are ready. May I come in?
May didn't avert her gaze from the elder.
"Yes. Come in."
The elders shifted uncomfortably as Daisy came in with the tray.
For they had come expecting a negotiation.
What they got instead was a reminder— May was not tradition. She was not a bride. And she was most definitely not theirs to control.
As Daisy entered with the other maids carrying trays balanced carefully in their hands, May suddenly turned her attention to her.
"Daisy," May asked quietly, "if I arranged a marriage for you—I mean, if you became engaged against your wishes—how would you feel?"
The room froze.
Her breathing caught. She slowly turned her gaze from Evelyn back to the elders. Every last one of them was looking at her. Coldly. Assessing. Preying. It was like being thrown to the lion when you had no way of escaping.
The reason, oh my god, what would the ma'am ask me for? This has to be some kind of test.
Lord, please let me get through this.
"Daisy," May prompted, though so gently that it would take strong wills not to notice, ".go ahead. We don't
A pause.
"We just want your honest thoughts. That's all."
Daisy swallowed, her hands trembling ever slightly around the tray. Then she straightened back. If this was a test, she would not result in its failure by lying.
"Well…" she said softly, choosing her words carefully, "an arranged marriage might sound … practical. Perhaps even stable." Her eyes flickered for a moment on May's face before refocusing on the elders.
"But what is the essence of marriage," asked Daisy, whose voice had firmed up, "if there is no love?"
The silence that followed was heavy.
"May smiled, not at Daisy, but at the elders."
Because an answer had not come from power, from tradition, from fear.
It came from the truth.
And truth, in May's world, was far more dangerous than rebellion.
*
The silence did not last.
One of the elder men laughed scornfully, his lips twisting with contempt as he turned to face Daisy.
"And what would a mere maid like you know about marriage and love?"
Daisy stood up, her face paler.
Before May even react, May said:
Cold. Precise
"Interesting question," May replied calmly.
All eyes returned to her.
"Coming from a man who beats his wife behind closed doors," she went on to say calmly, "and who also has a mistress with two children in another city."
The face of the elder turned pale.
May moved a little forward, her tone sharpening. "Why don't you try fixing your own damn life before lecturing me, you damn parasite." The room was silent.
Nobody stood up to defend him. Nobody dared.
Daisy remained immobile, heart racing, as it became clear to the elders that May's query was not innocent.
She had been laying a trap.
And they had just watched one of their own walk straight into it.
May leaned back into her seat, her eyes scanning the room.
"Anyone else care to question who gets to speak about love?"
No one did.
Because at that moment, it became painfully clear—
"May was not opposed to every aspect of that She was exposing it.