In the aftermath of the ambush, relationships between the men of the Romanos and Giovanni Rossi's remain tenuous at best. Giovanni's begrudging truce with Luca remained born of mere necessity, not trust. A blood-smudged knuckle trailing his mouth and blood-smudged knuckles trailing down his jaw on the afterburn of all smoking together at the end; and Giovanni with a cigarette lighting up and watching as the ember glowed between them in a half-dark room.
"You have a lot of explaining to do, Giovanni," Luca growled.
Giovanni wreathed a plume of smoke, his voice slow. "I could say the same, Luca. So you've been saying some pretty interesting stuff about me, huh?"
Luca's eyes narrowed. "Don't twist this. Isabella framed you and I, you know that. It was her way of pitting us against each other."
Giovanni coughed a snicker, the hand of his arrogance still damped by the proximity. "And yet here we are, alive, while her men bleed from the fucking streets. Maybe she underestimated us."
Stepping forward, looking crisp and military, was Sofia. "Or maybe she's just getting started. This was not meant to kill us it was meant to deliver a message. Isabella thrives on chaos."
Giovanni tipped his head, contemplating her words. "What should I do then, Sofia? That I do kumbaya with Luca and hold hands?
"No," Sofia replied coldly. "We use this alliance to destroy Isabella before she destroys us."
The Hunt Begins
The next morning, the Romanos and Giovanni's men began their coordinated assault on Isabella's remaining operations. Her safehouses hit, her shipments snagged, her men eliminated with cold efficiency.
It had been Sofia who had arranged for the intelligence, a veritable web of informants returning to her quicker than Isabella could change her strategy. The enforcer worked with Marco and Giovanni, poring over the plans to put a bloody and precise execution to the groups' work.
But Isabella wasn't about to go out without a fight. Every action by the alliance faced fierce opposition. Her men were well-trained and loyal, and she had converted her most recent bastions into death traps.
That stronghold was a shuttered factory on the edge of Trento. Romano and Rossi's alliance attacked in the morning, under a cover of darkness, anticipating an easy victory. Instead, they were caught in a deadly ambush.
As they crashed through, explosives attached to the building's entrances detonated, killing some men on contact. Covered positions were firing and the assailants retreated.
She watched the slaughter happen from a distance, gorging herself with joy. "They think can outsmart me," she muttered. "Let them try."
Internal Fractures
Back at the Romano estate, tensions ran high for the alliance left dealing with the repercussions of their losses. Giovanni pounded his fist on the table and his voice rose. "You led us into a trap, Luca! How the fuck did she know we were coming?' "
Luca's glare was icy. "You think I wanted this? We're all bleeding for it because of her, and you pointing fingers isn't going to help."
Sofia interjected, her tone sharp. "Enough! That's exactly what Isabella desires division. Once we start ripping each other to pieces she has already won."
Marco nodded in agreement. "We have to circle the wagons and come back with her stronger. But now we have to respond to what she does."
Giovanni leaned back in his seat, his anger boiling. "Fine. But if this alliance were to include another screw up, that is game over.'"
A New Strategy
Sofia pored over hours of intercepted communications, seeking patterns in Isabella's movements. Finally, she had something a series of financial transactions that led to a hidden account.
"She's been diverting funds to a private airstrip outside the city," Sofia told Luca and Giovanni. "If she plans on fleeing, this is where she's going to go."
Luca's jaw tightened. "We can't let her escape. If she can get out of Trento, she'll build back up and we'll never see her again."
Giovanni nodded. "Then we make our move. But this time we do it clever."
The Final Gambit
They snuck out to the airstrip at night to do the work. Sofia studied the plans, coordinating the whole thing from the comfort of her own living room.
Glimpsing Isabella's private jet on the tarmac as they got closer. The beat was walked by armed guards but the forces were easy for the forces to overwhelm, Romanos and Giovanni's men.
The alliance overran the airstrip and gunfire broke out. It was Marco and Pietro with the lead, ripping through Isabella's guards with ruthless precision.
Isabella anchored in the hangar, with a pistol drawn. Antonio, her trusted underling, stood with her
"It's over, Isabella," Luca said while wedging his way in, a gun pointed at her.
Isabella laughed a sound, a bitter sound. "You think killing me is going to end this? I've already won. Trento will never be yours."
Giovanni stepped forward, pointing his gun at her. "You've already lost, Isabella, when you underestimated us. This city belongs to me."
Luca's eyes flew to Giovanni, squeezing his we plaint. "Us, Giovanni. This city belongs to us."
Before Isabella could respond, Antonio charged Marco, and they engaged in a savage fight sans any further weapons. That distraction allowed Isabel a split-second to shoot, but Luca was faster, shooting her in the chest.
Isabella fell on the ground, holding on to her wound and blood spread the ground below. She looked up at Luca with a small smirk on her lips. "It will never hold together," she had said before closing her eyes.
When Antonio saw their leader go down, he dropped his weapon and surrendered.
The Aftermath
It cannot be helped; the alliance has been defended, but the victory is an empty vessel. Trento was in ruins, and the other, more fragile peace between Luca and Giovanni was starting to crack already.
As they left the airstrip, Giovanni faced Luca. "This changes nothing. You and I both know that this city ain't big enough for the two of us."
Luca's face was inscrutable. "Well then I guess we'll see who lives to tell the tale."
Sofia studied them both,
her mind whirring. The war with Isabella was over, but a new war was on the horizon a war that would decide the future of Trento.