The trio uncovers a shocking link: the mayor has been paying local families to keep their children “in line,” using coercion and threats to maintain control. When Greta is arrested for vandalizing the mayor’s office, Lila and Ezio realize they must act before the mayor silences them too. In a climactic storm-lashed night, Lila confronts the mayor on his yacht, where he confesses to exploiting the town’s youth to fuel his illegal fishing operations. Her mother, it turns out, tried to expose him before she died—but her death was no accident. Lila’s father, revealed as the mayor’s enforcer, is forced to choose between his daughter and his allegiance.