Chapter 3 - THE SHADOWS OF THE PAST
The peace was shattered on a rainy Tuesday morning.
I was in the sunroom, drinking tea while Aria slept in her bassinet, when Luca’s head of security, a giant of a man named Mateo, walked into the room. His face was grim.
"Miss Emma, Mr. Moretti asked me to bring you to his study."
My stomach tightened. "Is everything okay?"
"Just follow me, please."
I left Aria with Maria and followed Mateo through the labyrinthine halls to Luca’s private office. When the heavy oak doors opened, the air in the room felt thick with tension.
Luca was standing behind his massive desk, his hands resting flat on the mahogany surface, his eyes dark and lethal.
Sitting in a chair opposite him, looking incredibly small and terrified, was Derek.
My breath hitched. My hands curled into fists at my sides.
Derek looked awful. His designer clothes were rumpled, he had dark circles under his eyes, and his usual arrogant swagger was completely gone.
"Emma," Derek breathed, trying to stand up, but Mateo put a heavy hand on his shoulder, forcing him back down.
"What is he doing here?" I demanded, my voice shaking with a mixture of rage and panic.
"Mr. Morrison showed up at the front gates demanding to see his daughter," Luca said, his voice terrifyingly calm. "He brought a lawyer. And a demand for a paternity test."
"Now you want a test?" I snapped, stepping forward. "Three weeks ago you left us in the hospital so you could take your pregnant girlfriend to brunch! You stole my life savings, Derek!"
Derek swallowed hard, looking nervously at Luca. "Emma, please, be reasonable. Brittany... Brittany lost the baby. It was a false alarm, a chemical pregnancy. She left me. My startup went under last week. I made a mistake. I was stressed. Aria is my daughter, I have a right to her!"
I stared at him in disgust. He didn't want Aria because he loved her. He wanted her because he had lost everything else, and his ego couldn't handle being entirely alone. Or worse, he had found out who took me in, and he saw dollar signs.
"You have no rights," I said coldly. "You walked away."
"I am her biological father!" Derek yelled, finding a pathetic scrap of courage. "No judge in the country will keep me from my child! You’re living with a mobster, Emma! Do you think a family court is going to look kindly on a woman raising a baby in a mafia compound?"
The temperature in the room plummeted.
Luca slowly walked around the desk. He didn't rush. He moved with the slow, deliberate grace of an apex predator.
He stopped directly in front of Derek, towering over him.
"You seem confused, Derek," Luca said softly, leaning down so his face was inches from Derek’s pale, sweating forehead. "You think this is a negotiation. You think the laws of family court apply here."
Luca reached into his jacket and pulled out a thick manila envelope, tossing it onto Derek’s lap.
"Open it," Luca commanded.
Derek fumbled with the clasp. He pulled out a stack of documents, his eyes scanning the pages as his face drained of all color.
"These are your offshore accounts," Luca whispered. "The ones you used to embezzle three million dollars from your investors over the last two years. The same accounts you funneled Emma’s savings into. I have every transaction record, every forged signature."
Derek began to shake violently. "How... how did you get this?"
"I own the bank, Derek. I own the politicians you bribed. I own the ground you are currently sitting on," Luca said, his voice dropping to a lethal octave. "If you ever say the name Aria again, if you ever look in Emma's direction, if you ever even drive through this zip code... I will hand these files to the FBI. And before they put you in federal prison, I will have my men introduce you to the bottom of the Chicago River. Do we have an understanding?"
Derek was sobbing now, a pathetic, broken sound. He nodded frantically, dropping the papers on the floor as he scrambled out of the chair.
"I'll go," Derek choked out. "I'll never come back. I swear to God. Just let me go."
"Mateo," Luca said without looking away from Derek. "Escort Mr. Morrison out. Ensure he understands the permanence of his departure."
Mateo grabbed Derek by the scruff of his neck and dragged him out of the office, shutting the heavy oak doors behind them.
The silence rushed back in. I stood frozen, my heart pounding in my ears.
Luca turned to me, the lethal darkness in his eyes instantly vanishing, replaced by a deep, protective warmth. He stepped close to me, reaching out to gently tuck a stray lock of hair behind my ear.
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"He will never hurt you again, mia luce," Luca murmured. "You and Aria are safe. Forever."
I looked up into his dark eyes, and for the first time in my life, I felt completely, unconditionally protected. I leaned into his touch, wrapping my arms around his waist and burying my face in his chest. Luca held me tight, resting his chin on the top of my head, anchoring me in the storm.
