Chapter 8 - THE BOY WITH THE GUN
The silence that fell over the paper mill was absolute and suffocating.
Vanessa Bellini froze, the cruel smirk sliding off her perfect face, replaced by genuine, wide-eyed terror. The small, snub-nosed revolver in Samuel’s hands was shaking wildly, but at this close range, it wouldn't matter.
"Sammy," Luca said, his voice incredibly soft, holding his hands up slowly. "Don't."
"She killed Dad," Samuel sobbed, his finger hovering over the trigger. The heavy wool coat seemed to swallow his small frame, but the grief radiating from him was massive. "She watched him die, Luca."
"I know, buddy. I know," Luca said, taking a microscopic step toward his brother. "But you are not a killer. You are a fourteen-year-old boy. Don't let her turn you into something you're not."
"Put the gun down, you little brat!" Arthur Bellini shouted, raising his own weapon toward Samuel.
Before Arthur could even fully extend his arm, Aunt June let out a guttural scream.
The elderly woman, who had stood paralyzed with guilt moments before, threw her frail body forward. She slammed into Arthur’s side just as his gun fired.
The gunshot was deafening in the enclosed space. The bullet hit the concrete ceiling, raining dust and debris down on us.
"June, no!" Luca roared.
Arthur shoved the old woman violently to the ground. June hit the floor hard, crying out in pain as her bad hip took the brunt of the fall.
In the chaos, the two men in dark suits who had been holding me lunged toward Luca.
But Luca Moretti was not a man who needed a gun to be dangerous.
He ducked under the first man’s punch, driving his elbow upward with sickening force into the man’s jaw. The thug collapsed instantly. The second man grabbed Luca from behind, but Luca grabbed the man’s arm, twisted it until a loud crack echoed through the room, and threw him to the floor.
I didn't wait. I scrambled forward, grabbing Samuel by the waist and pulling him hard to the ground behind a rusted steel pillar.
"Give me the gun, Samuel," I pleaded, prying his fingers off the cold metal of the .38 revolver. He was hyperventilating, his eyes blown wide with shock. He let go, burying his face in my neck, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Hannah, stay down!" Luca yelled.
Arthur Bellini stumbled backward, raising his weapon toward Luca.
But Vanessa was faster. Seeing her father’s men disabled and her plan unraveling, the instinct for self-preservation took over completely.
She turned and sprinted toward the side exit, leaving her own father behind.
"Vanessa!" Arthur shouted, distracted for just a second.
It was all the time Luca needed. He closed the distance between them in two massive strides, kicking the gun out of Arthur’s hand. The weapon clattered away into the darkness. Luca grabbed Arthur by the lapels of his expensive suit and slammed him against the brick wall.
Arthur gasped for air, his eyes bulging as Luca’s forearm pressed into his throat.
"You touch my family again," Luca whispered, his face inches from Arthur’s, "and I won't need a ledger to destroy you. I will bury you myself."
Arthur choked, nodding frantically.
Luca let him drop to the floor. He didn't spare another glance for the gasping, pathetic man. He turned and ran toward us.
He dropped to his knees behind the steel pillar, pulling Samuel out of my arms and crushing the boy to his chest.
"I've got you," Luca breathed, pressing his face into Samuel’s damp hair. "I've got you, Sammy. It's over."
Samuel clung to his brother, crying so hard his whole body shook. "I almost shot her, Luca. I almost did it."
"But you didn't," Luca said fiercely, pulling back to look him in the eye. "Because you are good, Sammy. You are so much better than them."
Luca looked over at me. His eyes were wide with adrenaline, but underneath it, there was a profound tenderness.
"Are you hurt, Hannah?" he asked, his hand reaching out to touch my shoulder.
"I'm okay," I managed to say, though my heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest.
We heard a weak groan from the center of the room. Aunt June was trying to sit up, holding her hip. She looked frail, old, and utterly broken.
Luca stood up slowly, keeping Samuel safely behind him. He walked over to his aunt and looked down at her. There was no anger left in his face, only a bone-deep disappointment that was somehow much worse.
"Luca, please," June wept, holding out a trembling hand. "I only wanted what was fair. I loved Frank. I just... I got scared."
Luca didn't take her hand.
"You traded a fourteen-year-old boy’s life for money, June," Luca said quietly. "You let Vanessa convince him he was a burden. You broke his heart."
"I can fix it," June sobbed. "I have the papers. The real papers."
Luca froze. "What papers?"
June reached into the pocket of her cardigan. Her hand was shaking so badly she could barely pull out the small, folded envelope. She held it up to Luca.
"Frank didn't just leave Samuel the estate in that will," June confessed, her tears falling onto the concrete. "He knew you would protect the money, Luca. But he wanted to make sure nobody could ever challenge Samuel's place in this family."
Luca took the envelope. He opened it slowly, pulling out a thick, legal document bearing the gold seal of the State of Illinois.
As Luca read the first page, his breath hitched. He covered his mouth with his hand, completely overwhelmed.
"What is it, Luca?" Samuel asked, stepping out from behind the pillar.
Luca fell to his knees on the dirty floor, ignoring the dust and the chaos around them. He held the paper out to Samuel.
"It's an adoption decree," Luca whispered, his voice cracking. "Dad signed it the day before he died."
Samuel stared at the paper, uncomprehending. "Adoption? But he’s my dad."
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"Not for him to adopt you, Sammy," Luca said, tears finally spilling freely down his cheeks. He pointed to the blank signature line at the bottom of the page.
"He wanted me to adopt you."
