The Locksmith Was Just The Beginning

The office suddenly felt like it was shrinking.

My lungs wouldn’t expand. My hands began to shake violently.

I pushed past Luca, staring at the bright monitor.

It was Lily.

She was wearing her yellow raincoat. Holding her pink backpack. Laughing with her teacher on the front steps of Lincoln Elementary.

“When was this taken?” I gasped, my voice cracking.

Luca didn’t answer. He was clicking through the other photos.

Next was a picture of my apartment building.

Then my car.

Then Mrs. Carter’s house in the suburbs.

Then Luis’s teenage son at soccer practice.

Vanessa hadn’t just been replacing the staff. She had been tracking us. Documenting our families.

“Mr. Moretti…” I backed away from the desk. “Why does your fiancée have pictures of my seven-year-old?”

Luca’s face was made of stone.

He pulled the USB drive from the computer, his knuckles white.

“I don’t know, Rachel. But I am going to find out.”

“I need to go home.” Panic was rising in my throat, choking me. “I need to get to Lily.”

“Lily is safe. She’s with your neighbor, Mrs. Gable, correct?”

I froze. “How do you know that?”

Luca turned to me.

“Because I’m not a fool. When I hire someone to work inside my home, my security team does a full background check. I know about your debt, Rachel. I know about your ex-husband who ran out on you. And I know Lily is well cared for.”

He stepped closer.

“But Vanessa isn’t my security team. She shouldn’t have these photos. And she definitely shouldn't be hiding them in a Romano lighter.”

The stitches behind my ear throbbed. The room spun.

I stumbled backward, catching myself on the edge of the metal lockers.

Luca moved instantly. His large hands gripped my shoulders, steadying me. His touch was firm, grounding.

“Look at me.”

I squeezed my eyes shut.

“Rachel. Look at me.”

I opened them. His dark eyes were locked on mine.

“Nothing is going to happen to your daughter. Do you hear me? I will put men outside your apartment tonight. I will put a detail on her school tomorrow.”

“You’re a mafia boss,” I whispered, the words slipping out in my terror. “Your world… it’s not my world. We’re just staff.”

“In my house, you are my responsibility.”

He let go of my shoulders, pulled out his phone, and typed a rapid message.

“Two of my best men are en route to your apartment building now. They’ll sit in an unmarked car outside. They won’t leave until I say so.”

I swallowed hard. “Thank you.”

“Go home. Get some sleep.”

“What about Vanessa?”

Luca looked toward the ceiling. The sounds of the engagement party were still faintly echoing from the upper floors. Music. Laughter.

The sound of his fiancée playing the perfect bride.

“Vanessa thinks I’m a man who doesn’t notice things,” Luca said quietly. “Tomorrow, I’m going to let her keep thinking that.”

He looked back at me.

“When you come in tomorrow for the rehearsal dinner, you say nothing. You act afraid of her. You act like you’re grateful to have your job for four more days. Let her feel powerful.”

“Why?”

“Because people who feel powerful make mistakes.”

I grabbed my coat from the locker. My hands were still trembling, but the sheer force of Luca’s calm was keeping me upright.

As I walked toward the back exit, Luca spoke again.

“Rachel.”

I stopped.

“Vanessa said she wanted people who had never worked for my family,” he murmured, piecing the puzzle together aloud. “She wanted people new to Chicago. No local ties.”

“Yes, sir.”

“She wasn’t just firing you all so she could control the house.” Luca’s eyes darkened. “She was firing you because she needs a staff that won’t ask questions when something happens to me.”

The heavy steel door clicked shut behind me.

I drove home in a daze.

When I pulled up to my crumbling apartment building, I saw the black SUV idling across the street. Two men in dark suits sat inside.

Luca kept his word.

I ran up the three flights of stairs and unlocked my door.

Mrs. Gable was asleep on the sofa. Lily was tucked into her bed, her small chest rising and falling peacefully.

I sat on the edge of her bed for three hours, watching her breathe.

The next afternoon, I walked through the service entrance of the Moretti estate.

The house was chaotic. Florists carrying white roses. Caterers prepping for the massive rehearsal dinner.

I kept my head down. I wore my hair loose to hide the bandage.

At 4:00 PM, I was polishing the silver in the dining room when the double doors opened.

Vanessa walked in.

She wore a stunning emerald green dress. Her diamond engagement ring caught the light.

She saw me. Her smile vanished.

“You’re still here,” she said, her voice dripping with poison.

I remembered Luca’s instructions. I lowered my eyes.

“Yes, Miss Bellini. I need the money.”

She stepped closer, invading my space. The smell of her expensive perfume was suffocating.

“I told you yesterday, Rachel. You are clumsy. You are a liability. If you drop a single plate tonight in front of Luca’s family, I won’t just fire you on Monday. I’ll make sure you never work in this city again.”

“I understand.”

She smirked, satisfied with my submission.

She turned on her heel and walked out.

But as she turned, her emerald clutch caught the edge of the dining table. It tipped over.

A few items spilled onto the Persian rug. Lipstick. A compact mirror.

And a crumpled piece of paper.

Vanessa hastily scooped up the makeup, but she didn’t see the paper. She walked out, letting the doors swing shut.

I walked over and picked it up.

It was a boarding pass.

Printed this morning.

First Class. Chicago to Rome.

The departure date was Sunday morning. The day of the honeymoon.