Chapter 7 - THE GOLD POCKET WATCH
The fog swirling around our ankles suddenly felt like ice.
Luca stood perfectly still, his gun aimed at Richard’s chest, but his eyes were locked on the ornate gold pocket watch gleaming in the dim light of the yard.
“You're lying,” Luca said softly. His voice didn't shake, but the absolute stillness of his body betrayed the shock.
“Am I?” Richard sneered, climbing slowly to his knees, sensing he had found a lifeline. “Open it, Moretti. Vanessa gave it to me as an insurance policy. She said if the Morenos ever came after me for the laundered money, I could use the chip inside to blackmail you into protecting me.”
I pulled Ellie tighter against my chest. My mind was racing. Vanessa had orchestrated the engagement dinner. She had brought Richard into the house. She hadn't just been trying to pay off her father's debt—she was trying to frame Richard for her own crimes before she married into the Moretti empire.
Luca stepped forward, snatched the gold watch from Richard’s bloody hand, and popped the clasp.
Inside the antique casing, resting against the intricate gears, was a small, modern black microchip.
Luca stared at it. Ten years of grief, ten years of hunting his father’s killers, and the answer had been sleeping in the bed next to him.
“Daniel,” Luca commanded without looking away from the watch.
The head of security stepped out of the fog. “Boss.”
“Put him in the trunk,” Luca ordered, pointing his weapon at Richard. “Tie his hands. If he speaks, break his jaw. We're turning him over to the feds tomorrow morning. Money laundering and kidnapping.”
Richard’s smug smile vanished instantly. “What? No! I gave you the proof! We had a deal!”
“We didn't have a deal,” Luca said coldly. “You threatened the woman I love.”
The words hung in the damp air.
My heart skipped a beat. The woman I love. He hadn't said it to me. He had said it as a matter of fact, a universal truth spoken to an enemy.
Enzo and Daniel grabbed Richard by the arms, dragging him kicking and screaming toward the SUVs.
Luca turned to me. The lethal, terrifying mafia boss vanished the moment his eyes met mine.
He quickly holstered his weapon, stepping close.
“Are you hurt?” he asked, his voice rough with emotion. He reached out, his large, warm hand gently touching the side of my face, his thumb brushing away a streak of dirt from my cheek.
“I'm okay,” I whispered, leaning into his touch.
He looked down at Ellie, who was still buried against my shoulder.
“Hey, little one,” Luca said softly, his tone incredibly gentle.
Ellie peeked out. She looked at the tall man in the ruined suit. She didn't look afraid. She remembered him from the few times she had visited the estate after school.
“You chased the monsters away,” Ellie whispered.
Luca offered a small, heartbreakingly tender smile. “I did. And they're never coming back.”
He took off his ruined suit jacket and wrapped it around Ellie to keep her warm, then gently guided us toward the safest SUV.
The ride back to the estate was a blur. The adrenaline was fading, leaving me exhausted and shivering. Ellie fell asleep in my lap, exhausted from the terror.
When we finally pulled through the massive iron gates of the Moretti estate, the first light of dawn was just beginning to crack the horizon, painting the sky in bruised shades of purple and gray.
The house was heavily guarded.
Luca carried Ellie inside, his massive arms holding her small body with a care I had never seen from Richard. He walked up the grand staircase, bypassing the staff quarters entirely, and carried her into the master guest suite.
He laid her gently on the massive, soft bed, pulling the heavy down comforter over her shoulders.
I stood in the doorway, watching him.
For seven years, I had been told I was worthless. I had been made to serve the man who hurt me. And here was a man who commanded an empire, gently taking off my daughter's remaining pink shoe so she could sleep comfortably.
Luca turned off the bedside lamp and walked out into the hall, quietly closing the door behind him.
He looked exhausted. The physical toll of the night was showing on his face, but his eyes were hard as flint.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the gold pocket watch.
“Is it true?” I asked softly. “Did she really do it?”
“I'm going to find out right now,” Luca said.
We walked down to the wine cellar.
Daniel unlocked the heavy wooden door. The cellar was cold, smelling of damp earth and aged oak.
Vanessa was huddled in the corner, shivering in her torn red silk gown. When the door opened, she scrambled to her feet, her eyes wide with terror.
“Luca!” she cried, running forward. “Please, you have to let me out. It's freezing down here!”
Luca didn't say a word. He didn't yell. He just held up the gold pocket watch.
Vanessa stopped dead in her tracks. All the color drained from her face, leaving her looking like a ghost in a ruined dress.
“You recognize this?” Luca asked, his voice terrifyingly calm.
Vanessa’s lips trembled. She shook her head frantically. “No. I've never seen it.”
“Richard said you gave it to him,” Luca stated. “He said the microchip inside proves your father ordered the hit on mine ten years ago. And that you brokered the deal with the Morenos.”
“He's lying!” Vanessa screamed, her voice cracking. “He's a desperate criminal trying to save himself!”
Luca stared at her for a long, agonizing moment.
Then, he did something that completely shocked me.
He tossed the gold watch onto the stone floor at her feet.
“You're right,” Luca said.
Vanessa blinked, confused.
“There is no microchip inside that watch, Vanessa,” Luca said quietly.
My breath caught.
“What?” Vanessa whispered.
“I opened it in the car on the way back,” Luca explained, his eyes filled with absolute disgust. “It's completely empty. Richard lied to buy himself time. He didn't know who killed my father. He was just throwing out names to save his own skin.”
Vanessa let out a massive, shuddering breath of relief. “Oh, thank God. You see? He was lying to you, Luca! I would never—”
“But you just proved you did,” Luca interrupted.
The silence in the cellar was deafening.
“If you were innocent,” Luca said, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper, “you would have been confused. You would have asked why Richard would make up such a specific lie about a microchip. But you didn't.”
Luca took a slow step forward.
“You panicked. Because you knew the microchip existed. You just didn't know Richard never actually had it.”
Vanessa’s face crumpled. She realized she had walked directly into his trap.
“Where is the real chip, Vanessa?” Luca demanded.
Before she could answer, Mrs. Carter, the head housekeeper, appeared at the top of the cellar stairs. She looked completely out of breath.
“Mr. Moretti,” Mrs. Carter gasped, holding a small velvet box in her hands. “I was packing Miss Bellini’s belongings to have them thrown out, as you instructed.”
Luca looked up. “And?”
Mrs. Carter walked down the stairs and handed the velvet box to Luca.
“I found this hidden inside the lining of her jewelry case.”
May you like
Luca opened the box.
Resting on the red velvet was a small, black microchip.
