**THE MAFIA BOSS WATCHED ME RETURN A WORN GOLD MUSIC BOX TO A SIXTY-FOUR-YEAR-OLD WOMAN DURING HIS ENGAGEMENT DINNER—THEN HIS FIANCÉE SAID, “SHE'S JUST A FORMER EMPLOYEE WHO CAN'T ACCEPT THAT HER TIME IS OVER,” BEFORE HE EVEN ASKED WHY THE WOMAN WAS CRYING, WHY THE MUSIC BOX PLAYED HIS LATE MOTHER'S FAVORITE WALTZ, AND WHY SHE HAD REFUSED TO SELL IT FOR TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS.**

The humid air of the greenhouse suddenly felt like freezing water in my lungs.

"No," I whispered, stepping back, pulling Leo tightly against my legs. "No, you're lying. That's a lie."

Detective Miller shook his head sadly, lingering at the edge of the service tunnel.

"Bellini provided the hospital logs, Megan," Miller said. "Your mother was the charge nurse on Catherine Moretti's floor ten years ago. She was the one who administered the 'medicine' every night."

"My mother is a good person!" I yelled, tears springing to my eyes. "She wouldn't kill anyone! She was sick! She needed a kidney transplant!"

"And who do you think bumped her to the top of the transplant list ten years ago?" Miller countered softly. "Bellini owned the hospital board. He gave her a choice: slip the thallium into the IV, or die waiting for a kidney and leave her sixteen-year-old daughter an orphan."

The world tilted on its axis.

Ten years ago. The exact time I met Catherine in the lobby. The exact time my mother miraculously received her first kidney transplant—a surgery we could never have afforded.

"Luca doesn't know yet," Miller warned, pointing to the manila envelope on the potting table. "But the Feds are going to raid the hospital and arrest her tomorrow morning. I came to warn you because you saved my partner's life in a shootout a year ago. We're even now. Run, Megan. If Luca finds out your mother pulled the trigger on his, he'll kill both of you."

Before I could say another word, Miller slipped into the dark tunnel and disappeared.

I stood paralyzed, the sound of my own heartbeat deafening in my ears.

My mother.

The woman I had scrubbed floors for. The woman I had sacrificed my youth to keep alive. She had murdered the kindest woman I had ever met. She had murdered Luca's mother.

"Megan?" Leo's small voice broke through my panic. He tugged on my dress. "Why are you crying?"

I looked down at the sweet, innocent boy. I couldn't breathe.

If Luca found out... the man who had just paid off my mother's medical debts, who had taken me into his home, who looked at me with such tender affection... his heart would turn to stone. He would destroy us.

I grabbed the manila envelope from the table. My hands were shaking so violently I nearly dropped it.

"Come on, Leo," I gasped, picking the boy up. "We have to go inside."

I carried him back to the mansion, my mind racing in a hundred different directions. I needed to confront my mother. I needed to know the truth before I destroyed the only good thing that had ever happened to me.

As I rushed into the grand foyer, I nearly collided with Luca.

He had returned early from his meetings. He had taken off his jacket and tie, rolling up the sleeves of his crisp white shirt.

When he saw my face, his relaxed posture instantly vanished.

"Megan?" Luca stepped forward, his eyes darting from my pale, tear-stained face to Leo in my arms. "What happened? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," I lied, my voice cracking. I clutched the manila envelope tightly against my chest, hiding it behind Leo's back. "Leo just got tired. I'm going to put him down for a nap."

Luca frowned, clearly not believing me. He reached out to take Leo from my arms.

As he lifted the boy, his hand brushed against the edge of the envelope.

"What is that?" Luca asked, his dark eyes dropping to the thick paper in my hand.

Panic surged through me. "Nothing. Just... mail. For Margaret."

Luca's gaze hardened. He knew I was lying. He stepped closer, his imposing frame casting a shadow over me.

"Megan, give me the envelope," he said quietly.

"It's private, Luca, please," I begged, taking a step back toward the stairs.

"I don't have secrets in my house anymore," Luca said, his voice dropping to that lethal, commanding tone. "Hand it to me."

"No!" I cried, spinning around to run up the stairs.

But I was too slow. Luca grabbed my wrist—the same wrist bearing the silver bracelet—and gently but firmly pulled the envelope from my grasp.

"Luca, don't open it!" I sobbed, sinking to the bottom step of the staircase. "Please, God, don't open it."

Luca handed Leo to Marco, who had just walked into the foyer, instructing him to take the boy upstairs.

Then, Luca tore open the envelope.

I buried my face in my hands, waiting for the explosion. Waiting for the wrath of the mafia boss to rain down upon me.

I heard the rustle of paper as he pulled out the documents. I heard his sharp intake of breath.

The silence that followed was agonizing.

Finally, I looked up.

Luca was staring at the police report. His face was unreadable.

"My mother," I choked out, the tears flowing freely now. "Miller said she did it. Bellini forced her to do it to get her kidney transplant. Luca, I swear on my life, I didn't know. I didn't know!"

Luca slowly lowered the papers. He looked at me, trembling and sobbing on his staircase.

"I know you didn't, Megan," Luca said softly.

I blinked through my tears. "You... you're not going to kill us?"

Luca walked over and knelt on the step below me. He reached out and gently wiped my tears away with his thumbs.

"Megan," Luca said, his voice thick with an emotion I couldn't quite place. "I already knew."

My breath hitched. "What?"

"I've known since yesterday," Luca confessed softly. "When my lawyers were dismantling Bellini's foundation, they found the hospital records. I saw your mother's name on the nursing logs."

"But... but you paid her medical bills this morning!" I cried, completely bewildered. "Why would you save the woman who killed your mother?"

Luca reached into his pocket and pulled out the small gold music box.

He placed it on the step between us.

"Because of the cassette tape," Luca said.

He opened the lid. The silver dancer began to turn.

"You didn't hear the very end of the tape, Megan," Luca whispered, his eyes locked on mine. "When Vanessa started screaming, Margaret turned it off."

Luca reached over and pressed a small button on the music box. A hidden digital speaker—something he must have installed recently—clicked on.

Catherine's voice filled the foyer one last time.

“Luca,” his mother’s recorded voice echoed. “The girl who saved me in the lobby... her mother is Sarah Collins. The nurse who administers my medicine.”

I gasped, covering my mouth.

“Sarah confessed to me last night,” Catherine’s voice continued, sounding peaceful and resigned. “She was crying. She told me Bellini was threatening her daughter if she didn't give me the thallium. I forgave her, Luca. Because if I were in her position, if Bellini threatened you... I would have poisoned the whole world to keep you safe.”

Luca looked at me, his own eyes shining with unshed tears.

“Do not take revenge on Sarah, Luca,” Catherine’s final words played. “Break the cycle. Forgive the mother, and protect the daughter. Because the girl with the silver bracelet is the one who will save your soul.”

The tape clicked off.