Chapter 11 - THE NEW SHADOW
I drove back to the estate like a madwoman.
This time, the gates opened immediately. Luca's guards escorted me straight to the library.
The serene, peaceful atmosphere from just three hours ago had vanished completely. The heavy velvet curtains were drawn tight. Elena was pacing by the fireplace. Sofia sat rigidly on the sofa, clutching a piece of paper.
Luca stood by the desk, pouring a glass of scotch.
"Show her," Luca said.
Sofia handed me the paper.
It was a piece of construction paper, faded and crinkled with age. Drawn in heavy crayon was a picture of a blue car, a stick figure man with a wrench, and a little boy.
In the bottom right corner, in messy, childish handwriting, it read: For Daddy, from David.
My legs gave out. I collapsed into the leather chair behind me.
"My husband didn't have any children," I whispered.
"Are you sure?" Elena asked gently.
"Of course I'm sure! We tried for years. We went to doctors. He was sterile."
Sofia looked at Luca. Luca took a sip of his scotch and sighed heavily.
"Rebecca," Luca said softly. "When Sofia told you she brought her car to your husband three years ago... she didn't tell you the whole story. David didn't just fix her car. He hid her for a week while my father's men searched the neighborhood."
"I know," I said. "She told me."
"But she didn't tell you why David agreed to help a bleeding mafia runaway," Luca continued. "David helped her because she promised to use the Romano network to find someone for him. Someone he lost a long time ago."
I looked at Sofia. "Who?"
"His son," Sofia whispered. "David had a child before he met you, Rebecca. A boy. The mother took him and vanished when the boy was a baby. David spent his entire life looking for him."
I stared at the crayon drawing. My husband. The quiet, gentle man who read books on the porch and fixed my old sedan. He had a whole life, a whole tragedy, that he had hidden from me to protect me.
"Vitiello's son sent this to threaten us," Luca said. "To show us he knows about the people who helped Sofia. But he made a mistake."
"What mistake?" I asked, wiping a tear from my cheek.
Luca set his glass down. "He showed us that David's son is still alive. And Vitiello's crew knows where he is."
I looked up at Luca. The mafia boss who had nearly died three days ago looked entirely reborn. The poison was gone. The family was united.
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"What are we going to do?" I asked.
Luca picked up the phone on his desk. "I told you I was stepping back from the violence. But for the people who protect my family... I make exceptions. We are going to find your stepson, Rebecca. And we are going to bring him home."
