TAKE OFF THAT UNIFORM AND GIVE IT TO HER! SHE'S THE ONE WHO DESERVES YOUR JOB!” THE MAFIA BOSS'S FIANCÉE HUMILIATED HIS 25-YEAR-OLD MAID IN FRONT OF FORTY DINNER GUESTS

A collective gasp swept through the dining room.

The little boy stood in the grand entryway, shivering, his small hands gripping a blue stuffed bear. His dark eyes—so perfectly mirroring Luca’s—were filled with a terror no five-year-old should ever know.

Luca dropped the note. He moved so fast it was a blur, crossing the massive dining room and dropping to his knees on the marble floor right in front of the child. He didn't touch the boy, seemingly terrified that if he reached out, the child might shatter like glass.

"Hey," Luca whispered, his voice cracking, entirely stripped of his mafia-boss authority. "Hey, little one. It's okay. You're safe."

The boy backed away slightly, hugging the bear tighter. "Are you the bad man?"

Luca’s breath hitched. "No. No, I'm not a bad man. I promise." He slowly lifted his hands, showing his empty palms. "What's your name?"

The boy sniffled. "Leo."

Leo. Luca squeezed his eyes shut for a fraction of a second. I remembered dusting the library and seeing an old journal of Caroline’s. On the last page, she had written a list of baby names. Leo was circled three times.

"Leo," Luca repeated softly. "Where is your mommy?"

Leo pointed a trembling finger straight at Vanessa. "The red lady took her. She locked her in the dark place."

Chaos erupted.

Forty guests stood up in unison, murmurs escalating into shouts. Several prominent businessmen reached for their phones. Vanessa scrambled backward, her red silk gown snagging on the edge of the table. "He's lying! I've never seen this street rat in my life! He probably wandered in from the slums!"

"Shut up!" Natalie screamed, rushing forward and dropping to her knees beside Luca. She looked at the boy, tears streaming down her face. "He has Caroline's nose. My God, Luca... he’s yours."

Luca stood up slowly. The vulnerability in his face vanished, replaced by a cold, calculating rage that made the temperature in the room drop. He didn't yell this time. He didn't have to.

He looked at his head of security, a massive man named Marcus who had just stepped into the room.

"Lock the doors," Luca commanded. "No one leaves this house."

The heavy oak doors slammed shut. The deadbolts clicked. The guests fell into a terrified silence.

Luca turned his deadly gaze back to Vanessa. "Where is the dark place, Vanessa? Where is my wife?"

"Luca, be reasonable!" Vanessa pleaded, her back hitting the wall. "This is a setup! Natalie arranged this to ruin our wedding!"

"Natalie didn't know this boy existed until two minutes ago," Luca said, stepping closer to her. "But you did. You had Emily prepare the guest room for a woman who 'couldn't remember her name.' You wanted Emily gone because she pays attention to details. Because she notices things. Like the silver rosary."

Luca stopped inches from Vanessa. "I won't ask you again. Where is Caroline?"

Vanessa pressed her lips together, her eyes darting toward the hallway that led to the kitchen.

I followed her gaze. And then, a memory hit me like a physical blow.

"Mr. Moretti," I said loudly, stepping forward.

Luca turned, his dark eyes snapping to me.

"The old wine cellar," I said, my heart pounding. "The one beneath the garden greenhouse. Two days ago, Mrs. Bellini ordered me to stop cleaning that wing. She said it was being renovated and brought in her own private contractors. She changed the locks."

Vanessa’s head whipped toward me, her eyes filled with pure hatred. "You stupid, meddling girl—"

"Marcus," Luca snapped. "Take Vanessa to my office. Tie her to the chair. If she speaks, gag her."

"Yes, Boss," Marcus said, grabbing Vanessa by the arm. She kicked and screamed, thrashing against the massive guard, but he hauled her away as if she weighed nothing.

Luca looked down at little Leo. "Marcus's wife, Maria, is in the kitchen. She's kind. Will you go sit with her and have some hot chocolate, Leo?"

Leo hesitated, then looked at me. "Can the nice lady come?"

Luca looked at me. "Emily. Stay with him. Don't let him out of your sight."

"I will protect him, sir," I promised fiercely.

Luca nodded once. Then, he unbuttoned his suit jacket, threw it onto a chair, and headed toward the kitchen hallway with three of his armed guards following close behind. Natalie ran after them, her heels clicking frantically against the marble.

I knelt beside Leo, gently taking his small, cold hand. "Come on, Leo. Let's get you warm."

I led him into the massive kitchen. Maria, the head cook, was already rushing over with a thick wool blanket. She wrapped it around his small shoulders, her eyes wide with shock as she took in his resemblance to Luca.

"Sit here, sweetie," I said, lifting him onto a stool.

As I tucked the blanket around him, the blue stuffed bear slipped from his grasp and hit the floor.

I picked it up to hand it back, but something felt wrong. The bear was heavy. Too heavy for a simple stuffed animal. I pressed my thumb against the bear’s stomach and felt something hard and rectangular hidden beneath the stuffing.

"Leo," I whispered gently. "Did your mommy put something inside your bear?"

Leo nodded, his dark eyes wide. "Mommy said if we ever got separated, I had to show it to the man with the ink on his hands."

The tattoos on Luca's hands.

"Can I look?" I asked softly.

He nodded again.

My fingers found a small tear in the seam of the bear's back. I reached inside and pulled out a tightly folded stack of papers wrapped in a plastic zip-lock bag.

I opened the bag.

It wasn't just a letter. It was a stack of bank transfers, medical records, and legal documents.

I unfolded the top paper, and the breath left my lungs.

It was a DNA test result.

But it wasn't a test proving Leo was Luca's son.

I stared at the names on the paper, my mind refusing to comprehend the words printed in bold black ink.

"Oh my god," I whispered.

Maria turned to me. "Emily? What is it?"

I looked at the kitchen door, terrified.