Chapter 5 - Elena’s Legacy
The basement seemed to tilt. Luca Moretti, a man who had faced cartel hit squads and government indictments without flinching, dropped to one knee against the damp floor.
He clutched the documents against his chest, a dry, choked sound escaping his throat. For three years, he had wept over Elena’s grave, believing illness had simply robbed him of his soulmate. For three years, he had allowed the daughter of her murderer into his bed, into his inner circle, into his broken heart.
"Dad!" Emily dropped down beside him, throwing her arms around his neck. "Dad, breathe. Please."
Luca looked at his daughter. Her warmth, her beating heart, and the fragile new life growing inside her were the only real things anchoring him to sanity.
He swallowed the bile rising in his throat and stood up, pulling Emily up with him. When he rose, the grieving widower was gone. The cold, merciless emperor had awakened.
"They didn't just want the house," Luca whispered, his voice trembling with deadly fury. "They knew Elena kept private records. They knew she had proof that could send the entire Bellini bloodline to the electric chair or turn every family in the Commission against them."
He looked at the flash drives. "Santino!"
The underboss jogged down the stairs, gun drawn. "Boss?"
"Take these drives to our safehouse in Westchester. Have our tech unit crack the encryptions immediately. Elena logged their shell companies, offshore accounts, and every illegal contract they ever signed." Luca pocketed the files. "And tell the men guarding Vanessa to bring her to the warehouse on 58th Pier."
"Dad," Emily interrupted, her voice tight with anxiety. "What about the baby’s father?"
Luca paused, turning back to her. In the chaos of the dinner and the revelation of Vanessa's betrayal, he hadn't yet asked the question that had burned in his chest since he first saw her rounded belly.
"Who is he, Emily?" Luca asked gently. "Where is he? Why isn't he with you?"
Emily looked down at her scuffed shoes, tears slipping down her cheeks. "His name is Julian. But Dad... you don't understand. Julian didn't abandon me."
Luca frowned, sensing another layer of deception. "Then where is he?"
"Two months ago, right after I found out I was pregnant, he went to meet his brother to tell his family he was walking away from their business so we could raise our child in peace," Emily sobbed softly. "He never came home. The last text message I got from his phone said he was dead. But I know he isn't. I know someone took him."
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Luca’s brow furrowed. "What business, Emily? Who is his family?"
Emily took a deep, shuddering breath. "Julian Falcone. He’s the youngest son of Don Falcone."
