Chapter 4 - THE TARNISHED LOCKET
Don Bellini froze, his scarred hand hovering in the air. The heavy click of Luca cocking the pistol echoed off the high ceiling.
“You’re bankrupt,” Luca stated, the pieces of the puzzle snapping into place with lethal clarity. “The Bellini shipping ports have been bleeding money for three years. You needed the Moretti empire to cover your debts, but my father’s trust stipulates that my fortune is split between my heirs and my brother. If I died, Michael inherited. If Michael died, it went into trust for Isabella. You needed them all gone so your daughter would be my sole beneficiary when I inevitably suffered a tragic accident next.”
“I did it for the family, Papa!” Vanessa sobbed, finally breaking down completely. “You said they would take our house! You said we would be on the streets!”
Bellini’s face twisted into an ugly snarl. He didn't look at his daughter; he glared at Luca with pure hatred. “Your father stole those ports from my grandfather. I was just taking back what belonged to my bloodline.”
“You’re taking nothing,” Luca said. He gave a sharp nod to his men. “Take them to the basement holding rooms. Both of them. And clear this dining room. The engagement is over.”
Guards converged on the Bellinis, dragging a screaming Vanessa and a cursing Don Bellini out through the service doors. The wealthy guests scrambled from the table in terrified silence, escorted out by security. Within two minutes, the grand dining room was empty, save for Luca, Michael, his pregnant wife Clara, Sofia, Isabella, and me.
Luca holstered his weapon and rubbed a hand over his exhausted face. He looked at Sofia, the sister he never knew he had, and gave her a stiff but respectful nod. “Michael will show you to a guest suite. We have a lot to discuss tomorrow.”
Then Luca turned to me.
“Emily.”
I straightened my posture, my heart hammering. “Yes, sir.”
“You saved my daughter’s life tonight. You saved my brother. You risked your job to protect a child that wasn't yours.” Luca’s dark eyes softened for the first time all evening. “You are no longer a housekeeper. As of this moment, you are Isabella’s personal guardian and my head of household staff. Your salary is tripled.”
Tears sprang to my eyes. My mother’s mortgage. The medical bills. The crushing weight of poverty that had suffocated me for a year vanished in a single sentence. “Thank you, Mr. Moretti. I swear I will guard her with my life.”
“I know you will,” he said. “Take her upstairs to bed.”
I took Isabella’s hand and led her up the sweeping mahogany staircase. The mansion felt different now, shadows lurking in corners that used to just look expensive. I got Isabella into her pajamas, brushed her hair, and tucked her beneath her heavy silk duvet.
“Emily?” Isabella asked, rubbing her tired eyes. “Are the bad people gone?”
“They’re locked away, sweetie. You’re completely safe,” I promised, sitting on the edge of her bed.
She reached up and touched the tarnished silver locket hanging around my neck. My mother had given it to me when I turned eighteen.
“Can I hold it?” Isabella asked. “It makes me feel brave.”
“Of course,” I smiled, unclasping the locket and placing it in her small palm.
May you like
As I adjusted her pillows to make her comfortable, my hand brushed against something stiff and heavy hidden beneath her mattress. Frowning, I pulled it out.
It was a thick, sealed envelope made of heavy parchment paper, and stamped into the red wax on the back was the seal of Isabella’s late mother, Elena.
