Chapter 7 - THE MAN WHO CAME BACK FROM THE DEAD
Luca was in a hospital.
Alive.
Weak.
Older.
But unmistakably Alessandro's brother.
Alessandro walked into the room alone.
For several minutes, neither spoke.
Then Luca said:
“You got old.”
Alessandro laughed once.
“You're impossible.”
“I missed you.”
That was when Alessandro broke.
He sat beside his brother.
For twenty years, the feared crime lord had carried the belief that Luca was dead.
Now they had each other again.
Luca revealed the final truth.
Daniel had never trusted his own family.
He had hidden the fortune under a trust controlled by a child.
But the trust wasn't activated by blood.
It required a specific phrase.
A phrase only Daniel, Luca, and Isabella knew.
And the phrase was hidden in a lullaby.
The lullaby Daniel used to sing to his daughter.
I remembered it.
Mia's favorite song.
I had sung it every night without knowing why it felt strangely familiar.
Luca smiled.
“That's it.”
We returned to the penthouse.
I sang the lullaby.
Mia laughed.
The system in Alessandro's old office responded.
A hidden panel opened.
Inside was a small metal box.
No money.
No diamonds.
A handwritten letter.
From Daniel.
I opened it.
To my daughter, if you ever find this:
I never abandoned you.
Tears filled my eyes.
The letter explained that Daniel had discovered Victor Bell was selling information about the family.
He had disappeared to protect Mia.
He had never known whether she was born.
He had hoped one day someone would find the truth.
At the bottom:
Protect her from the people who want to own her.
Alessandro looked at me.
“We will.”
Then the lights went out.
The building shook.
A car exploded outside.
Mia began crying.
Alessandro grabbed her.
“Stay behind me.”
Security rushed in.
May you like
And on every television screen in the penthouse appeared the same message:
BRING THE CHILD TO THE HARBOR BY MIDNIGHT.
