Chapter 3 - The Man Who Should Have Been Gone
The photo on Luca Moretti’s phone was impossible.
He stared at it.
Then he looked at Mia.
Then back at the screen.
Emma was sleeping in her small bed upstairs.
A blanket covered her tiny body.
Her stuffed rabbit rested beside her.
And standing next to her was a man.
A man Luca knew.
A man who should not have existed.
Mia saw Luca’s expression change.
She didn't need to see the photo.
She already knew.
"He found us."
Her voice was barely audible.
Luca slowly lowered the phone.
"Who is he?"
Mia didn't answer.
"Who is he?"
This time, his voice was different.
Not louder.
Not angrier.
More dangerous.
Mia looked toward the ceiling.
Toward the room where her daughter was sleeping.
"He promised he would never come near her."
Luca stepped closer.
"You know him."
Mia closed her eyes.
"Yes."
"Then tell me."
She shook her head.
"I was trying to protect Emma."
Luca looked at the photo again.
The man standing beside the child had his face partially hidden.
But Luca knew him.
He knew the way he stood.
The way he held himself.
The way he looked at the world like everything belonged to him.
Three years ago, Luca had watched that man disappear.
Or at least, he thought he had.
"His name."
Mia remained silent.
Luca placed the phone on the desk.
"Someone entered my mansion."
Silence.
"Someone disabled my security."
Silence.
"Someone searched for your daughter."
Mia looked down.
"And now someone is standing beside her bed."
His eyes hardened.
"Do you still think keeping secrets will protect her?"
That broke her.
Mia covered her mouth.
Tears fell.
"I was scared."
"Of me?"
"No."
The answer came immediately.
Luca noticed.
"Then who?"
Mia looked at him.
"The man in that photo."
A cold feeling moved through Luca.
Because fear was something he understood.
People feared him because of his reputation.
Because of what he had done.
But Mia was afraid of someone else.
Someone who had been close enough to her life to create that fear.
"Emma's father?"
Mia didn't speak.
She didn't need to.
Luca already knew.
He turned toward the door.
"I'll handle this."
Mia suddenly grabbed his arm.
"No."
Luca looked down at her hand.
Nobody touched him like that.
Nobody.
But she didn't realize.
She was too afraid.
"If you go upstairs, he will know."
"Good."
"No."
Her voice cracked.
"You don't understand."
Luca looked at her.
"Then explain."
Mia released his arm.
"He doesn't fight fair."
Luca almost smiled.
That was a sentence people often said about him.
"He hurts people around him."
The smile disappeared.
"He doesn't care who gets caught."
Luca looked toward the hallway.
Emma.
A three-year-old girl.
The child who had stood on a wooden stool trying to clean his shirt.
The child who believed losing a job was something she needed to fix.
"How long has he known about Emma?"
Mia looked away.
"Since she was born."
Luca froze.
"Then why is he coming now?"
Mia didn't answer.
That was the answer.
He was not coming because he just found her.
He was coming because something changed.
Something forced him to return.
Suddenly, Luca's phone vibrated again.
Another message.
Unknown number.
This time, there was no photo.
Only words.
You should ask Mia what happened the night your brother died.
Luca stared at the screen.
His expression became unreadable.
Mia saw it.
"What did he send?"
Luca looked at her.
"My brother."
The color drained from Mia's face.
"No."
"You know what I'm talking about."
"No."
"You were there."
Mia stepped back.
"I didn't kill him."
The sentence came out too quickly.
Luca went still.
Because he never said she did.
He had only mentioned his brother.
Mia realized her mistake.
Her eyes widened.
Luca's voice lowered.
"What did you just say?"
Mia shook her head.
"I didn't mean—"
"What happened that night?"
She looked terrified.
Not of Luca.
Of the memory.
Three years ago.
The night Luca's younger brother Matteo died.
The official story was simple.
A car accident.
A tragic mistake.
A closed case.
Luca never believed it.
But he had spent years searching for answers and finding nothing.
Until now.
Until Emma.
Until Mia.
Before he could question her further, a sound came from upstairs.
A small voice.
"Mommy?"
Mia turned white.
"Emma."
Luca was already moving.
They ran toward the stairs.
The mansion was dark.
Emergency lights flickered weakly along the walls.
Every step echoed.
"Emma!" Mia called.
No answer.
Luca reached the bedroom door.
It was slightly open.
He stopped.
Mia almost walked past him.
But Luca raised his hand.
"Wait."
Something was wrong.
The door had been closed before.
He remembered.
He had walked past this hallway earlier.
Emma's door was shut.
Now it wasn't.
Luca slowly pushed it open.
The room was empty.
The bed was messy.
The stuffed rabbit was on the floor.
The window was open.
Cold air moved the curtains.
Mia screamed.
"No."
Luca immediately checked the room.
The security system was still offline.
But there was something on the pillow.
A small piece of paper.
He picked it up.
Three words were written on it.
She knows everything.
Mia covered her mouth.
Luca looked at her.
"Who?"
Mia didn't answer.
Because she wasn't looking at the note.
She was looking behind him.
At the open doorway.
Luca turned.
A figure stood at the end of the hallway.
Holding Emma.
The little girl was awake.
But she wasn't crying.
She was staring at the person holding her.
Like she knew him.
Like she had been waiting for him.
The figure stepped into the emergency light.
And Luca finally saw his face.
The man smiled.
Then he whispered:
"Hello, Luca."
May you like
Luca's hand tightened.
Because the dead man from three years ago had just spoken his name.
