Chapter 4 - The Secret Hidden Inside Luca
A little boy cried in his mother’s arms: "Mommy, don't let them take me." When Matteo Bellini searched the broken necklace, he discovered a hidden compartment holding a forgotten family record. But one line was marked with fresh ink: "Subject: Luca Ferraro Bellini." Matteo realized the child beside Alessandra was connected to his own blood.
The sound of the gunshot stayed in my head.
Even after the room went silent.
Even after Matteo’s men dragged me and Luca behind the marble pillar.
Even after the broken glass stopped falling.
I could still hear it.
The sharp sound.
The moment when someone tried to erase the truth forever.
Luca was crying.
Not loudly.
That made it worse.
My son had always been a happy child. Even during the hardest days, he found reasons to smile. He would laugh at birds outside the window, dance when music played, and hold my hand whenever he saw I was scared.
But now...
He was shaking.
"Mommy," he whispered.
I held him tighter.
"I'm here."
Matteo stood a few feet away.
The man who had looked untouchable only minutes ago now looked like someone ready to destroy the entire world.
His eyes were fixed on the shattered window.
"Find him."
Two words.
Quiet.
Deadly.
Every guard moved immediately.
Enzo checked the street outside while another man examined the bullet hole.
I expected Matteo to leave.
I expected him to chase whoever had fired the shot.
Instead, he walked back toward us.
Toward me.
Toward Luca.
"Are you hurt?"
I shook my head.
But Luca had hidden his face against my shoulder.
Matteo noticed.
His expression changed.
"Alessandra."
I looked at him.
"Take him upstairs."
I frowned.
"What?"
"There is a private room."
"I don't want to go anywhere."
His jaw tightened.
"Someone just tried to kill you."
I didn't answer.
Because I knew he was right.
But trusting him still felt impossible.
"You expect me to believe you can protect us?"
Matteo looked at the broken window.
Then back at me.
"No."
The answer surprised me.
"I expect you to believe I will try."
For some reason...
That scared me more.
Because he didn't sound like a powerful man making a promise.
He sounded like a man who had already decided something.
I followed him.
Not because I trusted him.
Because Luca needed somewhere safe.
The private room was hidden behind a locked door near the back of the restaurant.
It looked nothing like the main dining area.
No luxury decorations.
No expensive paintings.
Just a quiet room with a sofa, a small table, and security screens covering one wall.
Matteo entered first.
Then he stopped.
There was something on the screen.
A live camera feed.
The person who had fired the shot had not been shooting randomly.
They had been watching us.
The camera showed the street outside.
A black vehicle was parked across from the restaurant.
Empty.
But the license plate was visible.
Enzo walked closer.
His face changed.
"You know that car."
Matteo didn't answer.
"Matteo."
"I know."
I looked between them.
"What?"
Matteo stared at the screen.
"That car belonged to my father."
The room went quiet.
I didn't understand.
"Your father?"
Matteo nodded slowly.
"The same man who had this necklace."
He looked at the silver chain on the table.
The same necklace that had brought me here.
The same necklace that had turned my life upside down.
"I don't understand."
Matteo looked at me.
"Neither did I."
He picked up the necklace.
Carefully.
Like it was fragile.
"Twenty-eight years ago, my father and your mother disappeared from the same night."
My breathing slowed.
"My mother disappeared before I was old enough to remember."
"And my father was found dead."
I looked at him.
"Then why does this connect us?"
Matteo didn't answer.
Instead, he placed the necklace under the light.
The hidden compartment was still open.
Inside was a tiny piece of paper.
Old.
Folded.
But there was something else.
A small metal strip.
Like a piece of a key.
I stared at it.
"That was inside?"
Matteo nodded.
"I didn't know."
Enzo looked confused.
"Your father hid it?"
"No."
Matteo looked at Luca.
"Someone else did."
The way he said it made my stomach tighten.
"What does Luca have to do with this?"
Nobody spoke.
I hated that silence.
I hated how everyone knew something about my son except me.
I stepped forward.
"No more secrets."
Matteo looked at me.
"No more."
He reached into his jacket and pulled out a folder.
A very old folder.
The edges were worn.
The paper inside looked like it had been opened hundreds of times.
He placed it on the table.
"I found this after my father's death."
I didn't touch it.
"What is it?"
"A record."
"Of what?"
His eyes met mine.
"Of children."
My heart dropped.
I slowly opened the folder.
The first page contained names.
Dates.
Photographs.
I didn't recognize any of them.
Then I saw the last page.
My hands froze.
There was a photograph.
A baby.
A newborn.
And beside it...
A name.
Luca Ferraro.
I looked up immediately.
"No."
The word came out before I could think.
Matteo didn't move.
I looked back at the paper.
Then at Luca.
Then back again.
"No."
My voice became louder.
"This is wrong."
Matteo's expression softened.
"Alessandra—"
"No."
I stepped away.
"You don't get to show me a piece of paper and tell me who my son is."
Luca started crying again.
I immediately turned toward him.
"I'm sorry."
I held him.
"I'm sorry, baby."
But inside...
I was breaking.
Because there was one thing I couldn't ignore.
The name.
Luca Ferraro.
My son's name.
Exactly as written.
Matteo waited until Luca calmed down.
Then he spoke quietly.
"I need to ask you something."
I looked at him.
"What?"
"When was Luca born?"
I froze.
"Three years ago."
"Exact date."
I told him.
Matteo closed his eyes.
Like he already knew the answer.
"Three years after the attack."
"What attack?"
He looked at me.
"The night your mother disappeared."
A cold feeling moved through my body.
"What are you saying?"
Matteo stepped closer.
"I'm saying someone spent years hiding Luca from me."
I shook my head.
"No."
"I'm saying someone wanted the Bellini family to believe he never existed."
"No."
"I'm saying your son may be the reason your mother risked everything."
I couldn't breathe.
Because the impossible part wasn't that Matteo believed Luca was connected to him.
The impossible part...
Was that a small part of me had always wondered why my mother disappeared protecting him.
Before I could answer, Luca suddenly looked toward the door.
His tears stopped.
His face went pale.
"Mommy."
I turned.
"What?"
He pointed.
"That man."
Everyone froze.
A figure stood behind the glass panel outside the room.
Watching.
Waiting.
My blood turned cold.
Because Luca whispered the next words:
"That's the man who took me before."
Matteo reached for the door handle.
May you like
It was already unlocked from the inside.
Someone was waiting.
