Chapter 11 - The Black Box
The absolute peace we fought so brutally to build lasted for exactly six beautiful months. Luca and I spent every single day entirely focused on our children, slowly healing the deep, agonizing wounds of our past. The massive Moretti estate was finally filled with the joyful laughter of Leo and Mia, entirely devoid of the dark shadows that once haunted us. But in the treacherous world of billionaire syndicates, true peace is nothing but a fragile, temporary illusion. It was a rainy Tuesday afternoon when the heavy iron gates of the estate slowly opened to admit a highly classified courier. I was sitting in the grand living room, happily watching Luca read a storybook to the twins by the warm fireplace. Julian walked into the room, his expression incredibly grim, holding a small, pristine black box tied with a silver ribbon. He bypassed the security detail and handed the box directly to Luca, completely ignoring the usual safety protocols. Luca frowned, handing the book to Leo before standing up to inspect the strange, un unmarked package. I felt a sudden, inexplicable chill run violently down my spine, my maternal instincts screaming that something was terribly wrong. Luca carefully untied the silver ribbon and lifted the lid of the black box. All the color instantly completely drained from his handsome face, leaving him looking like he had just seen a ghost. He dropped the lid onto the glass coffee table, his hands trembling with a terrifying, suppressed rage. I cautiously walked over and looked inside the velvet-lined box, my breath catching entirely in my throat. Resting perfectly in the center was a tiny, incredibly expensive silver hospital bracelet. Beside the bracelet was a highly classified, heavily forged medical document from the exact night I gave birth to the twins. I picked up the silver band with shaking fingers, reading the small engraved letters through my tears. The name on the tiny bracelet was Enzo Moretti. The medical file clearly documented that I had not delivered twins five years ago. I had completely successfully delivered triplets. The third baby, a perfectly healthy little boy, was born exactly two minutes after Mia. I collapsed entirely onto the plush rug, a scream of pure, unadulterated maternal agony violently ripping from my chest. Evelyn and Marcus had not just forged my medical records to destroy my marriage. They had completely drugged me during the delivery and physically stolen my third child right out of my arms. Luca dropped to his knees, wrapping his massive arms fiercely around my shaking body as I sobbed uncontrollably. He looked up at Julian, his dark eyes burning with a murderous, absolute fury that completely terrified the entire room. The mysterious monster watching our wedding video had just aggressively declared war on the Moretti empire.
