Chapter 2 - The Family Name She Was Never Supposed To Know
Maya did not sleep.
She returned to her apartment shortly after midnight and sat on the edge of her narrow bed with the lights off.
The city outside her window glowed through a curtain she couldn't afford to replace.
Traffic hissed over wet pavement.
Somewhere below, a siren passed.
She should have been thinking about Dominic.
Instead, she was thinking about her grandmother.
Elena Russo had always refused to answer questions about their family.
Whenever Maya asked where they came from, Elena would smile and say, "From a place where people learned to keep secrets."
Whenever Maya asked why their last name wasn't Russo, Elena would become quiet.
Whenever Maya asked about her parents, the answer was always the same.
"They loved you."
That was it.
No photographs.
No stories.
No explanations.
Just those three words.
Maya had grown up believing her father was dead and her mother had died in childbirth.
At least, that was what Elena had told her.
But now there was Dominic.
A man whose face had appeared on television beside politicians and CEOs.
A man whose name people whispered as though it were a curse.
A man who had somehow recognized the family name she had spent her life not understanding.
Maya reached for the old wooden box beneath her bed.
Elena had left it to her.
She hadn't opened it in years.
Inside was a faded photograph.
A silver medallion.
A rosary.
And a handwritten letter.
Maya had never read the letter.
Tonight, she did.
My Maya,
If you are reading this, I am no longer there to protect you.
There was a time when I believed silence could save us.
I was wrong.
You deserve the truth.
But truth has never been safe in the Russo family.
Maya's hands began trembling.
She continued.
Your father was named Matteo.
He was my nephew.
And he loved a woman who came from the wrong side of the city.
Your mother.
Maya's heart pounded.
They were not strangers.
They had names.
A family.
A history.
And Elena had lied.
The letter went on.
There were people who wanted Matteo dead.
They believed he had stolen something from the family.
He hadn't.
He had tried to expose them.
If they ever find you, do not trust Vincent.
Maya stopped.
Vincent.
The same man who had stood near Dominic's booth.
She kept reading.
Do not trust Dominic's uncle.
Do not believe what they say about Matteo.
And most of all, never give them the medallion.
Maya looked down.
The silver medallion rested in the box.
It was engraved with an old crest.
A wolf.
A crown.
And beneath them, a single word.
Fede.
Faith.
Maya turned it over.
There was a tiny seam.
She pressed it.
The medallion opened.
Inside was a small photograph.
Her father.
Matteo.
And beside him—
Dominic.
They were young.
Maybe thirteen.
Maya's breath caught.
On the back of the photograph was a date.
June 14, 2001.
And a message:
He chose you over them.
She stared at the words.
Then her phone rang.
Unknown number.
Maya answered.
"Hello?"
Silence.
Then a man's voice.
"Did Elena leave you something?"
Maya said nothing.
"Something silver."
Her blood turned cold.
"Who is this?"
"Someone who knows what happened to your father."
"Where are you?"
"Too late."
"What does that mean?"
The call ended.
Maya ran to the window.
A black sedan sat across the street.
Its engine was running.
The vehicle pulled away.
She grabbed her coat.
Then the front door exploded inward.
Maya screamed and dove behind the sofa.
Two men entered.
They were wearing masks.
One searched the kitchen.
The other went directly toward her bedroom.
He found the box.
Maya held her breath.
He opened it.
Then stopped.
"The medallion is gone."
The second man swore.
"Find her."
Maya didn't wait.
She crawled through the fire escape window.
Rain hit her face.
She climbed down three flights of metal stairs.
Her hands slipped.
She nearly fell.
A car horn blared below.
She reached the alley.
Ran.
She had no idea where she was going.
She only knew one thing.
Someone had come for the medallion.
And Elena had known this day would come.
A black SUV screeched to a stop beside her.
The passenger door opened.
Dominic.
"Get in."
Maya froze.
"How did you find me?"
"Get in."
"They were in my apartment."
"I know."
Her heart pounded.
"You sent them?"
Dominic's face hardened.
"No."
"Then why should I trust you?"
"Because if I wanted you dead, you wouldn't be standing there."
That wasn't exactly comforting.
But it was honest.
Maya got inside.
Dominic looked at the medallion in her hand.
His expression changed.
"Where did you get that?"
"My grandmother."
He reached toward it.
Maya pulled it away.
"Don't."
He stopped.
"Do you know what it is?"
"No."
"It's the reason my family has been fighting for twenty years."
"What is it?"
"A key."
"To what?"
May you like
Dominic looked at her.
"Everything."
