Chapter 7 - The Woman Who Raised Me Revealed the Last Secret About My MotherAlessandro survived.
The bullet had missed his heart.
By inches.
He spent two weeks recovering.
During that time, the Moretti organization changed.
Some men left.
Others surrendered.
Others remained loyal.
Alessandro stepped away from the illegal operations.
He kept the legitimate companies.
Destroyed the rest.
It shocked New York.
A mafia boss trying to become legitimate?
People laughed.
Then they watched him do it.
I remained at the estate.
Not as a maid.
As family.
That word still felt strange.
One afternoon, my mother sat with me in the library.
“You have questions.”
“Yes.”
“Ask.”
“Why did Dad kill Alessandro's father?”
She looked at the floor.
“Because Marco believed Alessandro's father had betrayed him.”
“Did he?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
“Because Vale manipulated them.”
“How?”
“He convinced Marco that Alessandro's father had sold your identity.”
“He hadn't.”
“No.”
“Then what happened?”
My mother sighed.
“Your father realized the truth too late.”
“He had already confronted him.”
“Your father shot him.”
“Then realized he was innocent.”
“Yes.”
“So he disappeared.”
“Yes.”
“Why did you leave me?”
“Because Vale wanted you.”
“Why?”
“Because you were the heir to the archive.”
I frowned.
“Why me?”
“You have your father's memory.”
“I forget things.”
“Not the way your father did.”
“What does that mean?”
She smiled.
“You remember patterns.”
The black box.
The books.
The symbols.
The story.
It wasn't random.
My brain naturally connected patterns.
My father had recognized it when I was young.
He trained me.
My grandmother reinforced it.
I thought it had all been storytelling.
It had been preparation.
I asked:
“Did Alessandro know?”
“Not until recently.”
“And now?”
“He knows enough.”
“Do you trust him?”
My mother smiled.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because your father did.”
I looked toward the library door.
Alessandro stood there.
I hadn't heard him enter.
“How long have you been there?”
“Long enough.”
He looked at my mother.
“She tells the truth.”
My mother smiled.
“I always did.”
He sat beside me.
“You're supposed to be resting.”
“I am.”
“You're working.”
“I own the building.”
I laughed.
Then he looked at me.
“I have something.”
“What?”
He handed me a document.
A birth certificate.
My real name.
Elena Maria Moretti.
Father: Marco Moretti.
Mother: Sofia Moretti.
I touched the paper.
“My whole life has been fake.”
“No.”
Alessandro shook his head.
“Only the names.”
I looked at him.
“Are you angry?”
“No.”
“With my father?”
“No.”
“With me?”
“Never.”
“Why?”
He leaned closer.
“Because when I first saw you, I thought you were invisible.”
“And now?”
“Now I think you were hiding.”
“What's the difference?”
“Hidden things can be found.”
His voice softened.
“And I found you.”
My heart beat faster.
I looked away.
A knock came.
Dominic entered.
“Boss.”
“Yes?”
“We found Vale.”
My head lifted.
“Where?”
“New York harbor.”
“Alive?”
“Yes.”
Alessandro stood.
“What does he want?”
Dominic looked at me.
“You.”
My stomach dropped.
“Why?”
“He claims the archive doesn't belong to you.”
Alessandro's eyes hardened.
“Then he can explain himself.”
We drove to the harbor.
Vale was waiting on an abandoned ship.
He didn't fight.
He simply stood.
“You came.”
Alessandro stepped forward.
“Where is the rest of the archive?”
Vale smiled.
“Gone.”
“What?”
“Your father split it.”
I froze.
“How?”
“Half is in the box.”
“The other half?”
Vale looked directly at me.
“Inside your memory.”
My heart stopped.
He continued:
“You were taught the final sequence as a child.”
“What sequence?”
“The one that unlocks the real fortune.”
“What fortune?”
“The Moretti reserve.”
Alessandro stared.
“What reserve?”
“Your family has hidden billions.”
“Where?”
“Europe.”
I felt sick.
Vale smiled.
“And Elena is the only person who can access it.”
Alessandro stepped forward.
“You're lying.”
“No.”
Vale laughed.
“Ask her.”
I looked at Alessandro.
I had no idea.
Until something clicked.
The stories my father told me.
A rose.
A tower.
A dagger.
An eye.
A raven.
Five symbols.
Five books.
Five stages.
Five numbers hidden in the text.
I knew the sequence.
I had known it since childhood.
But one question remained.
Why?
Vale smiled.
“Your father didn't train you to open the box.”
May you like
He pointed at me.
“He trained you to unlock the empire.”
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