**Stefano’s POV**
I sat on the couch with my head shoved back against the headrest. My eyes were shut tight, but my mind was a battlefield. Every second of silence in this house felt like another piece of my soul slipping away into the dark.
The front door opened, and I recognized Luca’s footsteps before he even crossed the doorway; they were hesitant and uneven. He shifted his weight from foot to foot, as he always did when he was carrying news he knew I wouldn't want to hear.
“Boss?”
I forced my eyes open, the light stinging them. I rubbed my face hard with my palms, trying to press the exhaustion back. “Luca… what is it now?”
He swallowed hard, his eyes darting to the floor. “Um... Miss Lucia is here.”
That snapped me out of whatever half-sleep I had been drowning in. I sat up str
