My Ruthless Mafia Zaddy King

Chapter 5: The Truth He Buried

The mansion echoed with gunfire.

Olivia stood frozen in the middle of the bedroom, her heart pounding so violently it hurt. She wanted to run after Luca, but fear rooted her feet to the floor.

Another gunshot rang out.

Then another.

The sounds came closer... then faded.

The silence that followed was far more terrifying.

A soft knock interrupted her thoughts.

"Miss Carter?"

It was a female voice.

Olivia immediately stepped away from the door.

Luca's warning echoed in her mind.

The assassin could be anyone.

"Who are you?" she asked cautiously.

"It's Sophie, one of the housekeepers. Don Moretti sent me to stay with you."

"I'll wait for Luca."

"I understand."

The footsteps retreated.

Olivia exhaled slowly.

She didn't trust anyone anymore.

Not after what had just happened.

She glanced at the shattered mirror.

The bullet hole was still there.

If Luca hadn't pushed her away...

She would be dead.

For the first time since seeing him again, she questioned everything she believed about him.

Had he really abandoned her because he no longer loved her?

Or had there been another reason?

Downstairs...

Luca walked through the grand hallway with Marco beside him.

Several guards stood around a woman dressed as a maid.

Her disguise had been removed.

Her hands were tied behind her back.

A small cut on her forehead trickled blood down her cheek.

She smiled despite being captured.

"You've gotten slower, Don Moretti."

Luca stopped a few feet away.

"You almost killed the wrong person."

The woman laughed.

"There is no wrong person."

"Who sent you?"

Silence.

Luca nodded at Marco.

Marco stepped forward.

"We can do this the easy way..."

The woman smirked.

"...or the hard way?"

She laughed.

"You people always say that."

Luca remained calm.

"I'll ask one last time."

"Who hired you?"

The woman looked directly into his eyes.

"You already know."

Luca's jaw tightened.

"The Romano family."

She smiled.

"They're willing to pay anything to watch you suffer."

"They'll fail."

Her smile widened.

"No."

"They already won."

Luca frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"They wanted us to distract you."

A chill swept through the room.

Luca's expression darkened.

"Distract me from what?"

The assassin leaned closer.

"They've already made their move."

Before anyone could stop her, she bit down on something hidden inside her mouth.

Marco cursed.

"Boss!"

The woman collapsed to the floor.

Within seconds...

She was dead.

Luca clenched his fists.

"Cyanide."

Marco nodded grimly.

"She planned to die if she was caught."

Luca turned sharply.

"Check every security camera."

"Search the entire estate."

"I want every inch of this mansion cleared."

"Now!"

Upstairs...

Olivia sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the silver necklace in her hands.

A knock sounded again.

This time, it was Luca.

She hurried to open the door.

The moment she saw him, relief flooded her face.

Without thinking, she threw her arms around him.

Luca froze.

For a few seconds, neither of them spoke.

Olivia quickly realized what she'd done and stepped back.

"I..."

"I'm sorry."

"I just..."

"You thought I'd been killed."

She looked away.

"I didn't say that."

"But you were afraid."

She remained silent.

Luca smiled faintly.

It was the first genuine smile she'd seen from him in years.

It disappeared almost immediately.

"The assassin is dead."

Olivia's eyes widened.

"Dead?"

"She took poison before we could question her."

"So we'll never know who sent her?"

"We already know."

"The Romano family?"

He nodded.

"They've been my enemies for years."

Olivia frowned.

"Because you're a mafia boss?"

"Because my father destroyed their empire."

She stared at him.

"So this has been going on since before we met?"

"Long before."

"Then why did you date me?"

His expression softened.

"Because loving you was the only normal thing in my life."

Her heart skipped a beat.

He continued quietly.

"When I met you..."

"I forgot who I was."

Tears filled Olivia's eyes.

"Then why did you leave?"

Luca walked to the window.

For several moments, he simply stared into the darkness.

Finally, he spoke.

"The night before I disappeared..."

"My father was dying."

Olivia listened without interrupting.

"He told me the council had chosen me to become the next Don."

"I refused."

She blinked.

"You refused?"

"I wanted you."

"I wanted a normal life."

"I wanted us."

His voice cracked for the first time.

"But refusing meant every member of my family would be executed."

Olivia's breath caught.

"So..."

"I accepted."

"And left me."

He nodded slowly.

"I thought it was the only way to keep you alive."

Tears streamed down Olivia's face.

"You should have told me."

"I couldn't."

"The council was watching."

"If they discovered I loved someone..."

"They would've used you against me."

A painful silence filled the room.

Everything she had believed for five years was beginning to crumble.

Maybe...

Just maybe...

He hadn't abandoned her because he stopped loving her.

Maybe he had sacrificed their love to save her life.

Just then, Marco burst through the door without knocking.

"Boss!"

Luca turned sharply.

"What is it?"

Marco's face had gone completely pale.

"We have a problem."

"What happened?"

Marco swallowed hard.

"Our men searched the assassin's belongings."

"And?"

He handed Luca a small envelope.

"It was addressed to Miss Carter."

Luca opened it.

Inside was a single photograph.

His face drained of color.

Olivia frowned.

"What is it?"

Without a word, Luca handed her the picture.

The photograph showed a little girl, about four years old, smiling brightly as she held a teddy bear.

Written across the back in red ink were the chilling words:

"She knows the truth."