CHAPTER 21
1258 Words
Chapter 21
Sienna’s Pov
I stared at him, waiting for him to explain, but nobody spoke for several seconds. Luca stood beside me with his jaw tight while Clara looked nervous again.
Finally I found my voice. “What did my parents steal?”
Victor slowly sat down again. “Information.”
I frowned. “What kind of information?”
“The kind people kill for.”
Damian laughed softly from across the room. “That explains a lot.”
I ignored him. “Stop speaking in riddles.”
Victor rubbed his forehead tiredly. “Years ago your parents investigated Gabriel Moretti and me. They found evidence connected to illegal accounts, political deals, and several murders.”
My stomach tightened.
Ethan stepped closer immediately. “Murders?”
Victor looked at him coldly. “Do not act shocked. Your newspaper company buried stories like that for years.”
Ethan looked disgusted but stayed quiet.
I focused on Victor again. “What does that have to do with me?”
Victor answered slowly. “Before your parents died, they copied all the evidence onto a private drive.”
Clara looked surprised. “You never told me this.”
“Because nobody knew where the drive disappeared to,” Victor replied.
Luca suddenly looked at me carefully. “Gabriel thinks your parents gave it to you.”
I shook my head immediately. “That is impossible. I was a child.”
Victor leaned forward slightly. “Maybe they hid it before they died. Maybe they left clues.”
Pieces of old memories started returning to me slowly.
My mother whispering nervously on the phone.
My father locking his office door every night.
The fear inside our home before the accident happened.
I felt cold suddenly.
“They were murdered,” I whispered.
Nobody denied it.
The truth hurt more because deep down I always suspected it.
Luca moved closer to me quietly. “Sienna…”
I looked at him. “You knew?”
“No. I only knew Victor and Gabriel destroyed many lives.”
Victor looked offended. “You say that while pretending to be someone else for years?”
Luca turned toward him sharply. “You created this mess.”
Damian smirked. “Actually everybody here created this mess.”
Clara stood up suddenly. “Can we stop blaming each other for one second? Noah is still missing.”
Her words pulled everybody back to reality.
I looked at Luca quickly. “We need to find him before tomorrow.”
“We will,” he promised.
Victor sighed heavily. “Gabriel will not hurt the boy yet. He wants leverage.”
“That does not make me feel better,” I snapped.
Adriana finally spoke again after staying quiet for long. “Victor, tell them the rest.”
He looked annoyed. “Not now.”
“Yes now,” she said firmly. “Everything is already ruined.”
I noticed Damian watching Adriana carefully like he suddenly became interested.
Victor looked exhausted before finally speaking. “Gabriel became obsessed with recovering the missing files because they contain evidence against powerful people outside this family too.”
Ethan crossed his arms. “Politicians?”
Victor nodded once.
“Judges. Businessmen. Criminal organizations. Many people would fall if those files became public.”
My mind raced quickly.
If my parents truly hid something that important, then maybe they knew they were going to die.
Maybe they tried protecting Noah and me before the accident happened.
I looked at Victor again. “Why tell me this now?”
“Because Gabriel believes you are close to finding the drive.”
“But I am not.”
Victor’s expression stayed serious. “That will not matter to him.”
Luca suddenly grabbed my hand gently. “You are not meeting Gabriel alone tomorrow.”
“I never said I would.”
“You were thinking it.”
I stayed quiet because he was right.
Damian laughed softly again. “This marriage became very real very fast.”
Luca shot him a dark look. “Nobody asked for your opinion.”
Damian walked closer casually. “You know father better than all of us, Luca. He likes emotional games. He will use Noah to control Sienna.”
I frowned at him. “Why are you helping us suddenly?”
His smile faded slightly. “Because if Gabriel destroys this family, I lose everything too.”
“At least you are honest,” Ethan muttered.
Damian ignored him.
Clara moved beside me carefully. “Sienna, maybe you should stay somewhere safe tonight.”
“No,” I replied immediately. “I am not hiding while Noah suffers somewhere.”
Luca nodded once. “She stays with me.”
Victor looked annoyed. “That may not protect her anymore.”
The way he said it made my skin crawl.
I pulled my hand away from Luca slowly and looked around the room. “How long has everybody been lying to me?”
Nobody answered.
That answer hurt enough.
I walked toward the large window near the dining room slowly. Rain had started falling outside. The mansion looked darker than before.
Ethan followed me quietly. “Are you okay?”
“No.”
“You do not have to go through this alone.”
I looked at him tiredly. “Please do not start another fight with Luca tonight.”
Ethan sighed. “I still do not trust him.”
“I know.”
“But I trust you.”
Before I could answer, Luca walked toward us.
Ethan immediately stepped back slightly.
Luca ignored him and looked only at me. “We should leave.”
“Leave where?”
“My penthouse. It is safer than this mansion.”
Victor laughed bitterly behind us. “Nothing connected to this family is safe anymore.”
Luca did not even look at him. “Pack whatever you need.”
I nodded slowly.
Clara suddenly walked over holding something small in her hand. “Wait.”
She placed an old silver key into my palm.
I looked confused. “What is this?”
Clara looked nervous. “Your father gave it to me years ago.”
My heart stopped for a second. “What?”
“He came here secretly before the accident. He said if anything happened to him, I should give this to you one day.”
Everybody in the room stared at the key.
Victor stood up instantly. “Clara, what did you do?”
She looked close to tears. “I was scared before. I was young. But people are dying now.”
I stared at the key in shock. “What does it open?”
Clara shook her head slowly. “I do not know. Your father never explained.”
Luca took the key carefully from my hand and studied it. “There are numbers carved into it.”
Ethan leaned closer. “Looks like a storage unit code.”
My pulse quickened.
Maybe my parents really left something behind.
Victor looked furious now. “Give me that key.”
Luca stepped back immediately. “No.”
Damian smiled slightly. “Interesting.”
Suddenly Luca’s phone started ringing.
He checked the screen and his entire expression changed.
“What is it?” I asked quickly.
He looked at me darkly.
“It is Gabriel.”
Then he answered the call slowly and placed it on speaker.
A deep familiar voice filled the silent room.
“Good evening, son.”
My blood ran cold instantly.
- Writer
