Chapter 12: The Enemy Behind the Mask
1259 Words
Aria couldn't sleep.
The image of Luca standing over Marco's bleeding body replayed in her mind again and again.
Marco had survived the attack, but barely.
Three bullets.
One missed his heart by less than an inch.
Whoever ordered the assassination hadn't intended to send a warning.
They wanted Marco dead.
And now Aria feared she knew exactly why.
The Moretti mansion felt different after the attack.
The guards had doubled.
No one entered without permission.
No one left without escort.
War was coming.
Aria stood by her bedroom window, staring at the city lights below.
Behind her, the bedroom door opened.
She didn't need to turn around.
She recognized Luca's presence immediately.
"You're still awake."
His deep voice filled the room.
Aria crossed her arms.
"How's Marco?"
"Stable."
She finally turned.
Relief softened her expression.
"Thank God."
Luca studied her carefully.
Dark circles rested beneath her eyes.
She looked exhausted.
But what worried him most wasn't her fear.
It was her determination.
She was planning something.
He could see it.
"You need rest."
"I'm not tired."
"That's a lie."
Aria sighed.
"Someone tried to kill my brother."
"And I'll find them."
His confidence should have comforted her.
Instead, it only increased her frustration.
Because Luca wasn't telling her everything.
Again.
"What aren't you saying?"
His jaw tightened.
"Aria—"
"What aren't you saying?"
The silence answered for him.
Her heart sank.
"There is something."
Luca walked toward the window.
For several seconds he said nothing.
Then finally—
"The attack wasn't random."
"I knew it."
His eyes met hers.
"The shooter was hired."
Aria swallowed hard.
"By who?"
"We don't know yet."
"You know more than that."
Another silence.
Then Luca spoke.
"The money trail leads back to one of the Five Families."
Aria's stomach dropped.
The Five Families controlled most organized crime operations in the region.
The Morettis were one of them.
Meaning another mafia family had just declared war.
"Which family?"
"We're still investigating."
Aria shook her head.
"You're lying."
Luca's eyes narrowed.
"I don't lie to you."
"You absolutely do."
For a moment neither moved.
The tension between them thickened.
Then Luca looked away first.
And that told her everything.
He knew.
He simply wasn't ready to tell her.
The realization terrified her.
Because if Luca was hiding the truth, it meant the truth was dangerous.
Very dangerous.
The next morning, Aria made a decision.
If Luca wouldn't tell her the truth—
She would find it herself.
She waited until Luca left for a meeting.
Then she headed toward his office.
The mansion was quiet.
Most guards were outside.
Nobody questioned her anymore.
Not after she became Luca's fiancée.
Not after she became the woman everyone believed would soon be Mrs. Moretti.
She slipped into the office and closed the door.
Her heart pounded.
She hated lying to Luca.
But she hated being kept in the dark even more.
Quickly she searched through the desk drawers.
Nothing.
Financial reports.
Property records.
Security schedules.
Nothing useful.
Then she noticed a locked drawer.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Luca rarely locked anything.
Aria searched until she found a small key hidden beneath a bookshelf.
Her pulse quickened.
She unlocked the drawer.
Inside sat a black folder.
Just one.
As if Luca had wanted to hide it specifically.
Slowly she opened it.
And froze.
Photographs.
Dozens of them.
Surveillance pictures.
Financial documents.
Phone records.
Then she saw the name.
Her breath caught.
"No..."
It couldn't be.
Her hands trembled as she flipped through the pages.
The evidence was undeniable.
The person secretly funding attacks against the Morettis...
The person connected to Marco's shooting...
The person meeting with rival families...
Was someone Aria knew.
Someone she trusted.
Someone she never suspected.
Victor Romano.
Her uncle.
Her mother's younger brother.
The man who helped raise her after her father's death.
The room spun.
"No..."
Victor wasn't a criminal.
Victor wasn't a killer.
Victor loved their family.
Didn't he?
But the documents told a different story.
Secret meetings.
Money transfers.
Encrypted messages.
Years of betrayal.
Aria's knees weakened.
She collapsed into Luca's chair.
Everything suddenly made sense.
The debt.
The threats.
The pressure on her family.
Someone had been manipulating events from the shadows.
Someone close enough to destroy them from within.
And that someone was Victor.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
She didn't know what hurt more.
Discovering her uncle was a traitor.
Or realizing Luca had known all along.
The office door suddenly opened.
Aria jumped.
Luca stood in the doorway.
His expression darkened immediately.
He saw the folder.
He saw her face.
And he knew.
"Damn it."
Aria stood.
"You knew."
"Aria—"
"You knew!"
Her voice cracked.
Luca walked toward her.
"I was trying to protect you."
"Protect me?"
Tears filled her eyes.
"By hiding the truth?"
"You weren't ready."
"That's not your decision!"
The words echoed through the office.
Luca remained silent.
Because he knew she was right.
Aria held up one of the photographs.
"How long?"
"Three months."
She stared at him in disbelief.
"Three months?"
"We needed proof."
"You let me sit across from him."
"Because I wasn't sure."
"You were sure enough to investigate him!"
Luca cursed under his breath.
He hated seeing her like this.
Broken.
Betrayed.
Hurting.
"I wanted certainty before I told you."
Aria laughed bitterly.
"And now?"
His expression hardened.
"Now we have certainty."
A chill ran through her.
Because she recognized that look.
The cold look Luca wore when making impossible decisions.
"What are you going to do?"
He didn't answer immediately.
That terrified her.
"Luca."
His eyes met hers.
"We end this."
Her heart stopped.
"You mean kill him."
Silence.
That silence was answer enough.
"No."
Luca's jaw clenched.
"Aria—"
"No."
She stepped backward.
"You can't."
"He ordered Marco's murder."
"He failed."
"He'll try again."
Aria shook her head desperately.
"There has to be another way."
"There isn't."
The room filled with tension.
For Luca, this was simple.
Victor was a threat.
Threats were eliminated.
That was how survival worked in his world.
But for Aria, Victor wasn't just an enemy.
He was family.
And despite everything—
She still couldn't imagine his death.
"Please."
The word came out barely above a whisper.
Luca's expression softened.
Only slightly.
But enough.
"I'll give him one chance."
Aria stared at him.
One chance?
"What does that mean?"
"It means if he surrenders peacefully, he lives."
Hope flickered inside her.
"And if he doesn't?"
Luca looked away.
Neither of them needed the answer.
That evening, another shocking discovery arrived.
One of Luca's men rushed into the mansion.
His face was pale.
Panicked.
Boss...
"We found Victor."
Luca immediately stood.
"Where?"
The guard swallowed.
"That's not the problem."
Every instinct in Luca's body sharpened.
"What happened?"
The man hesitated.
Then finally spoke.
"He's gone."
The room fell silent.
"Gone?" Luca asked coldly.
The guard nodded.
"The safe house was empty."
Aria's stomach twisted.
No.
No no no.
That wasn't possible.
"There's more."
Luca's eyes narrowed.
The guard handed him a sealed envelope.
"We found this."
Luca opened it.
His expression changed instantly.
For the first time since Aria met him—
He looked genuinely shocked.
"What is it?" she asked.
Slowly, Luca handed her the letter.
Aria read the first line.
And all the color drained from her face.
If you're reading this, then it's already too late.
Below it was a signature.
Victor Romano.
And beneath the signature—
A final sentence that made her blood run cold.
The real enemy isn't me. It's your mother.
- Writer
