Chapter 23: Back to Florence
708 Words
The silence in the library lingered long after the guard had left.
No one spoke.
No one needed to.
The altered painting lay on the table between them.
Property of the House of Moretti.
They echoed in her mind with every passing second.
The painting hadn't found her by accident.
Someone had wanted it to.
She drew a slow breath.
"I need to go back."
Luca looked up.
"To Florence."
"The Bellini Gallery."
"If this painting belonged to the House of Moretti, the gallery archives may still have something everyone else missed."
Luca didn't answer immediately.
He knew she was right.
"It won't be safe."
"It wasn't safe the first time either."
Their eyes met. Neither of them looked away.
Finally, Luca nodded.
"We leave this afternoon."
Matteo, who had been standing quietly by the door, pulled out his phone.
"I'll make the arrangements."
Sofia smiled.
"Thank you."
"I'll need three vehicles."
Her smile vanished.
"...Three?"
"One in front."
"One behind."
"One for us."
She stared at him.
"I'm going to a gallery, Matteo."
"So are they."
"Who?"
"The assassins who are trying to kill you."
She sighed.
"I was hoping to look like a normal visitor."
"You stopped looking normal when people started shooting at you."
She couldn't argue with that.
"What if I promise not to get kidn*pped?"
Matteo looked thoughtful.
"I appreciate the effort."
"But I'd still prefer the three vehicles."
A reluctant laugh escaped her.
"You're impossible."
"I've received that feedback before."
Luca watched them in silence.
Something about the conversation felt...
Easy.
Too easy.
Sofia looked at Matteo again.
"Can I negotiate?"
"You can try."
"One vehicle."
"No."
"Two?"
"No."
She folded her arms.
"You drive a hard bargain."
"I work in security."
"It's literally my job."
She laughed again, shaking her head.
"Fine."
"I surrender."
Matteo slipped his phone back into his pocket.
"I'll cancel the fourth vehicle."
She frowned.
"There was a fourth?"
"I like having options."
Sofia simply stared at him.
Then she burst into laughter.
A genuine, uncontrollable laugh.
Even Matteo's lips twitched.
Barely.
Luca noticed.
He'd seen Matteo smile exactly twice in eight years.
Both had involved expensive whiskey.
This was new.
Matteo caught Luca looking.
His face immediately returned to its usual expressionless calm.
"I'll prepare the car."
He left before either of them could say another word.
Sofia wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.
"I didn't know he was funny."
Luca looked toward the closed door.
"Neither did I."
That answer bothered him more than it should have.
---
By late afternoon, the estate was alive with quiet efficiency.
Black SUVs rolled into the courtyard one after another.
Security teams checked radios, routes and alternate exits.
Matteo walked around the lead vehicle one last time before opening the rear door.
"Ready?"
Sofia glanced back at the mansion.
Only two days ago, it had felt like a prison.
Now...
It felt strangely familiar.
Luca noticed the hesitation.
"You can still change your mind."
She shook her head.
"If the answers are in Florence, then that's where I need to be."
He nodded once.
"Then let's bring them home."
She climbed into the SUV.
Luca followed, taking the seat opposite her.
Matteo settled into the front passenger seat.
Within seconds, the convoy rolled through the estate gates.
No one inside the vehicle spoke.
Each of them was lost in different thoughts.
Sofia wondered what she had missed in the gallery she once knew so well.
Luca wondered who had erased the Moretti name from history.
Matteo wondered which road would be easiest to defend if they were attacked.
None of them noticed the black Ferrari parked beneath a line of cypress trees overlooking the estate.
Vincenzo lowered his binoculars.
"They're moving."
Dante Romano closed the leather-bound book resting on his lap.
"To Florence?"
Vincenzo nodded.
"Just as you expected."
Dante smiled to himself.
He watched the convoy disappear along the winding Tuscan road.
Just as she was always meant to.
The Ferrari's engine came to life.
This time, Dante wasn't chasing Luca.
He was following the same piece of history.
For the first time, both kings were travelling toward the same destination.
Neither of them realized the truth had been waiting in Florence all along.
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