Chapter 8 - A Brother With Blood on His HandsFor several seconds, Nadia could not move.
Her brother was alive.
Her brother was the man who had attacked the Leone estate.
Her brother was coming for the gown that had exposed their family's secret.
Everything she had learned that night seemed designed to turn one hope into another nightmare.
“Why would he shoot Salvatore?” she asked.
Daniel looked exhausted.
“Because Salvatore signed the document that erased his identity. Because the family he was born into abandoned him. And because your uncle convinced him that killing the Leones was the only way to get his life back.”
“Who raised him?”
“Your uncle, for a time. Then a succession of people who were paid to keep him hidden. He was moved between properties, given different names, and told that his mother had died because the Leone family wanted him dead.”
Casius lowered his weapon slightly.
“How did you know where he was?”
“I managed the trust that paid for his care. I thought I was protecting an abandoned child. By the time I understood the truth, Adrian was old enough to know how to hate the people who had hidden him.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
Daniel's expression hardened.
“You were fourteen the first time I saw you at that estate. Your uncle made you stand outside Adrian's room while he explained that the boy was a danger to everyone. You were ordered never to speak about him. You looked terrified.”
Casius's jaw clenched.
“I remember.”
“You gave Adrian your red scarf through the bars. He kept it until he was moved.”
Casius glanced at the wooden boat on the table.
“That is why I remember the face.”
Daniel nodded.
“You weren't supposed to remember him. Your uncle ordered me to alter the photographs and destroy the records. But one copy survived.”
Nadia stared at the document.
“Why is he coming for the gown?”
“Because it contains proof of his birth. The original agreement names all three children. If he gets it, he can challenge the claims held by both families.”
“Then we should give it to him.”
Casius immediately shook his head.
“No.”
Nadia turned toward him.
“Why?”
“Because Daniel has told us that Adrian believes killing us will restore his identity. We can't walk into that situation carrying the only piece of evidence that might change his mind and assume he'll listen.”
“What do you suggest? Leave him trapped in a lie?”
“I suggest we find out what he intends to do before we decide how to approach him.”
Daniel rubbed his wrists.
“You have less time than you think. Adrian has already entered the estate.”
Casius raised his gun again.
“How?”
“The service tunnels. There's an old passage connecting the textile warehouse to the river. It was used to move people when the family needed someone to disappear without leaving records.”
Nadia looked toward the blue door.
“Where does it lead?”
“To the basement beneath the Leone chapel.”
The church.
The vault.
The hidden heir.
Nadia finally understood why the gown had been concealed for so long. It was never meant to be worn at a wedding. It was designed to lead someone to a place where the family's history had been buried.
Casius checked his phone.
A new message had arrived from the estate.
The security team had found a body near the eastern gate.
The deceased man wore the uniform of a Leone guard.
Under his collar was a small silver pendant.
Casius read the report twice.
Then he looked at Daniel.
“Adrian is already inside.”
Daniel nodded.
“And he's not alone.”
A sound came from the corridor.
Footsteps.
Slow. Deliberate.
Casius pushed Nadia behind the table and took cover near the door. Daniel moved to the opposite wall.
The footsteps stopped outside the room.
A man's voice spoke from the darkness.
“I know you're in there, Casius.”
The voice was calm, almost gentle.
Nadia felt her hands go cold.
She had never heard it before.
Yet something in the cadence reminded her of her mother's voice when she was trying to keep a frightened child from crying.
The door opened.
A man entered.
He wore a dark suit without a tie, and his black hair had been combed away from his forehead. His face carried no obvious resemblance to Nadia beyond the eyes, but he moved with a slight tilt of the head she recognized from her own reflection.
He held a gun loosely at his side.
His gaze moved across the room and stopped on the wedding gown.
For a moment, his expression changed.
Not anger.
Grief.
“So,” he said, “the dress finally found its way home.”
Nadia stepped out from behind the table.
“Adrian?”
He looked at her.
Something flickered in his eyes.
“That's the name they gave me.”
“I'm Nadia.”
“I know.”
“I'm your sister.”
Adrian smiled without warmth.
“That's what they told you.”
He looked at Casius.
“Did you tell her about the boy in the basement?”
Casius remained still.
“I was fourteen.”
“You were old enough to remember me.”
“I do remember you.”
“Then you remember how I begged you to help me.”
The words landed with terrible force.
Casius lowered his gaze.
“Yes.”
“And you walked away.”
“I was afraid.”
“So was I.”
Adrian's voice never rose. Somehow, that made the accusation worse.
“For thirty years, I lived in rooms where the doors locked from the outside. I was told my mother was dead, my sisters were dead, and everyone who shared my blood would kill me if they found out I existed.”
He looked at Nadia.
“Then, three months ago, someone gave me a photograph of a woman wearing a silver crescent. They told me she was still alive. They told me the woman in the photograph had a daughter who worked for Casius Leone.”
“Who told you?”
Adrian glanced toward the corridor.
“My uncle.”
Casius stiffened.
“Which uncle?”
Adrian smiled.
“The one you buried.”
The room seemed to shrink.
“You've been working with him?” Casius asked.
“Working? No. I was raised by him. He gave me a name, an education, and a reason to live. He also told me who had stolen everything from me.”
“He lied to you.”
“Maybe. But your family lied to me first.”
Nadia took a careful step forward.
“If he's been manipulating you, we can prove it.”
Adrian laughed softly.
“You sound like Mother.”
Nadia froze.
“You remember her?”
“No.”
The answer came too quickly.
Adrian looked away.
“I remember her perfume. A woman's voice singing through a wall. A hand touching my forehead. That's all. The rest came from stories, photographs, and scraps of information someone left for me to find.”
Nadia felt tears burn behind her eyes.
“My mother is alive.”
Adrian's head snapped toward her.
“Anna?”
“Yes.”
“Where is she?”
“We don't know.”
For the first time, his composure faltered.
He looked almost young.
“She promised she would come back.”
Nadia swallowed.
“When?”
“When I was six. She told me she had to leave because someone would hurt her if she stayed. She said she would return when I was old enough to understand.”
Adrian's eyes hardened again.
“She never came.”
Nadia thought of the letter in her hand.
Of the warnings, the hidden compartments, the impossible lengths Anna had gone to in order to protect her children.
Maybe she had returned.
Maybe someone had stopped her.
“Adrian, we can find her together.”
He stared at Nadia for a long moment.
Then he raised his gun.
“Give me the gown.”
“No,” Casius said.
Adrian fired.
The bullet struck the table inches from Nadia's hand.
She flinched, but did not move.
Casius aimed at Adrian's chest.
“Put the gun down.”
“Give me the dress.”
Nadia looked at her brother.
“You can take it. But first, tell me what you plan to do with the evidence.”
“I will destroy the agreement.”
“And then?”
“Both families lose everything.”
“That's not enough.”
His jaw tightened.
“No?”
“No. You want the truth. Destroying the evidence would leave everyone free to tell another lie. You want them to pay for what they did to you. Then we need the document, the witnesses, and the people who ordered the murders.”
Adrian stared at her.
For a few seconds, she thought she had reached him.
Then he shook his head.
“You don't understand.”
“Help me understand.”
“My uncle told me what happens when the truth comes out. The families will go to war. Hundreds of people will die. Every person who ever helped me will become a target. And the only way to prevent that is to destroy the agreement before anyone can use it.”
Casius lowered his weapon a fraction.
“Your uncle wants you to destroy it because he's named in it.”
Adrian's face went still.
Nadia felt the air change.
A new voice spoke from the doorway.
“That's enough, Adrian.”
The man everyone believed dead stepped into the room.
Casius's uncle smiled.
“You've done wonderfully. Now give me the gown.”
Adrian turned toward him.
“You said my mother would be here.”
“She will be.”
“When?”
“After the girl gives me what I need.”
Adrian looked at Nadia.
For the first time, the hatred in his face gave way to uncertainty.
His uncle extended his hand.
“The dress, son.”
Adrian did not move.
The older man sighed.
“Don't make me ask twice.”
Then he reached into his jacket and removed a folded photograph.
He held it up.
A woman sat bound to a chair, her silver hair falling across one shoulder. Her face was bruised, but unmistakable.
Nadia's knees nearly gave way.
“Mother.”
Anna Vale lifted her head.
Even through the grainy image, Nadia could see her eyes.
The woman who had called her little star was alive.
Her uncle smiled.
“Now, Nadia, let's see how much your family means to you.”
May you like
He pressed a gun against Anna's temple.
“Bring me the gown, or your mother dies.”
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