Chapter 7 - The Shadow Moves
The fallout from the council meeting was swift and brutal.
Dominic was stripped of his titles, his access to family accounts was frozen, and he was officially banished from the Moretti syndicate. But a wounded animal is always most dangerous when backed into a corner.
Three days after the meeting, a heavy rain fell over Philadelphia.
I was upstairs in the nursery, singing softly to Leo as I rocked him in the armchair. The rain tapped rhythmically against the heavy glass windows. Luca was downstairs in his private office, working with his legal team to permanently secure his custody rights and finalize Dominic’s corporate removal.
Suddenly, the lights in the entire house went dark.
The soft hum of the nursery nightlight cut out, plunging the room into shadow.
Below us, the faint, muffled sound of glass shattering rang through the foyer, followed immediately by the sharp POP-POP-POP of silenced gunshots!
My blood turned to ice.
Leo started to cry, startled by the dark and the noise. I pulled him tightly against my chest, slipping out of the armchair and retreating into the dark corner behind the heavy mahogany wardrobe.
Footsteps echoed down the hallway outside—heavy, frantic, and approaching fast.
I grabbed a heavy brass candlestick from the side table, holding it high in my right hand while keeping Leo shielded behind my body with my left.
The nursery door burst open!
A tall figure stepped into the dim light framed by the hallway emergency lanterns. It was Dominic, holding a dark pistol, his hair disheveled and his eyes crazed with revenge.
“Where is he?!” Dominic snarled, pointing his gun into the darkness of the nursery. “Where is the boy?!”
“Get away from him!” I screamed, stepping out from behind the wardrobe and swinging the heavy brass candlestick with all the force in my body!
The heavy metal struck Dominic across the side of his jaw with a sickening CRACK. He stumbled back, dropping his gun onto the rug, roaring in pain.
Before he could recover, a dark shadow materialized behind him in the hallway.
Luca lunged into the room like a panther, tackling Dominic to the floor!
The two men crashed into the wooden blocks and toys, struggling violently in the dark. Dominic reached for his fallen gun, his fingers touching the handle, but Luca slammed his knee onto Dominic’s arm, wresting the weapon away and pressing the barrel directly beneath his uncle’s chin.
“Give me one reason,” Luca panted, his chest heaving, his face contorted with absolute, lethal rage. “Give me one reason not to pull this trigger right now.”
Dominic lay gasping on the floor, bleeding from his jaw, staring up into his nephew’s terrifying eyes. “Luca... please... we’re family...”
“You brought guns into my son’s nursery,” Luca whispered, his voice vibrating with pure venom. “You stopped being my family the moment you crossed that threshold.”
Luca didn't shoot him. He slammed the heavy butt of the pistol across Dominic’s temple, knocking him unconscious instantly.
Outside, the sirens of Luca’s private security detail wailed through the gates as Marco rushed into the room with four armed guards to secure the scene.
Luca stood up, dropping the gun onto the floor, and turned toward me.
I was standing against the wall, shaking violently, holding a terrified Leo against my chest.
Luca rushed over, wrapping his massive arms around both of us, pulling us so tight I could feel his heart hammering frantically against his ribs.
“Are you hurt? Did he touch you?” Luca begged, his voice cracking with emotion as he checked my face, my hands, my body.
“We’re okay,” I sobbed, sinking into his embrace. “We’re okay, Luca.”
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Luca pulled back, taking my face in both of his hands, and pressed his lips against mine with a fierce, desperate passion that swept away every remaining shadow of fear.
“I love you,” Luca whispered against my lips, his dark eyes shining with raw tears. “I love you, Avery. I will never let anyone hurt you again.”
