Chapter 6
The afternoon rain beat a steady, hypnotic rhythm against the reinforced glass of the estate’s grand windows. Elena was sitting in the library, attempting to lose herself in a leather-bound volume of poetry, when the low, resonant chime of the front security gate echoed through the intercom system. Seconds later, Mrs. Gable hurried into the room, her usual composure slightly ruffled.
“Elena, you need to stay upstairs in the east wing,” Mrs. Gable instructed quietly, her hand resting gently on Elena’s shoulder. “There’s a visitor at the gate. Not Julian, but someone representing... other interests.”
Before Elena could respond, heavy footfalls approached the library doors. Luca walked in, his black turtleneck replaced by a crisp charcoal suit jacket that added an extra layer of formal menace to his tall frame. He looked calm, but the cold glint in his dark eyes betrayed high alert.
“Who is it?” Elena asked, standing up from the armchair.
“Vincent Rossi,” Luca said simply, buttoning his jacket cuff. “An old associate of Julian’s creditors. He thinks he can bypass the legal system by knocking on the front door and demanding a conversation.”
“Should I hide?”
“You never hide in this house, Elena,” Luca said firmly, stepping close enough that she could smell the faint scent of cedarwood and cold rain on his clothes. “Stay here with Mrs. Gable. I’ll handle Rossi in the parlor.”
Curiosity and protective instinct overruled her fear. Elena waited until Luca walked down the grand hallway, then crept toward the parlor entrance, positioning herself just out of sight behind the heavy velvet drapes. Through the open double doors, she saw a slick, middle-aged man in a camel-hair coat standing aggressively near the fireplace. This was Vincent Rossi.
“You’re playing with fire, Moretti,” Rossi sneered, waving a hand dismissively at the expensive art on the walls. “Vance owes our syndicate half a million dollars. That woman and her brat are the collateral. Hand them over, and we walk away from your turf.”
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Luca didn't flinch. He stood with his hands tucked casually into his trouser pockets, looking down at Rossi with absolute contempt. “Julian Vance owes you nothing on this property, Rossi. His debts died the moment he tried to trade a child in a hospital hallway. If you or any of your associates set foot within a mile of this estate again, you won't be walking anywhere. You’ll be carried out in a pine box.”
Rossi’s face flushed a mottled red, his mouth opening to issue a threat, but the icy, unblinking glare in Luca’s eyes silenced him instantly. Recognizing the absolute authority of the man before him, Rossi turned on his heel and stormed out, escorted by two of Luca’s heavily armed guards. Elena exhaled, leaning back against the wall, realizing that Luca was building an unbreakable wall between her past and her future.
