Chapter 13 - The Price of a Child
Grace went completely still.
"We're going."
"No," I said.
"That's our son."
"And Sofia wants you in reach."
Grace grabbed my jacket.
"Luca, I spent three months behind bars because everyone kept deciding what was best for me. Don't start doing it too."
That stopped me.
She was right.
So we made the decision together.
We would return to the estate, but not empty-handed.
Carlo duplicated the flash drive. Enzo contacted a prosecutor he had once treated privately. Matteo called three board members who still owed loyalty to our father.
At 8:42 a.m., we drove through the Rossi gates.
Sofia waited in the main hall wearing black.
Nicholas was not with her.
"Where is my son?" Grace asked.
My mother smiled faintly.
"Safe."
I almost laughed at the word.
"You all use the same script."
Sofia ignored me and held out a folder to Grace.
"You will confirm your statement at the board meeting. Then the child comes home."
Grace stared at her.
"And if I refuse?"
"Then you will spend the rest of your life wondering which country raised him."
I stepped forward.
"You kidnapped your grandson."
"I protected this family from a woman who would have handed us to the government."
Grace's voice sharpened.
"I found theft. Not family honor. Theft."
Sofia's mask slipped.
"You were never supposed to matter this much."
Silence.
Grace looked at me.
There it was.
The truth beneath everything.
My mother had not hated Grace because she was weak.
She hated her because she had become powerful.
Then the front doors opened.
Board members began entering.
Sofia smiled.
"Perfect timing."
May you like
But the last person through the door was not a director.
It was a federal prosecutor.
