Chapter 2 - The Stolen Letter
The grand hall remained enveloped in a heavy, breathless silence. Golden light bounced off the pristine marble floor, highlighting the stark contrast between the feared mob boss in his tailored suit and the terrified maid holding her child.
Sarah stepped backward, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. "I am so sorry, sir," she whispered, her voice shaking violently as she squeezed her eyes shut. "She's just four... she doesn't know what she's saying. It won't happen again, I promise you."
Dante stood motionless, his dark swept-back hair catching the bright afternoon glare. His light stubble flexed as he clenched his jaw. He had spent twenty years in the Chicago underworld—men trembled at the sound of his name, rivals fled his shadow, yet this tiny four-year-old girl had stopped him dead in his tracks with six simple words.
As Sarah turned to carry Lily back toward the servants' corridor, Lily suddenly reached her small hand deep into the small pocket of her pale-pink lace dress.
With a swift, innocent movement, Lily pulled out a worn, yellowed, folded letter.
Sarah caught the motion out of the corner of her eye and went completely pale. Her breath hitched in her throat as she realized what her daughter was holding. "Lily, no!" Sarah gasped, dropping her arm to reach toward her daughter's hand, but it was already too late.
Dante’s sharp gray-blue eyes locked instantly onto the old paper. Even from two paces away, his piercing gaze spotted the dark ink stamped on the front of the worn envelope: the ornate crest of the Marchetti family, accompanied by his own surname written in a sharp, elegant cursive script he knew all too well.
Lily stretched her arm out, extending the folded letter straight toward Dante over her mother's trembling shoulder.
Dante took a slow, deliberate step forward. His broad, tattooed hand reached out with unexpected care, taking the yellowed envelope gently from Lily’s small fingers.
Sarah froze as if struck by lightning. Tears filled her eyes, brimming over her lashes and rolling down her rosy, pale cheeks. She stood completely paralyzed as Dante brought the letter closer to his face, scanning the faded ink on the envelope before slowly unfolding the brittle paper inside.
May you like
Lily leaned closer from her mother's arms, her voice dropping into a soft, innocent whisper that shattered the quiet air.
“Mommy cries when she reads this. It has your name.”
