Valentina
“You can’t leave before the party starts.” Luca said, his lips spread out in a devious grin.
The silence that stretched between us was suffocating. Luca’s men remained still, their eyes trained on me, waiting for some command, some signal from him to act.
But Luca wasn’t in a hurry.
He circled me slowly, his predatory gaze locked onto mine, calculating, testing my every move.
I swallowed hard, my throat dry as sandpaper. The knife in my hand felt like a child’s toy, useless against the guns in those men’s hands. Every muscle in my body was taut, every instinct screaming at me to run.
But where would I go?
That’s what I got from listening to a man I knew nothing about. A man I found in the woods.
“You were so focused, so determined,” Luca drawled, his voice smooth and taunting. “I just had to spring this up after hiding what you were coming for.”
His words sliced through the air, cutting deeper than any blade. My stomach churned, a sickening feeling creeping into my veins.
“What do you mean?” I forced out, trying to keep my voice steady, but it wavered with the weight of my fear. “Where is Isabella?”
Luca’s smirk widened, amusement flickering in his eyes as he stopped in front of me, his face inches from mine. “I could tell you everything, but what fun would that be?” His voice dropped to a whisper, almost playful. “You’ll figure it out soon enough.”
I clenched my jaw, anger bubbling beneath my skin. “I don’t have time for your games, Luca. Tell me where she is.”
His expression darkened in an instant, his smirk vanishing as his hand shot out, gripping my chin with a bruising force. “You think you’re in control here?” His voice was low, dangerous. “You’re not the one calling the shots, Valentina.”
The air between us crackled with tension, his grip tightening as he leaned in closer. I forced myself to meet his gaze, refusing to flinch under his hold.
“You want to know about Isabella?” He loosened his hold, stepping back as if giving me the illusion of space. “Fine. Let’s talk about your sister. And Matteo.”
My heart stuttered in my chest at the mention of Matteo, my mind racing to keep up with Luca’s words.
I hope they weren’t discovered at the other warehouse.
“What does Matteo have to do with this?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.
Luca chuckled, a low, menacing sound. “You really don’t know, do you?” He paced in front of me, hands clasped behind his back like he was giving a lecture. “Matteo wasn’t always the man you know today. There was a time when he was just as lost, just as desperate as you are right now.”
I frowned, the confusion swirling in my head. “What are you talking about?”
Luca stopped, turning to face me, his eyes gleaming with something dark. “Years ago, Matteo ran away and never came back. Left everything behind – his family, responsibilities, life. Do you know why?”
I…. I didn’t.
I shook my head, the pit in my stomach growing heavier with every word he spoke. Matteo had never told me about his past, about why he wasn’t with his family.
Though with a father like Pedro Nevarro, I hardly found it in me to fault the man.
Luca smiled, but there was no warmth in it. Only cruelty. “Because of his mother.”
My blood ran cold.
“What?” The word fell from my lips, barely audible.
Luca stepped close again, his presence suffocating. “Matteo left because of what happened to his mother. You see, Valentina, he blamed my father for not finding who killed her…. he blames my mother and claims she killed his wretched mother. So he did the one thing he could do.”
I opened my mouth to speak, to demand more answers, but words refused to escape. My mind was spinning, trying to make sense of everything.
To understand where Luca was driving to.
“What did he do?” I finally managed to ask, my voice breaking.
Luca’s smile widened, and he looked almost pleased with the attention I gave to him. “He didn’t do anything, not at first. But when he claimed he found something….” His eyes darkened, and the tension became even thicker. “Let’s just say he tried to return the favour. But I was ready for him. We fought.”
My heart pounded in my chest, my mind racing to understand.
Matteo had tried to kill his step mother. Because she thought she killed his mother?
Luca sighed, as if the conversation was starting to bore him. “Isabella, on the other hand, was so good at playing the innocent one, wasn’t she?” He shook his head, almost in admiration. “But there were things Matteo didn’t know about her, things she’d kept hidden. And if he had found out…. well, let’s just say what happened years back would be easier to watch.”
I felt like I was drowning, the weight of Luca’s words pulling me under. “What are you saying? What is she keeping hidden?”
His green eyes hardened. “Those are not my secrets to give up.” He took a step closer, his voice dropping to a cold whisper. “She made a choice, one that shattered Matteo, and he married you in retaliation. Now, you’re here, trying to clean up a mess you didn’t create.”
No.
I shook my head, disbelief coursing through me. “That’s not true. I know Isabella, she would never keep secrets from me.”
Luca’s laugh was sharp and cruel. “You think you know her, but you don’t. Not really. You’re chasing a ghost, Valentina. And all the while, Matteo’s been hiding from the truth.”
Tears stung my eyes, but I blinked them back, refusing to let Luca see me break. “I don’t believe you.”
“Believe what you want,” Luca said, his tone dismissive. “But the truth remains. Isabella betrayed Matteo, and that’s why he came for you. He doesn’t love you.”
I felt like the ground had been ripped out from beneath me, the world tilting on its axis. I had come here to find my sister, to save her, but now it felt like I didn’t know anything at all.
“You think you’re so different from him,” Luca continued, his voice low and mocking. “But you’re not. You don’t love him too. How can you love a man who loves your sister.”
I shook my head, stepping back as if I could distance myself from his words. “You’re wrong.”
Luca’s eyes gleamed with something dark, something dangerous. “Am I?” He stepped closer again, his voice dropping to a whisper. “You think you can trust Matteo. That he’ll protect you. But he didn’t protect Isabella, did he?”
My heart clenched painfully, doubt creeping into my mind like a poison.
He couldn’t be telling the truth. He had lied to me when we met for the first time so many months back, and now?
He was a Liar.
His gaze softened slightly, his voice almost gentle as he continued. “You’re in over your head if you think Matteo is the man for you.”
I scoffed. “What do you want from me?”
Surely, he didn’t stop me here to give me a history and love lesson.
Luca smiled, but there was no warmth in it, only cold calculation. “I want you to understand that this is bigger than you, than Matteo. You’re chasing after someone who doesn’t want to be found. Isabella… she’s made her choice.”
My breath caught in my throat. “What choice?”
What could Isabella possibly want?
Luca’s eyes darkened, his voice dropping to a whisper. “She chose me.”
“What?!”
Luca took a step closer, his gaze locked onto mine. “I love Isabella, Valentina. And she chose me. Not Matteo. Not you. Me.”