Chapter 41 Chapter 42
Luciano POV
The moment I stepped into the hotel room, something felt wrong. The air was too still, too quiet, like the room itself was holding its breath. Meetings like this were never calm, never this controlled. There was always tension, always movement, always something unpredictable. But this? This felt staged. Carefully arranged. A trap. I did not react. I never do. Instead, I walked in like I owned the place, my expression calm, my steps steady, like nothing could touch me. But inside, my instincts were already awake, sharp and alert. I had prepared for this before I even got here.
My men were already in position, hidden in places no one would think to look. Watching. Waiting. One signal, just a simple snap of my fingers and they would move swiftly.
I took my seat slowly, leaning back just enough to look relaxed, while my eyes scanned the room without making it obvious. Whoever planned this thought they were smart. They thought they could catch me off guard. They were wrong. I had seen worse, survived worse. I waited, my fingers tapping lightly against the armrest, counting the seconds in my head. Then the door opened. An elderly man walked in first, and the moment I saw him, my jaw tightened just a little. Uncle Williams. Behind him came Stephen, Valerie’s father.
A slow smirk spread across my lips as everything became clear. Of course. This was never a business meeting. This was an ambush dressed in a suit. I adjusted my jacket calmly, straightening it as if nothing about this surprised me.
“Next time,” I said lazily, pulling out a cigarette, “you should tell me it’s an interrogation instead of pretending to be clients just to drag me out of my busy schedule, Uncle.” I lit the cigarette, took a slow drag, and blew the smoke in their direction without caring how they felt about it. Disrespect was intentional.
I wanted them to feel uncomfortable. I wanted them to remember who they were dealing with. I watched Uncle Williams closely, and the look on his face didn’t disappoint. Pure disapproval. Tight lips. Cold eyes. Stephen sat beside him, but unlike my uncle, he didn’t hide anything. His anger burned openly as he stared at me like I was something he wanted to destroy with his bare hands.
Neither of them spoke at first. They just watched me, like they were trying to figure me out, trying to measure me. Finally, my uncle broke the silence. “Let’s not waste time, Luciano,” he said, his voice calm but heavy. “I know you’re a busy man, and I don’t want us going back and forth.” He paused, taking a slow breath, and for a brief second, his eyes softened. “Matteo brought this up before” At the mention of Matteo, something shifted in the room.
A shadow passed through the air. My uncle made the sign of the cross, his face tightening with grief before returning to its usual hardness. “You need to return Valerie,” he continued. “And if you want something with her, this is not the right way.”
A quiet scoff escaped my lips as I shook my head and placed the cigarette down on the table, crushing the ash slowly. “If Stephen is so interested in his daughter,” I said coldly, “then he should go and get her himself. The last time he tried, he sent an assassin to kill me.” That made my uncle pause. I saw it clearly the way his eyes shifted toward Stephen, questioning him without words. Then he looked back at me. “I’m not holding her against her will,” I continued, my voice calm but firm. “If she wants to leave, she’s free to go. I won’t stop her. But for now, she’s safe where she is.”
That was when Stephen snapped. “I want my daughter back, you bastard!” he shouted, jumping to his feet so fast the chair scraped loudly across the floor. “She is supposed to marry Noah in June! You ruined everything!” His voice was filled with anger, the kind of anger that made people lose control. “Everywhere you go, Luciano, you bring destruction! You ruin lives! You ruin families!” He charged toward me, his fists clenched, his face twisted with rage, but Uncle Williams quickly stood up and grabbed him, holding him back before he could get any closer.
I didn’t move. I didn’t react. I just sat there and stared at him, calm, steady, and unbothered. Men like Stephen were loud, emotional, and easy to read. When he finally stopped struggling, breathing heavily like he had just run a race, I slowly stood up from my seat. The room went quiet again, heavy and tense.
I adjusted my suit like none of this mattered, like his anger meant nothing to me. Then I turned to leave. But Stephen stepped forward again, trying to block my path. That was when I stopped. Slowly, I turned back to face them, and a smile spread across my face. Not a friendly one. Not even close.
“Uncle Williams,” I said softly, “you know what I’m capable of when I’m angry.” Silence filled the room. Thick. Uncomfortable. “Matteo tried to stand in my way…” I paused, letting the words sink in before raising my hands slightly in mock surrender. “Don’t get me wrong,” I added with a quiet chuckle, “I’m not responsible for his death.” That was a lie, clean and simple. “But I wish I was.” This time, I didn’t hide anything. I let them see the darkness, the truth behind my eyes.
I wanted them to feel it, to understand exactly who they were dealing with. Stephen froze. My uncle didn’t move. Neither of them spoke, and that told me everything I needed to know.
Without another word, I turned and walked out of the room. My footsteps echoed in the hallway, slow and steady, but my mind was no longer on them. It was on her. Valerie. She was the center of everything now, the tension, the anger, the war that was slowly building. I clenched my jaw slightly as I stepped outside, the cool air hitting my face.
She said she wasn’t a prisoner, and I had told the truth. I wasn’t forcing her to stay. But that didn’t mean I was ready to let her go. Not yet. Not when everything around her was falling apart. Not when every move felt like a game I refused to lose. War was coming. I could feel it in the air, in the silence, in the way people were starting to choose sides. And when it
finally came, I would be ready.