Chapter 199: One Hundred & Ninety Nine

They pulled away slowly, but something had changed.

The tension… the distance… it was gone.

For the first time in a long time, they stood side by side… not as rivals, not as men carrying grudges… but as brothers.

Gabriele let out a breath and rubbed the back of his neck. “We’ve got a lot to clean up.”

Giovanni nodded. “Yeah… we do.”

“Police, statements, Elara… Adrian… Matteo…” Gabriele listed, his tone turning serious again.

At the mention of Matteo, Giovanni’s expression tightened. “How is he?”

“Stable,” Gabriele said. “Lucky. The knife missed anything major. But he’s going to need time.”

Giovanni exhaled, nodding slowly. “Good… I owe him big time.”

“You owe a lot of people bro,” Gabriele said, jokingly

Giovanni gave a faint, tired smirk. “Yeah… I know.”

Gabriele looked toward Raven’s room. “And Rae?”

Giovanni followed his gaze, his expression softening. “She’s strong… but she’s been through too much because of me.”

Gabriele shook his head. “Don’t start that again. None of this is on you. That bitch is just… broken.”

Giovanni didn’t argue this time. He just nodded.

After a moment, Gabriele spoke again. “What about Ganni?”

Giovanni’s face softened even more. “He’s scared… but he’ll be okay. He’s strong, like his mother.”

Gabriele gave a small smile. “Good kid.”

Silence settled again, but this time it was calmer.

Then Gabriele straightened. “We should go check on Matteo.”

Giovanni nodded immediately. “Yeah. Let’s go.”

They started walking down the hallway together, their steps steady.

“No more secrets,” Gabriele said as they walked.

“No more lies,” Giovanni added.

Gabriele glanced at him. “And no more letting people like her get close again. I can't deal with psycho.. This has to be a one-time thing.”

Giovanni’s eyes hardened slightly. “Never again.”

They reached Matteo’s room and paused at the door.

Giovanni pushed it open slowly.

Matteo lay on the bed, pale but awake, a bandage across his chest. He looked up as they entered.

“…Boss,” he said weakly.

Giovanni stepped in, relief flashing across his face. “You’re alive.”

Matteo gave a faint smirk. “Takes more than that to take me out.”

Gabriele huffed lightly. “You sure about that?”

Matteo chuckled weakly, then winced slightly.

Giovanni stepped closer, his voice quieter now. “You did good… holding on.”

Matteo nodded. “Couldn’t let her win.”

Gabriele crossed his arms. “She’s in custody.”

Matteo’s expression hardened slightly. “Good… she’s dangerous.”

Giovanni glanced between them, then spoke firmly. “It’s not over yet. Police will want statements. Everything comes out now.”

Matteo nodded. “I’ll tell them everything.”

Gabriele looked at both of them. “We all will.”

Giovanni took a slow breath.

This was just the beginning of the aftermath.

But this time…

They weren’t facing it alone.

The room went quiet after that.

Not heavy… just calm.

Matteo shifted slightly on the bed, wincing a little. “Boss… Ganni?” he asked.

Giovanni’s face softened. “He’s okay. With Raven. Sleeping now.”

Matteo let out a breath. “Good… that kid’s been through too much.”

Gabriele nodded. “We all have.”

For a moment, no one spoke.

Then Giovanni straightened a little. “Police will be here soon,” he said. “We all need to be ready. No holding back. Everything Elara did… we say it.”

Matteo nodded. “I already told them part of it before I passed out… but I’ll repeat everything.”

Gabriele looked at him. “Good. Because this time, she doesn’t walk away from it.”

Giovanni’s eyes darkened slightly. “She won’t.”

A knock came at the door.

All three men turned.

Two officers stepped in.

“Mr. Monti?” one of them asked.

Giovanni nodded. “Yes.”

“We’ll need statements from all of you,” the officer said. “We’re building the case. What happened tonight… and everything leading up to it.”

Gabriele stepped forward. “You’ll get everything.”

Matteo gave a small nod from the bed. “Every detail.”

Giovanni looked at them, then back at the officers. “She confessed,” he said. “On call. I recorded it.”

The officers exchanged a look.

“That will help a lot,” one of them said.

Giovanni gave a short nod. “Good. Because I want this finished.”

The officer gestured slightly. “We’ll start one by one.”

Gabriele exhaled. “Let’s get it over with.”

Giovanni turned to Matteo. “Rest. Don’t stress yourself.”

Matteo gave a faint smirk. “I’ll survive.”

Giovanni nodded once, then stepped out with the officers.

Gabriele followed behind him.

As they walked down the hallway, the weight of everything settled again…but this time, it felt different.

Not chaos.

Not confusion.

The truth was out.

And soon…

Elara would answer for everything she had done.

They were led into a quiet room down the hall.

A table.

A few chairs.

A recorder placed in the middle.

Giovanni sat first. Gabriele stood behind him for a moment, then pulled out a chair and sat beside him.

One of the officers pressed a button.

A soft click filled the room.

“State your name,” he said.

“Giovanni Monti,” he replied, voice calm but firm.

“Gabriele Monti,” Gabriele added.

The officer nodded. “Start from the beginning.”

Giovanni exhaled slowly. Then he spoke.

He told them everything.

About Elara.

About her obsession.

About Adrian being poisoned.

About Raven being attacked.

About Ganni being taken.

His jaw tightened when he spoke about that part.

“My son was screaming,” he said quietly. “She dragged him out like he meant nothing.”

Gabriele’s hands clenched on the table.

Then Giovanni continued.

“The call… I recorded it,” he said. “She confessed to everything. The poisoning. The lies. Even what happened to Maeve.”

The officers leaned forward slightly.

“What about Maeve?” one asked.

Giovanni’s eyes hardened. “She’s dead. They found her body. Elara admitted she was involved.”

Silence filled the room for a second.

The officer nodded slowly. “We’ll need that recording.”

“You’ll have it,” Giovanni said immediately.

Gabriele added, “And Matteo too. She stabbed him. He saw everything.”

The officer wrote it down. “We’ll take his statement next.”

Giovanni leaned back slightly, running a hand over his face. The exhaustion was catching up to him now.

“Is that enough?” he asked.

The officer looked at him seriously. “It’s more than enough to hold her. With the recording… she’s not walking free.”

Gabriele let out a breath. “Good.”

Giovanni nodded slowly.

For the first time…

It felt like justice was actually close.

The officer turned off the recorder.

“You both did the right thing,” he said.

Giovanni stood up. “Just make sure she pays for it.”

The officer met his eyes. “She will.”

Giovanni gave a short nod and turned toward the door.

Gabriele followed.

As they stepped back into the hallway, the hospital lights felt brighter… calmer.

“It’s almost over,” Gabriele said quietly.

Giovanni looked ahead, his face set.

“No,” he said.

“It’s just beginning.”