Chapter 168 – Brothers in Blood
Chapter 168 – Brothers in Blood
The Rossi estate did not sleep.
Not anymore.
The command center remained alive throughout the night as encrypted messages arrived from every corner of Europe. Officers rotated shifts, doctors treated the wounded, and engineers repaired damage from the previous attacks. Every hour brought another report.
Another explosion.
Another ambush.
Another family forced to flee.
The war had grown beyond Italy.
It was becoming an international conflict.
Damian stood alone in the estate chapel.
The candles burned quietly before the memorial wall.
Small brass plaques carried the names of every Rossi who had died protecting the family.
Enzo’s name had recently been added.
Damian rested his hand against the engraved metal.
“You’d probably tell me to stop carrying everything alone.”
he murmured.
A faint smile crossed his face.
“You were always right.”
The chapel door creaked open.
Marco stepped inside.
“They’re here.”
Damian turned.
“So soon?”
Marco nodded.
“They came the moment they received your message.”
Outside the estate gates, three black helicopters descended onto the landing field.
Their rotors sent dust swirling across the courtyard.
Rossi soldiers instinctively reached for their weapons.
No one knew who was arriving.
Damian walked forward without fear.
The helicopter doors opened.
The first man stepped out.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
A long scar ran across his jawline.
His dark coat bore no family crest.
Only a silver wolf pin.
He smiled when he saw Damian.
“It’s been too long, little brother.”
Damian actually laughed.
A rare sound.
“Nikolai.”
The two men embraced fiercely.
Not as politicians.
Not as mafia leaders.
As brothers.
Elena watched from the steps, surprised.
She had never seen Damian smile like that.
The second helicopter door opened.
A woman in her early forties stepped onto the tarmac.
Elegant.
Calm.
Her sharp green eyes missed nothing.
She carried no visible weapon.
She didn’t need one.
Marco immediately lowered his head.
“Commander Amara.”
She smiled faintly.
“You’ve gotten older.”
Marco sighed dramatically.
“And somehow you still insult me before saying hello.”
She laughed.
“Some traditions should never die.”
The third helicopter revealed another familiar face.
A massive man with dark skin, a shaved head, and an easy grin that contrasted with the assault rifle slung across his back.
“Damian!”
he boomed.
“You still owe me a bottle of whiskey.”
Damian shook his head.
“I thought you’d forgotten.”
“I remember every debt.”
the giant replied.
“And every friend.”
Lucian peeked from behind Elena’s legs.
The giant noticed him immediately.
“So this must be the famous little lion.”
He crouched to Lucian’s height.
“My name is Malik.”
Lucian studied him carefully.
“You’re really big.”
Malik burst into laughter.
“So I’ve been told.”
Inside the war room, introductions finally began.
Elena looked at Damian.
“You never told me about them.”
Damian nodded toward the newcomers.
“I never thought I’d have to.”
He looked around the room.
“These are the people who kept me alive before I became head of the Rossi family.”
Salvatore leaned forward with interest.
“I’ve heard stories.”
Nikolai smiled.
“I hope only the good ones.”
Salvatore chuckled.
“There weren’t many.”
The room shared a brief laugh.
Even after weeks of war, laughter still existed.
Damian walked to the center of the room.
“When I was twenty-one, before I inherited the Rossi empire, my father sent me across Europe.”
“To learn.”
“To survive.”
“To understand the people beyond Italy.”
He gestured toward Nikolai.
“I met him in Prague.”
“We hated each other within five minutes.”
Nikolai grinned.
“And became brothers by sunrise.”
Damian pointed toward Amara.
“She taught me strategy.”
Amara corrected him.
“I taught you patience.”
Marco coughed loudly.
“He still struggles with that.”
Everyone smiled.
Finally Damian placed a hand on Malik’s shoulder.
“He once carried me three kilometers after I was shot.”
Malik shrugged.
“You weren’t that heavy.”
Damian laughed.
“I weighed ninety kilos.”
“You still weren’t that heavy.”
The warmth quickly faded as Marco projected intelligence reports onto the main screen.
“You arrived at the right time.”
He said.
“We’re losing territory.”
Nikolai studied the map silently.
Then frowned.
“This isn’t ordinary warfare.”
“No.”
Damian replied.
“It’s Alessandro.”
The room fell quiet.
Amara’s expression hardened.
“So…”
“He finally stepped out of the shadows.”
Elena noticed the concern in her voice.
“You know him?”
Amara nodded slowly.
“Unfortunately.”
She walked toward the map.
“Twenty-five years ago, my father investigated a man manipulating organized crime across Europe.”
“He disappeared.”
“No evidence.”
“No body.”
“Only one name remained.”
She looked directly at Damian.
“Alessandro Vieri.”
Nikolai folded his arms.
“My brother died chasing one of his financial networks.”
Malik’s smile disappeared.
“He destroyed an entire village in West Africa to erase witnesses.”
Silence filled the room.
For the first time…
Damian realized Alessandro’s crimes extended far beyond Italy.
“So why are you here?”
Elena asked quietly.
Nikolai answered first.
“Because Damian once saved my life.”
Amara smiled.
“He gave me hope when I thought loyalty no longer existed.”
Malik looked toward Lucian, who sat coloring quietly in the corner.
“I came because children deserve better than the world men like Alessandro build.”
Damian looked at his old friends.
“You don’t owe me this.”
Nikolai stepped forward.
“No.”
He agreed.
“We don’t.”
He placed his fist over his heart.
“We’re here because brothers choose each other.”
One by one…
Amara.
Malik.
Marco.
Salvatore.
Captain Rinaldi.
Even Matteo Moretti.
Each stepped beside Damian.
Not out of obligation.
Out of choice.
The meeting continued for hours.
New strategies emerged.
Nikolai reorganized the estate’s defenses using military tactics.
Amara uncovered weaknesses in Alessandro’s communication network.
Malik volunteered to lead the rescue units protecting civilians.
For the first time since the war began…
The Rossis were no longer reacting.
They were preparing to strike back.
Late that evening, Elena walked through the gardens with Damian.
“I understand now.”
She said.
He looked at her.
“Understand what?”
She smiled gently.
“Why people would follow you anywhere.”
Damian shook his head.
“They don’t follow me.”
“They stand beside me.”
Elena nodded.
“And that’s why you’ll win.”
Just then, Nikolai approached carrying a sealed leather folder.
His playful expression had vanished.
“We have a problem.”
Damian accepted the folder.
Inside were photographs.
Surveillance images.
Financial transfers.
Meeting records.
One picture stopped him cold.
It showed Luca Moretti shaking hands with Alessandro Vieri inside the abandoned cathedral.
Elena’s heart sank.
“My uncle…”
Nikolai slowly nodded.
“It gets worse.”
He turned another page.
Beneath the photographs was a list of names.
Nearly twenty Moretti captains.
Several Rossi businessmen.
And three government officials.
All secretly meeting with Alessandro.
Damian looked at the list in silence.
Then closed the folder.
“This isn’t a betrayal.”
He said quietly.
“It’s an army.”
Far away, inside Alessandro’s underground headquarters, one of his advisers entered hurriedly.
“The foreign commanders have arrived.”
Alessandro remained calm.
“I expected they would.”
“They’re some of Damian’s closest allies.”
Alessandro smiled as he moved another chess piece across the board.
“The more brothers he gathers…”
He said softly,
“…the more hearts I’ll have to break.”
He looked toward the black king on the board.
“The game is becoming worthy of its players.”