Chapter Hundred-Two – Blood Reunion

Chapter Hundred-Two – Blood Reunion

Before they could leave, Dante’s phone — the encrypted one — buzzed once. A single photo appeared: Geneva. Older, dressed in tactical gear, her face half-scarred.

Isabella gasped. “That’s her.”

He stared at the screen, expression unreadable. “They found a way to reach us.”

He didn’t respond. He kept staring.

“Dante?” she asked again.

He finally looked up. “They’re taunting us.”

“Or warning us.”

He slid the phone into his pocket. “Either way, it means we move now.”

Isabella nodded and grabbed her bag. “Where to?”

He opened the door. “Anywhere but here.”

They stepped outside, the cool air hitting their faces. The SUV’s sound was gone now, but Dante still glanced at the treeline.

“Dante,” Isabella said quietly, “one day, we can’t keep running like this.”

“I know,” he said, starting the car. “But not today.”

The engine roared to life, and they drove off, leaving the safehouse lights flickering behind them.

The van stopped near an abandoned shipping yard. The area looked dead, only one big warehouse still had lights on.

Giulia checked her gun. Her hands were shaking. “This is the place. The report said they’re moving captives tonight.”

Bianca sat in the back seat, quiet. Her face was calm, but her eyes were sharp. “We don’t know if she’s here yet. We go in, confirm, then call for backup.”

Giulia turned to her. “Mom, if she’s there, I’m not waiting for backup.”

Bianca gave her a tired look. “You’ll do what I say. I didn’t come all this way to lose another daughter.”

Giulia looked down and nodded, but everyone could tell she wasn’t planning to listen.

They got out of the van. The air smelled like oil and damp metal. Two trucks were parked near the entrance, men unloading crates.

Bianca whispered, “Stay low.”

They crept around the back fence. Through a gap, Giulia saw guards standing near the doors, armed.

“Three outside,” she whispered. “More inside, probably.”

Bianca pulled out a silencer. “We go in from the side. Quiet.”

They moved quickly. The first guard didn’t even see her coming before Bianca hit him in the neck. He went down with a soft thud. Giulia helped drag him behind a crate.

Inside, it was darker. Rows of cages and metal boxes lined the floor. Voices echoed — men shouting orders, chains rattling.

Giulia froze when she heard a familiar voice — faint, but it sounded like a woman arguing with someone in the far corner.

“Mom,” she whispered, “I think I hear her.”

Bianca motioned for silence and pointed to the far end of the warehouse. They moved slowly until they saw a group of people being lined up.

Then Giulia stopped breathing.

There — in the middle — stood a woman with short dark hair, dressed in black tactical clothes. She looked older, her face harder, eyes colder. But she looked exactly like Giulia.

Giulia whispered, “It’s her… It’s Geneva.”

Bianca froze. For a second, her expression broke — the calm, the control — everything slipped. “My God.”

Giulia started forward, but Bianca grabbed her arm. “Wait. We don’t know what she’s been through.”

Giulia shook her off. “I don’t care. That’s my sister.”

“Giulia, stop—”

But Giulia was already walking forward.

“Geneva!” she called out, her voice trembling.

The woman turned. Her eyes locked on Giulia’s face — the same eyes, same features. She froze, stunned.

Bianca stepped out too, voice low but steady. “Geneva… sweetheart… it’s Mom.”

For a long moment, Geneva didn’t move. She just stared at them, confused. Then she frowned. “Who are you people?”

Giulia’s heart dropped. “It’s us. Mom and me. Don’t you recognize us?”

Geneva took a step back, her hand going to the knife at her belt. “Don’t come closer.”

Bianca’s voice shook slightly. “You were taken when you were four. We’ve been looking for you for years.”

One of the guards turned around. “Hey! Who’s there?”

Before he could raise the alarm, Bianca shot him. The warehouse exploded into noise — shouting, running, chaos.

“Giulia, cover me!” Bianca shouted.

Giulia fired at another guard while still looking at Geneva. “Geneva, please! We’re here to take you home!”

Geneva blinked, confused and scared. “Home?”

Bianca ran toward her. “Baby, it’s me. It’s Mom.”

But Geneva suddenly stepped back, raising her knife. “You’re lying!” she yelled. “You’re trying to trick me!”

“No one’s tricking you,” Giulia said quickly, hands up. “Look at me! We’re twins. You and me. You used to call me Lia!”

Geneva froze again, eyes wide. Her knife trembled.

Bianca’s voice softened. “You had a small scar on your knee. You fell when you tried to ride your father’s bike. You cried for an hour.”

Geneva’s breathing grew uneven. She looked between them like she didn’t know what was real anymore.

“How do you know that?” she asked.

Giulia took a small step forward. “Because we were there. Mom carried you inside. I got in trouble for laughing.”

Geneva looked at her — really looked — and for the first time, she hesitated. But then the door behind them burst open.

“Move, move!” someone shouted. More guards stormed in, guns raised.

Bianca fired back immediately, dragging Giulia down behind a crate.

Geneva ducked too but kept staring at them.

Bianca reloaded. “Giulia, we have to go now!”

“No!” Giulia shouted. “I’m not leaving her again!”

Bianca grabbed her face. “Listen to me! She doesn’t know who you are yet. She’s confused. We’ll get her back, but not like this.”

Giulia’s voice cracked. “She looked at me, Mom. She looked right at me.”

“I know,” Bianca said. “And that means there’s still a chance.”

Across the room, Geneva backed away slowly, still holding the knife, still watching them. Her expression was torn — half fear, half shock.

Then one of the guards shouted her name, “Move it, Geneva!”

She turned toward them, hesitated again, then ran.

“Geneva, wait!” Giulia screamed.

She tried to go after her, but Bianca caught her by the arm and pulled her toward the exit.

“Mom, let me go!”

“Not now!” Bianca shouted back. “She’s gone!”

They ran out the back door as bullets hit the walls around them. The air outside was cold, sharp. They hid behind the van as more gunfire came from the warehouse.

Giulia leaned against the metal, gasping for air. “She saw me. She saw me, Mom.”

Bianca sat beside her, breathing hard. “I know, honey.”

“She didn’t remember.”

“She will,” Bianca said quietly. “She just needs time.”

Giulia looked at her, her eyes red. “She’s alive, Mom.”

Bianca nodded, trying to hold it together. “Yes. She’s alive.”

The warehouse behind them burst into flames as the smugglers tried to destroy evidence. The fire reflected in Giulia’s eyes.

“We’ll get her back,” Bianca said softly. “No matter what it takes.”

Giulia didn’t answer. She was still staring at the fire, lost in thought.