Chapter 76 To Catch A Snake
Valentina
Matteo’s expression had hardened—jaw tight, eyes flaring like a fuse had caught.
“That son of a bitch is just like his father.”
I tilted my head. “Luca?”
He nodded once. “Yeah. His mother is my aunt. His father married into our family, so Luca’s not a Genovese by name. And his old man? Snake through and through. Always slithering around the edges, trying to sink his fangs into what didn’t belong to him.”
I stayed quiet, letting him speak. His voice had gone low, almost distant, like he was replaying it all in his head.
“He used to try to pull shit with my father. Quiet things. Shady deals. Undercuts. My father kept him at arm’s length, always. Then after my father died, that bastard tried to step up—like it was his responsibility to take over. Said I was too young to lead.” Matteo’s eyes cut to mine. “I was eighteen. He thought I’d be easy to push aside.”
“And were you?”
He snorted. “I told him to fuck off. That it was my birthright. He wasn’t Genovese. He had no say in our business, and he never would.”
I leaned forward. “So where are his parents now?”
“In Italy,” Matteo said, folding his arms. “I told my aunt Camilla to take her husband and her son the hell away from here. I didn’t want him setting foot on this property again. Didn’t want him sniffing around anything that belonged to us. Told her plain and simple—if she didn’t leave, if they didn’t disappear, her whole family was going to get cut off.”
I raised a brow. “And she just… left?”
“She was smart enough to know I meant it,” he said simply. “She loved her son too much to drag him into a war he couldn’t win.”
“Then how is Luca still here?”
Matteo let out a breath, less anger now and more regret. “He was just a kid. Like me. And it wasn’t his fault who his father was. He’d visit every few years. Showed interest in the business. Said he wanted to help. I gave him small things to do. Stupid errands. Background tasks.”
He looked down at his hands. “But when my mom’s depression got bad… really bad… Luca was one of the only people who stepped in. Helped me run things. Kept the lights on. I owed him, or at least I thought I did.”
I saw the weight of it settle on his shoulders, how betrayal from someone you once trusted didn’t just cut—it sank deep, into places that never fully healed.
“I used to hold him in higher regard,” Matteo murmured. “But now? Now I see the truth. Maybe I never would’ve if I hadn’t brought you into my life.”
That caught me off guard. “Me?”
“If he wasn’t so afraid of you,” he said, “he wouldn’t be acting this desperate. You made him panic. He’s trying to make his move before he gets pushed out for good.”
Alessio, who’d been silent all this time, finally spoke. “So what’s the plan?”
Matteo’s eyes sharpened.
“I told Caesar to play along. Told him to entertain Luca’s offer, keep him talking. Because you don’t kill a snake until you catch it slithering through your garden. I want proof. I want names. I want to know exactly how deep his fangs have sunk.”
Alessio gave a nod of approval. “Good. We flush him out.”
I sat back in my chair, heart still racing. Not just from the story… but from the truth under it all.
There were snakes everywhere.
And somehow, I’d become the one stirring the grass.
Matteo sat back in his chair, fingers drumming on the armrest. “Now we wait. Caesar’s gonna call me once Luca sets the meeting.”
I glanced between him and Alessio. “Meeting?”
Matteo nodded. “Caesar will insist on it. That’s how he does business. Luca knows it too, so it won’t raise any red flags. Caesar never makes big deals over the phone. Not without looking you in the eye first. So Luca’s gonna have to show.”
I frowned. “Okay, but… why does that matter?”
“Because Caesar doesn’t leave Colombia. Ever. Too dangerous. Too many people with long memories and grudges. He’s got to stay protected, surrounded by his men, and keep his location a moving target. So if I need to meet him in person, I go there. And if I can’t, I send Rosco or Big John. No one else.”
He leaned forward, eyes flicking to mine. “No one but Alessio and me, and my top two. That’s how small the circle is.”
“And now… he’s coming here?”
“Yeah. I told him Luca’s grounded for a month. No private jet, no funds. I froze everything. So unless he walks his ass to Colombia, which we both know he won’t, Caesar agreed to help me out. He’ll fly in. Set the bait. And when Luca takes it…”
He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t have to.
I swallowed. “So that’s it? When Caesar gives you the time and place, it’s done?”
Matteo nodded once. “Luca won’t get another inch of grace. It’s over for him.”
I hesitated, then asked the question twisting in my gut. “And what about Arianna? And the baby?”
Alessio spoke up before Matteo could. His voice was calm, almost too calm. “Technically, that baby will be my great-grandchild. By extension. A Genovese child, even if only by blood and not name.”
I looked at him carefully. “And?”
“And we’ll handle it properly,” he said, as if discussing estate arrangements. “We’ll set up a trust fund. Eighteen years of child support, paid in full. No questions. No court orders. Just handled.”
He stood and adjusted the cuff of his jacket. “Then we’ll send Arianna to live with Camilla. Her and the baby both. Camilla’s still got the estate in Venice. Plenty of staff. Privacy. Protection.”
“And if Arianna runs?” I asked.
“She might,” he admitted. “But if she tries to leave the baby behind to chase her own life with the money…” He shrugged. “Then Camilla will raise the child. She’s done it before. She’ll do it again.”
The silence that followed was thick. Heavy with finality.
I felt a strange twist in my chest—not sympathy for Arianna, not exactly. But maybe for the baby. Born into a web it never asked for. A future written in blood and balance sheets.
Matteo caught my eye and tilted his head slightly.
“You alright, baby?”
I nodded slowly. “Yeah. I’m fine.”