Chapter 78: "The Seed of Power"

\# CHAPTER 78 – "The Seed of Power"

\## POV: Eve

The DNA results won't leave me alone.

Been staring at them for three hours now. Medical papers covered in words I barely understand but the meaning's clear enough. My son ain't normal. The mutations in his blood ain't random accidents. They're designed.

Built into his genes like blueprints for something bigger than human.

"Enhanced cognitive function." That's what the doctor called it. Said the kid's brain is wired different. Faster. More connections. Able to process information in ways regular people can't.

But I know what it really means. My son's got the Romano gift. The family curse that skips generations and shows up when you least expect it. The ability to see patterns other people miss. Know things before they happen. Read people like open books.

Marco knows about it too. That's what makes my skin crawl.

Dante found files with my name on them. Blood work stolen from hospitals. Medical records going back years. The bastard's been watching me since I was a teenager. Planning this. Waiting for the right moment to steal what makes me different and use it for himself.

He wants to recreate the Romano bloodline. Build an army of kids with abilities like mine. Turn genetic gifts into weapons of war.

Over my dead body.

I start training harder the next day. Not just physical training. Mental training. Pushing my abilities further than I ever dared before.

The visions come easier now. Flashes of possible futures that hurt to see but help me plan. I see Marco's men coming for Michael. See them dragging him away to laboratories full of needles and machines. See my baby boy getting turned into something that ain't human anymore.

But I also see other possibilities. Futures where I'm ready. Where I fight back with everything I got. Where I win.

The Romano gift ain't just about seeing what might happen. It's about choosing which future becomes real.

"You're pushing too hard," Dante says after finding me passed out on the training room floor. "These abilities are dangerous when you overuse them."

"Everything's dangerous. At least this gives us an advantage."

"What if it kills you?"

"Then it kills me. Better than watching them take Michael."

"There's got to be another way."

"There ain't. This is war. And in war you use every weapon you got or you lose everything that matters."

The voice starts coming at night. My grandfather's voice from dreams and memories I thought I'd forgotten.

"A ruler born in blood must end in blood," he whispers while I'm trying to sleep.

"I ain't a ruler. I'm just a mother trying to protect her kid."

"You're Romano. Born to lead. Born to command. Born to make the hard choices weak people run from."

"I don't want to lead nothing. Just want my family safe."

"Safety is an illusion. Power is the only truth. Use it or lose everything."

"Power corrupts. Turns good people into monsters."

"You're already a monster. Question is whether you're gonna be the kind that protects or the kind that destroys."

I wake up every night in cold sweats. Hands shaking. Heart pounding. Because I know he's right. The things I'm planning to do to Marco ain't human. Ain't merciful. Ain't anything a good person would consider.

But they're necessary.

The abilities get stronger every day. I can read Dante's thoughts now without even trying. Know what he's feeling before he feels it. Predict what he's gonna say before he opens his mouth.

It should bring us closer. Instead it's driving us apart.

"I can't hide nothing from you anymore," he says after I answer a question he never asked. "It's like being married to a mind reader."

"I can't turn it off. It just happens."

"Try harder."

"I am trying. But the stronger it gets the harder it is to control."

"Then maybe you should stop pushing so hard."

"Can't stop. Marco's out there planning. Building. Getting ready to take our son. I need every advantage I can get."

"Even if it makes you into something I don't recognize?"

That stops me cold. Because looking in the mirror lately I don't recognize myself either. The woman staring back has eyes like winter storms. Expressions that could freeze blood. Smile that promises pain to anyone who threatens her family.

I'm becoming the ruler my grandfather talked about. The kind who makes hard choices without flinching. Who does terrible things for good reasons. Who sacrifices pieces of her soul to protect what matters most.

"I'm still me," I tell Dante. "Just more than I used to be."

"More what?"

"More dangerous. More focused. More willing to do whatever it takes."

"And if what it takes turns you into the kind of person our son should be afraid of?"

"Then I make sure he never has to see that side of me. But I won't let Marco have him. Not while I got breath in my body and blood in my veins."

"Promise me something."

"What?"

"Promise me you won't lose yourself completely. That somewhere inside all that power there's still the woman I fell in love with."

"I promise."

But it's a lie and we both know it. The woman he fell in love with was weak. Scared. Dependent on others for protection. That woman would have lost her child to a monster like Marco.

This woman won't lose nothing. Won't give up. Won't compromise. Won't show mercy to enemies who threaten her family.

This woman is a Romano. Born to rule. Born to fight. Born to win no matter what it costs.

The dreams get more intense. More detailed. I see Marco's laboratory clear as daylight. Know exactly where he keeps the stolen children. Exactly how many guards he's got. Exactly which routes to take to avoid detection.

I see myself walking through his compound like death itself. Moving silent and deadly through corridors full of enemies. Killing anyone who gets between me and my goal.

And I see Marco's face when he realizes he's lost. When he understands that the woman he tried to control has become something beyond his power to contain.

The fear in his eyes feeds something dark in my soul. Something that enjoys his terror. That wants him to suffer the way he made others suffer.

"A ruler born in blood must end in blood."

Yeah Grandpa. I hear you.

And I'm ready to paint the walls red with Marco's blood if that's what it takes to keep my son safe.

Because some things are worth becoming a monster for.

Family is one of them.

And Marco's about to learn why the Romano name used to make grown men wet themselves in fear.

I'm bringing that reputation back.

One dead enemy at a time.