Chapter 3 - The Bloodline Secret: A Hidden Heir and a Dangerous Inheritance
"I'm not going anywhere with you," I said, raising the bat. My hands shook, but I kept my voice steady.
Mateo didn't even flinch. He slowly reached into his coat pocket, making sure I could see his hands, and pulled out a stack of photographs. He tossed them onto my cheap coffee table. "The Moretti family—our rivals—found out about the exchange at the restaurant. They have spies everywhere. They know a woman named Tessa is connected to my father. They just don't know how yet. If they figure out you carry Vitiello blood, they won't just kill you. They'll torture you to get to us."
I looked down at the photos. They were grainy surveillance shots of my apartment building. A black van was parked across the street. Men I didn't recognize were watching my windows.
"You brought this to my door!" I yelled, dropping the bat. "I was invisible! I was safe!"
"You were never safe," Mateo corrected, closing the distance between us. He smelled of rain, expensive cologne, and danger. "You were just hiding. Now, the hide-and-seek is over. You are my cousin's granddaughter. You are family. And Vitiellos protect their own."
"I'm a nursing student!" I cried, the reality crashing down on me. "I don't have money, I don't have power, I don't know how to shoot a gun!"
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Mateo reached out, his large, rough hand gently tucking a wet strand of red hair behind my ear. The touch was so tender it made my breath hitch. "You don't need to know how to shoot. That's my job. Your job is to stay alive. Now pack."
Within ten minutes, I was in the back of a bulletproof Mercedes, speeding out of the city. The rain lashed against the tinted windows. Mateo sat beside me, silent, his jaw clenched, texting rapidly on a burner phone. I stared out the window, watching my normal, quiet life disappear into the rearview mirror. I was a Vitiello. The thought made my stomach churn. I was the heir to a bloody legacy I wanted no part of.
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