Chapter 9 - Whispers in the CellarA single gunshot echoed from deep below the house.
I flinched slightly.
Luca felt my reaction.
He gently squeezed my hand.
“It's over, Emma. He will never hurt anyone again.”
We walked into the great hall.
Cleaning crews were already working silently, replacing broken furniture, wiping down the marble floors, repairing the splintered walls.
By dawn, there would be no trace of the violence that had taken place.
That was the life of the Moretti family.
Brutal, efficient, and hidden behind pristine velvet curtains.
Luca led me to the grand library on the first floor.
A roaring fire crackled in the stone hearth.
Two deep leather armchairs sat before the flames.
Luca poured two fingers of amber whiskey into a crystal tumbler.
He offered it to me.
“Drink. It helps with the shock.”
I took the glass.
The liquid burned my throat, but it spread a comforting warmth through my chest.
Luca sat down in the opposite chair, his tired eyes watching the flames.
“My sister will need someone to look after her when she comes home,” Luca said softly.
I set the glass down on the side table.
“The hospital has professional nurses.”
Luca shook his head.
“Sienna is traumatized. She won't trust strangers. After what Vanessa did, she won't let anyone near her food or her medicine.”
He looked across at me.
“She trusts you, Emma. She knows you saved her life.”
I looked down at my hands.
“What are you asking me, Luca?”
“I'm asking you to leave your housekeeping job forever.”
My heart beat a little faster.
“And do what?”
“Become Sienna’s personal medical caretaker. And my personal assistant.”
He leaned forward, ignoring the pain in his bandaged shoulder.
“Ten times your current salary. Your own suite in the private wing of this house. Complete protection for you and your family.”
It was an offer that would change my life forever.
It would guarantee my future.
My father’s safety.
My financial independence.
“And what about my nursing degree?” I asked quietly.
Luca smiled.
A soft, genuine smile that completely transformed his rugged face.
“Northwestern University’s medical school has an accelerated nursing program.”
He pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to me.
Inside was a letter of admission with my name on it.
And a full tuition grant, stamped with the Moretti Family Foundation seal.
“Classes start in two months,” Luca said. “You finish your degree. You become a registered nurse. And you do it under my roof.”
Tears welled in my eyes again.
“Luca... I don't know what to say.”
He reached across the space between our chairs.
He took my hand again.
“Say you'll stay with me, Emma.”
I looked into his dark, intense eyes.
I saw the ruthless Don who had shot his enemies without flinching.
But I also saw the protective brother who had wept for his sister.
May you like
The man who had shielded me with his own body from a spray of bullets.
“I'll stay,” I whispered.
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