Chapter 21
The sky above the mountains was clear that morning.
After nearly a month hidden in the cabin, routine had created a false sense of peace. A fragile peace… one that could be shattered easily.
Vincenzo stayed at the cabin with Sara, as always. The pregnancy was already in its final stretch. The enormous belly made every movement slower, every breath heavier. Every night came with small pains and discomforts that kept him constantly on edge.
So when Sara mentioned she would need specific medications for the birth and for the baby, Vincenzo understood that supplies were running low. Someone would have to go down to the nearest town.
Mateo and Lorenzo went in his place, accompanied by a few soldiers. Eleonora offered to go along. She wanted to distract herself from missing her boyfriend and help in any way she could.
The small town at the foot of the Alps was busy. The three of them were walking between shops and pharmacies carrying bags when Eleonora’s phone vibrated.
She looked at the screen and froze.
“Leonardo…”
The brothers immediately noticed the change in her face.
“What is it?” Mateo asked, already on alert.
She answered, her voice low:
“Leonardo?”
The voice on the other end came out rough, exhausted, but urgent: “Eleonora…”
Her eyes immediately filled with tears.
“My God… I’ve missed you so much… Are you okay?”
“I’m okay, amore. I need to talk to you… Where are you?”
“I’m in Ortisei, a small village in Val Gardena, in the Italian Alps. Why?”
“Got it. It’s about an hour from where I am. I’m driving to you. Please wait for me. It’s urgent.”
A chill ran down her spine.
“What happened?”
“Not over the phone.”
The call ended.
Eleonora stood frozen in the middle of the street, her face pale.
“Is everything okay, Eleonora?”
“He’s coming here.”
Lorenzo stepped closer. “Who?”
“My boyfriend… Leonardo. He doesn’t usually contact me when I don’t check in. I left word that we needed to stay under the radar, and now he says it’s urgent… I’m worried.”
Mateo and Lorenzo exchanged a heavy look.
“This doesn’t smell right,” Mateo muttered.
◆◆◆
An hour later, a dark car pulled up at the edge of town. Eleonora ran before the vehicle had even fully stopped.
The door opened.
Leonardo stepped out. He was big and strong—one of Italy’s most famous fighters.
She threw herself into his arms. The hug was tight, desperate. But when she pulled back to look at his face, her blood ran cold.
Bruises. Split lip. Black eye. Purple marks on his neck and arms.
“My God… who did this to you?”
Leonardo took a deep breath, staring at her, his voice low and grave:
“Your father.”
The silence that fell was deadly. Eleonora’s eyes widened and her features hardened with pure rage rising in her chest.
Mateo and Lorenzo stood motionless, their hands already close to the hidden weapons.
◆◆◆
Minutes later, everyone was seated at an isolated table in the back of a diner. Leonardo didn’t waste time.
“They found me a few weeks ago. Your father said he always knew about my existence and our relationship. He just pretended he didn’t.”
Eleonora stayed silent, just listening.
Leonardo continued, his voice low and calculated, choosing every word carefully:
“When you disappeared, they came after me. They said they would kill my entire family if I didn’t cooperate.
They wanted information on where your husband Vincenzo was hiding a girl named Sara Romani…
and about a baby or something like that…
I didn’t fully understand, but he said you were in the middle of all of it. ”
Mateo clenched his jaw.
Lorenzo spoke irritably. “They know about the child?”
Leonardo looked at him seriously. “They know. I overheard something about a child being a threat to plans that were already in motion.”
Leonardo looked directly at Vincenzo’s brothers, then at Eleonora. His voice grew even heavier:
“I heard him talking to other people that Eleonora was being an accomplice in this, that they’d seen her helping her husband protect another woman. He said she was no longer necessary. He gave full permission to kill everyone they found.”
Eleonora closed her eyes. Tears slid down silently.
Leonardo finished without softening anything:
“He said he wants to destroy Vincenzo. Take the territories. Wipe out every last trace of the Salvatore family… and anyone who helps them. I came even knowing they might be following me, because I had to warn you—and most of all protect my Eleonora. If I’m going to die, let it be here…”
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Mateo was the first to speak, his voice cold and calculating:
“How many men? How long until they could be here?”
“I don’t know the exact number. But I know it won’t take long. A day… or hours if they’re already following me.”
Lorenzo ran a hand over his face.
“We need to get back. Now.”
◆◆◆
The drive back to the cabin was made in deadly silence. No one spoke. No one joked. The weight of the threat hung inside the car like a living shadow.
When the vehicles stopped in front of the cabin, Vincenzo was already waiting outside, his body tense.
The moment he saw Leonardo step out—injured, serious, next to Eleonora—he knew.
Something was very wrong.
◆◆◆
Less than fifteen minutes later, everyone was gathered in the main living room of the cabin.
Vincenzo.Sara.Eleonora.Leonardo.Mateo and Lorenzo.
Leonardo repeated everything, holding nothing back. Every threat. Every plan. Every word Eleonora’s father had said.
With each sentence, the air grew heavier.
Until he finished.
And silence took over the room.
Vincenzo was the first to speak, his voice low, controlled, but lethal:
“Knowing about Sara and my daughter was expected, since they already attacked us at her house. But even after putting my investigators on finding out who was behind it, I never expected it to be that bastard—who’s only still alive because my father accepted the arranged marriage deal.”
Leonardo nodded.
“Yes. But they still don’t know where we are.”
Vincenzo ran a hand over his face, his mind already working on strategies.
It was exactly at that moment that a soft sound interrupted the meeting.
A small moan.
Everyone turned their heads.
Sara had pressed a hand to her belly. Her face was tight. She was breathing deeply, trying to ignore it.
But another pain came.
Stronger.
Much stronger.
And this time she couldn’t hide it.
“Sara?” Vincenzo called, standing up immediately.
She gripped the arm of the chair, her entire body tense.
Another contraction.
More intense.
More painful.
And then liquid soaked through her dress.
Absolute silence.
Sara looked down. Then at Vincenzo. Her eyes huge, terrified.
“Honey…”
Her voice came out shaky.
“I think… our daughter has decided to be born.”