CHAPTER 10
Luca sat alone in the sleek black car, engine idling low beneath the city's restless night. The streetlights flickered over his tense features as he stared at the phone in his hand.
He knew she was probably drawing or lost in her quiet bubble, but still... he needed to hear her voice. To remind himself that beneath all the chaos, she was still safe. Still his.
He pressed her contact and waited, fingers twitching. When the call connected, Mia's soft voice floated through the speaker.
"Hi, Luca."
"Hey, princess." His voice was rougher than he wanted. "How's my favorite artist doing?"
A tiny laugh. "I finished a new drawing. I'll show you next time."
"Can't wait." He exhaled slowly, steadying himself. "I'm checking in. You doing okay?"
There was a pause, then a whisper. "I'm okay. I'm... tired sometimes, but I'm okay."
He wanted to say more to tell her how the world outside tried to claw its way in, how he fought every second to keep it away. But the words stuck in his throat.
Instead, he said, "Remember, you don't have to be strong all the time. I'm here."
Mia's voice cracked softly. "I know. Thank you, Luca."
He stayed on the line a moment longer, just listening to her breathe. Then, softly, "I love you, princess."
"I love you too," she whispered.
He ended the call, clutching the phone a moment longer before sliding it into his pocket.
The night was cold, but for the first time in days, Luca felt a little warmer.
Because even in the darkest world, there was a light worth fighting for.
Luca's fingers tightened around the steering wheel as the call ended, the echo of Mia's soft voice still lingering in his mind.
He stared out into the city's nightscape a maze of shadows and dangers he knew all too well. But tonight, something inside him burned brighter.
His sister's words, her trust, her fragile strength... it was more than a reminder. It was a promise.
No one will hurt her.
Not while he still breathed.
He started the car, the engine roaring softly beneath the hood, and glanced once more at his phone no new messages from Grayson yet.
Good. Quiet.
But Luca knew silence often meant the calm before the storm.
He needed answers.
His mind replayed every detail, every subtle shift he'd noticed: the stray whispers, the misplaced shadows in his territory.
Marcello was testing him. Probing.
And Luca wasn't about to let him find a weakness.
He pulled the car into the night, merging into the traffic like a ghost a protector ready to strike.
Because for Mia, his princess, he would be anything.
The phone slipped from Mia's hand as the screen went dark, but her heart still fluttered with the warmth of Luca's voice.
She sat on the edge of her bed, clutching the blanket wrapped around her shoulders like a shield.
He called me princess. He always does but this time it was different
Those two words echoed in her mind, wrapping around the fragile edges of her anxiety like a gentle embrace.
For so long, she'd hidden behind silence and shadows, afraid of the noise and judgment of the outside world.
But hearing Luca his steady, rough voice reminded her she wasn't alone.
She didn't have to be strong all the time.
Tears prickled her eyes, but this time, they were different not from fear, but from a deep, aching relief.
Somewhere beneath the quiet, beneath the drawings and the homeschooling and the walls she'd built to keep herself safe, a small spark was growing.
A hope that maybe, just maybe, she could face the world if only because Luca was there.
She whispered into the darkened room, "I love you, Luca."
And for the first time in a long time, Mia allowed herself to believe in that light.
The afternoon light spilled softly through the curtains, casting a gentle glow across the small room that Mia called her sanctuary.
She sat at her desk, pencil in hand, fingers tracing the lines of her latest drawing-a quiet scene of a lone tree standing firm against a restless sky.
Drawing was her refuge, a way to pour out the fears and hopes she couldn't voice aloud.
As her pencil moved, she thought about Luca's voice earlier that day the way he called her princess, the softness beneath his usual guarded tone.
It made her want to be brave, even if just a little.
A soft knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts.
"Princess, time for your lesson," Grayson's calm voice said gently.
Mia nodded, setting her pencil down. She smiled faintly, grateful for the steady presence.
Grayson stepped inside quietly, closing the door behind him.
"Ready when you are," he said, pulling out her books and notes.
Mia took a deep breath and pushed her worries aside, knowing that in this room, with familiar routines and someone watching over her, she was safe.
Grayson settled at the small table beside Mia's desk, spreading out the textbooks with practiced ease.
"Let's start with some math, then move to history," he said softly, keeping his tone steady and patient.
Mia nodded, her fingers curling around her pencil as she focused on the problems before her.
The numbers blurred at first, but Grayson's calm presence kept her grounded. He never pushed too hard, always reading her moods, knowing when to slow down.
As the lesson moved forward, Mia's breathing evened out, and the tension in her shoulders eased.
Sometimes, in moments like this, the world outside seemed to fade the noise, the fear, the secrets.
Here, in this small room, she could just be Mia.
When Grayson glanced up, he caught a flicker of something deeper in her eyes vulnerability wrapped in quiet strength.
He didn't say anything; he simply reached out to hand her the next page.
"Almost done for today," he said.
Mia gave a small, tired smile. "Thank you, Grayson."
He nodded, already gathering the books.
As he stood, she whispered, "I'm glad you're here."
Grayson paused, meeting her gaze with a quiet understanding.
"Always."