Chapter 29 #2
"I think I got it." I sat up straighter, moving the files around on my screen. "Okay, so if we combine the files I already looked through with the ones Uncle Luca sent from back home, we should be able to get more information on who Kale really is."
"Oww!" Damien suddenly yelled, shoving Marcio away. "You have to stay still," Marcio scolded. "Or you're going to mess this up, and it'll scar. Then your perfect little face will be ruined."
Damien glared at him. "You are so annoying."
"No fighting, you two." Aunt Mili walked into the lounge room with a smile on her face.
"Have you seen Raf anywhere by chance?" We all shook our heads.
"Hey, did Leena calm down yet?" Uncle Gio asked.
Aunt Mili immediately made a face. "No." She sighed. "She could really use your soothing words, Gio." Uncle Gio groaned and looked over at me. "Let me know what you two find, kid."
I nodded as he walked away to find his wife. "Raf said he was going to train for a little while. He might be in the gym area," Damien called out.
"Thanks, honey." Aunt Mili left the room, and I turned my attention back to the tablet.
I read through the files again. Kale Giordano. Twenty-seven years old. Born and raised in Italy. Dropped out of high school and pursued a career in bartending. No criminal record. No weapons purchases. No suspicious activity.
On paper, he looked like the perfect citizen. But we knew better. There was something dangerous hiding underneath that fake image. This was the man who went after my twin. My sister. Just thinking about it made my blood boil.
I was about to close the file when something caught my eye. The last page. A picture. It was a younger version of Kale standing outside what looked like an elementary school. He couldn't have been older than ten years old.
A woman stood beside him. His mother, maybe. The picture was old and blurry, but something about her face felt familiar. I zoomed in and waited for the image to sharpen.
Then I froze. My heart stopped for a second.
"No fucking way." My voice came out louder than I intended.
"What?" the guys asked. They immediately walked over, leaning over the couch to see my screen. I pointed at the picture. "Kale's mother is Mrs. Hart."
Their faces dropped. "What?!"
"I gotta find Dad." I jumped up from my seat and rushed out of the room. I could hear the guys following behind me.
Because if Mrs. Hart was connected to Kale...then this entire situation was much bigger than we thought.
Ales Pov~
"This is Ales, my oldest. Kalani, Kaia, and Raf. Just a few of the kids," Dad introduced his brother to us. "This is officially your Uncle Gabe."
I was always a little shy around new people, but there was something different about him. His aura and demeanor were calm and smooth. He carried himself with a confidence that didn't feel intimidating.
He gave us an effortless smile, the kind of smile that probably made women fall at his feet and do anything to get his attention.
"Nice to finally meet you all," he said warmly. "I know I have years of catching up to do with everyone, but I plan to work hard at it."
Kalani and Kaia smiled back, which was rare when meeting someone new. They even gave him a small nod of approval. That was basically their version of a welcome.
"I'm sorry it took so long for us to finally know about you," I said with a small smile. "But I have a feeling we're all going to get along just fine." I looped my arm through my new uncle's and started dragging him away from the chaos.
He laughed, allowing me to pull him along without a fight. Before leaving, he turned around and waved goodbye to Dad. This uncle was different from my other ones. He was calm. He was untouched by the darker parts of the Mafia world.
Someone I could actually connect with. I wanted to hear about his life. The places he had traveled. The experiences he had. The freedom he had before being tied to this family business.
Not that I didn't love my family. I did. But sometimes I wondered what life would have been like without all the danger surrounding us.
"Hey, wait up." I looked back and saw Raf jogging toward us. Of course he wanted to be part of this. Gabriel looked between us with amusement. "Should I be scared?"
I smiled. "No. We're the nice children." I paused, glancing back toward the house. "You should be scared of the rest of them."
His laugh echoed through the hallway. "Good to know."
AJ Pov~
I ran straight to my dad, barely slowing down as I pushed through the room.
“Dad.” My voice came out breathless. His eyes immediately locked onto mine, his expression shifting from curiosity to alertness. He knew by my tone that this wasn’t some small discovery.
“Kale’s mother…” I started, trying to catch my breath. “It’s Mrs. Hart.” For a moment, silence filled the room.
My dad’s eyes narrowed, his entire demeanor changing instantly. The calm father disappeared, replaced by the man everyone feared. “The woman from the house?” he asked.
I nodded quickly. “The files had an old picture of Kale when he was a kid. She was standing right beside him. It’s her.”
His jaw tightened, and the room seemed to grow colder. Then his voice dropped, firm and commanding. “Bring Mrs. Hart here. Now.”
I didn’t hesitate. “Yes, sir.” I turned and ran back toward the others, my mind racing. The boys followed right behind me, and within seconds we were moving.
Finally. We were getting closer to the answers we had been chasing for so long. The strange behavior. The obsession. The reason Kale targeted Ales.
Everything had to connect somehow.
But the hardest part was accepting the possibility that the answers might come from someone we never suspected.
Mrs. Hart.
The sweet little old woman who welcomed us into her home. The woman who smiled kindly and acted like she couldn’t hurt a fly. She didn’t seem like someone who could raise a psychopath.
But then again...maybe that was exactly why we never saw it coming.
Because monsters don’t always look like monsters.