Then his gaze shifted, catching sight of someone pushing through the crowd. A tall man in a sharply tailored navy suit, moving quickly toward us. The soldiers near the door hadn't stopped him. No one had stopped him. He moved through that room the way only a man with his own army at his back could move through another family's territory: without permission and without apology.
"Lorenzo Marchetti?" Nico narrowed his eyes, clearly annoyed. "What the hell are you doing here? Don't tell me you're interested in Seraphina now. She's not exactly in demand anymore."
Lorenzo and Nico had come from the same place. The same dirt-poor fishing village on the southern coast, the same nothing beginnings. Back then, Nico had always looked down on him, mocking him, calling him a nobody, a peasant who would never amount to anything.
Lorenzo simply offered a calm, polite smile. Cool. Controlled.
He didn't even bother looking at Nico.
Eventually, my father regained consciousness, letting out a weak groan. With careful hands, people helped him to his feet and guided him away, escorting him to a quiet room deeper in the estate where he could rest. Two of his oldest soldiers flanked him without being asked, one of them murmuring into a phone, calling the family doctor.
"Where are the twins?" someone suddenly asked, breaking the tension.
"I think they went to get their admission letters," another replied uncertainly.
At that exact moment, the grand doors at the front of the hall swung open.
Two teenagers walked in.
Tessa and Adrian.
They had grown over the years, filled out a little, their features more defined now, but their smiles were still the same. Bright. Familiar. Once full of warmth.
But the moment their eyes landed on me, everything changed.
Their expressions hardened.
They turned away.
Without hesitation, they ran straight toward Nico.
"Dad!" Tessa beamed, throwing her arms around him. "Aunt Giada! We did it! We both got in!"
Nico's face lit up with pride. "I knew you would," he said warmly. "I'm so proud of you both."
After embracing them, he guided them gently to sit, his voice dropping to something soft and deliberate. "Kids… from now on, don't call Giada 'Aunt' anymore."
He paused just long enough to make the moment land.
"Call her 'Mom.'"