Aria's heart raced so fast she thought she might pass out. The grocery bag was slipping from her hand, but she didn't move. Couldn't move.
Luciano De Rossi stood just a few feet away, looking like something from a dream or a nightmare. His gray blue eyes locked on hers. Not angry. Not shocked. Just calm. Cold. In control.
Like he had planned this moment for a long time.
"Take the boys home," he said, his voice quiet but sharp.
Aria blinked. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me." He looked down at the twins. "They shouldn't hear what I'm about to say to you."
She moved in front of her sons like a shield. "You don't talk to them. You don't even look at them."
A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "They're mine. I'll look if I want to."
Nico peeked around her, staring at Luca with wide eyes. "Mom… who is that?"
Aria swallowed hard. "No one."
Luca's gaze turned sharp. "Don't lie to them."
"I'm not lying," she snapped. "I'm protecting them."
A few people were beginning to notice the tension. A couple on a bench glanced over. A man walking his dog slowed down.
Luciano noticed too. He stepped closer to her, lowering his voice.
"Go home. I'll come by tonight. We can talk then."
"We're not talking. There's nothing to say."
He leaned in so close she could feel his breath on her cheek. "You kept my sons from me for five years. There's everything to say."
Aria flinched.
Then she turned and walked away, dragging the boys behind her.
But she could feel his eyes on her back the entire way.
Back at Home
The twins were quiet.
Too quiet.
Aria unpacked the groceries with trembling hands. The boys sat at the kitchen table, staring at each other like they were trying to talk with their minds.
Finally, Nino asked, "Mom… is that man our dad?"
Aria stopped moving.
She looked at them. Their little faces were full of confusion and curiosity. Her throat felt tight.
"Yes," she said quietly. "That's him."
Nico blinked. "The one you told us about? The one who didn't know?"
She nodded.
Neither of them said anything for a long moment.
Then Nino whispered, "Is he gonna take us away?"
"No," she said quickly. "I won't let him."
But even as she said it, she wasn't sure.
Could she stop him?
Luciano had power. Money. People who did what he said with no questions asked. He could take her to court. He could threaten her. He could make her disappear and no one in this town would ever know what happened.
She was completely exposed.
That Night
She didn't sleep.
She didn't even sit down.
She kept checking the windows. Locked the doors. Made the boys sleep in her room, even though they didn't understand why.
At 10:02 p.m., the knock came.
Three slow, deliberate knocks.
She stood in the hallway, frozen. The boys were already asleep. She had no choice.
She walked to the door and opened it.
Luca stood there in the dark. No guards. No car behind him. Just him.
"I could've broken the door down," he said calmly. "But I'm trying to be polite."
She stepped outside and closed the door behind her.
"You need to leave."
"We need to talk."
"Not here. Not now."
He tilted his head. "You had five years to disappear. You chose this life. This town. You chose to raise my sons in secret. And now you think you get to choose when I speak to you?"
"I chose to protect them!" she hissed. "You think I wanted this? I didn't even know your last name, Luca. You disappeared. You never even...."
"I didn't know," he said, voice like stone. "You could've told me."
"I didn't know you. How could I trust you?"
He stepped closer.
"You don't have to trust me. But you don't get to hide my blood from me."
She turned her face away, breathing hard.
"They're not yours," she whispered. "Not like that. You weren't there when they were born. You weren't there when Nico had a fever so high I thought he'd die. You weren't there when Nino cried because the other kids had dads. You weren't there for any of it."
He was silent.
Then: "I'm here now."
Aria looked up, her eyes wet.
"Why? Why now?"
He didn't answer right away.
"Because I saw a picture. Because Matteo tracked you. Because I looked into a file and saw two boys with my face and your eyes. And I knew."
"You knew… what?"
He leaned in. "That you were mine. And they were mine. And I was done waiting."
Her knees went weak.
"I'm not going back to that world," she said. "Not ever."
"I'm not giving you a choice."
She stared at him in horror.
"You're a monster."
"No," he said softly. "I'm a father."
The Next Day
Luciano returned.
He knocked at 8:00 a.m., dressed like a businessman this time—black coat, dress shoes, clean-shaven.
The boys opened the door.
Nico blinked. "You came back."
"I said I would."
Nino frowned. "Are you… gonna take us?"
Luciano crouched down to their level.
"Not unless your mother agrees."
Aria stood in the doorway, arms crossed.
"Don't lie to them."
"I'm not lying. But I will fight for them. You know I will."
They stared at each other.
Then, Luca did something that shocked her.
He reached into his coat and pulled out a tiny wooden car. It was old, hand-carved.
"I used to have this when I was your age," he said, handing it to Nico. "My grandfather made it for me."
The boys stared at the toy, speechless.
"I want to know you," he said quietly. "Both of you."
Nico looked up. "Can we play outside with him, Mom?"
Aria hesitated.
"Just… stay in the yard."
She watched them go, heart in her throat.
Luca didn't follow them right away.
He looked at her.
"I'm staying in town."
Her eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"To give you time. To give them time."
"And if I don't come around?"
He smiled faintly.
"Then I take them to court. And we both lose."
She wanted to scream. Throw something. Hit him.
Instead, she closed the door.
That Night
After dinner, Aria watched from the kitchen window as the boys ran in circles in the yard. Luca was sitting on the porch steps, showing them how to tie knots.
They laughed. Nico climbed into his lap without hesitation.
Her heart cracked.
She wanted them to hate him. To be scared of him. But they weren't. They liked him.
And worse… they looked right with him.
She turned away and wiped her eyes.
That night, she couldn't sleep.
She sat in the boys' room, watching them breathe.
They didn't know what she'd done.
She'd kept him from them. She'd lied. She had chosen fear over truth.
Was she really protecting them?
Or was she just protecting herself?
Two Days Later
Everything changed.
Aria was driving home from work. The boys were at school. The roads were quiet. It was raining lightly.
Her phone buzzed.
Unknown Number.
She let it ring. Then it buzzed again.
She finally answered.
A deep voice spoke.
"You should've told him sooner."
Her heart dropped.
"Who is this?"
"We warned you, Aria. But now the De Rossi twins are in play. You can't protect them."
The line went dead.
She pulled the car over, hands shaking.
She called Luca immediately.
He answered on the first ring.
"Aria?"
"Someone called me. They knew about the boys."
Silence.
"Where are you?" he asked.
"In the car. On Elm and 6th."
"I'm on my way. Don't move."
He hung up.
Her hands were trembling so badly she dropped the phone.
She looked around. Nothing. No cars. No people.
Then she saw it.
A black van turning slowly onto the street.
Her heart stopped.