Chapter 7 - Shadows in the Garden
Two weeks after the financial takedown of the Bellini syndicate, the Moretti estate was bathed in the quiet, peaceful serenity of an early summer evening.
The media storm had finally blown over, replaced by society gossip columns speculating endlessly about the upcoming wedding of the year. Security had been doubled around the perimeter, but inside the mansion, the heavy tension of war had evaporated.
Naomi sat on the marble bench in the rear courtyard garden, surrounded by rows of blooming white hydrangeas and fragrant tea roses. Isabella sat beside her in a wheeled motorized chair, listening to the soft murmur of the courtyard fountain.
Footsteps crunched softly on the gravel pathway.
Luca walked toward them, having discarded his suit jacket. He wore a crisp white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, looking more like a normal man and less like the ruler of an underworld empire. He held a small, antique silver music box in his palm.
"What's that?" Naomi asked, looking up as he approached.
"My father bought this for my mother on their tenth anniversary," Luca said softly, kneeling beside Isabella’s chair. He placed the music box on her lap and turned the winding key on the side.
A delicate, hauntingly beautiful melody filled the evening air—the exact opening notes of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, the same song Isabella used to play before the strokes stole her dexterity.
Isabella’s eyes glistened with tears. She reached out with her right hand, her fingers trembling slightly, and tapped a gentle, rhythmic beat against the wood in perfect synchronization with the music box.
Yes, her rhythm said. Peace at last.
May you like
Luca reached over, taking both his mother's frail hand and Naomi's hand in his own large grip. "The prosecutor called an hour ago," Luca said, his voice steady and low. "Marco Bellini has fled the country for South America. His assets are fully seized. We won, Naomi. The house is safe."
"We didn't win because of guns, Luca," Naomi whispered, leaning her head against his shoulder. "We won because we listened."
