Chapter 5 - The DNA Test in the Dark
The private subterranean medical suite beneath the Moretti estate smelled faintly of antiseptic and old leather.
Under normal circumstances, this room was used for patching up bullet wounds or conducting discreet interrogations. Tonight, it served a vastly different purpose.
Aleandro stood beside a stainless-steel examination table where Dr. Marcus Vance—a trusted family physician completely independent of the corrupt police force—was carefully packing away a small swab kit.
“The results are definitive, Mr. Moretti,” Dr. Marcus said quietly, handing over a sealed manila folder. “A ninety-nine point nine-nine percent match. The child is yours.”
Aleandro opened the folder. Inside was the genetic breakdown, side-by-side with his own profile that had been stored in the family medical archives for decades. He stared at the numbers, his chest tightening with an emotion he hadn't felt since the day he took his father’s ring.
Two years ago. Sophia had appeared at the estate seeking employment right after a brutal war on the waterfront—a war where enemies had tried to strike at his bloodline. She had kept her head down, worked in the shadows, and raised his child entirely in secret, terrified of what would happen if the mafia world ever discovered Emma existed.
“Where is she?” Aleandro asked, his voice rough.
“In the holding suite next door, Boss. Guarded by our own men,” Dr. Marcus replied. “She’s refusing to speak until she knows her daughter is safe.”
Aleandro nodded tersely. He walked down the short, dimly lit corridor and pushed open the heavy oak door of the holding room.
Sophia was sitting on the edge of a velvet sofa, her hands still bound by plastic zip-ties that Marco had substituted for the police handcuffs. Emma was curled up asleep on the cushions beside her, her tear-stained face buried in her stuffed rabbit.
When the door opened, Sophia flinched, looking up with eyes filled with defiance and terror.
“If you’re here to send us to your enemies, just get it over with,” Sophia whispered fiercely, careful not to wake Emma. “Leave my daughter out of it.”
Aleandro walked slowly into the room, pulling a small pocket knife from his trousers. He knelt before Sophia, ignoring her flinch, and sliced through the plastic ties binding her wrists. He gently took her red, bruised wrists in his large hands, inspecting the damage before looking up into her eyes.
“You hid my child from me for three years, Sophia,” Aleandro said, his voice dangerously low. “Why?”
Sophia pulled her hands away, rubbing her wrists as anger flared in her chest, overriding her fear. “Because I saw what happened to the women in your world, Aleandro! Because I didn't want my daughter growing up surrounded by blood, bullets, and poisoned champagne!”
Aleandro stood up slowly, towering over her. “Valentina was poisoned with digitalis—a rare cardiac glycoside smuggled in from Europe. It wasn't meant for her.”
Sophia froze, her breath catching in her throat. “What?”
“The glass Valentina drank from was swapped at the bar,” Aleandro continued, his eyes narrowing into cold slits. “It was meant for me. Someone in my own house tried to assassinate me tonight. And by making a public spectacle of my daughter, Valentina walked straight into the crosshairs.”
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Sophia stared at him, the horror of the situation finally sinking in. “You think... you think whoever tried to kill you is still inside this estate?”
“I don't think,” Aleandro said, turning toward the door as his secure phone began to vibrate in his pocket. “I know. And now that they’ve threatened my blood, I’m going to tear this estate apart brick by brick until I find them.”
