POV: Rafael DeLuca Milan, Miraggio Tower, Level 44, 7:12 a.m.
The autumn breeze slipped through the glass seams of the tall windows, stirring the gray linen curtains that rarely moved. Rafael sat on the edge of a sleek black desk, an unlit cigarette between his fingers. His gaze wasn't on the awakening skyline of Milan but on the holographic screen before him.
Ariella's face stared back. Frozen. A still frame from the underground CCTV in Florence — right before she and the masked man disappeared into darkness.
Seventy-six hours.
And their family breathed like nothing was missing.
Rafael leaned closer, his fingers brushing the edge of her photo. "You really made this choice, Ella?" he whispered. "Kael Morreti?"
His jaw tightened.
The world knew Kael as a weapon — a living ghost, loyal to no one. But Rafael knew more. He knew who that man was before the legend took form. And that's exactly why… he couldn't rest.
Because Kael didn't protect people — unless they were worth more than his own life.
And Ariella... their baby sister who used to hide under the grand piano whenever Matteo and Giuliano fought, was now the eye of the storm.
He exhaled slowly. A memory drifted back like smoke.
[Flashback – 13 years ago]
Ariella was nine, crouched beneath the glass staircase of the DeLuca Villa. Her face was messy with melting ice cream and tears.
"Matteo said Mama left because I was bad," she murmured.
Rafael, then nineteen, stood in front of her. Silent.
He didn't know what to say. But he knew one thing — of all their siblings, only Ariella knew what it was like to lose someone without a choice.
He knelt and handed her a handkerchief. "Don't listen to him. Matteo only knows how to hit, not how to think."
A small smile. Rafael... if I disappear one day, will you come find me?"
He didn't answer.
But he never forgot that day.
[Back to Present – Milan]
"She disappeared on her own. She made her choice."
The rough voice shattered the office's silence.
Rafael didn't have to look. He knew who it was.
Matteo.
The eldest stood at the doorway, his black coat still on. His fierce eyes scanned the room like he was searching for something — or someone — to blame.
"Never learned to knock?" Rafael asked without emotion.
"I didn't come here for manners. I came to ask you to do your job."
Rafael raised an eyebrow. "My job? Or Father's?"
Matteo stepped forward. In his hand, a digital tablet — loaded with coordinates and encrypted data.
"Project LUNA is active. I need your system to lock down all digital movements within a 200km radius of Florence. Kael can't get out. And if Ariella's with him... then she made her choice."
Rafael took his time responding.
"So now you want to kill her?"
"If she's a liability — yes."
"She's our sister."
"She's a traitor."
Rafael's eyes darkened. But this time, he saw something different in Matteo's expression — something beneath the anger.
"Matteo…" he said quietly. "You're angry. But you don't hate her."
Matteo remained silent.
Rafael stepped closer. "You didn't come just for data. You came because you're scared. But you're too damn stubborn to admit it."
Matteo's jaw clenched. "I love her, Raf. But you know how our father operates. If I disobey, I lose everything."
"What exactly are you defending — if the only sister we have left is hunted like an animal?"
Matteo looked away. His breaths were shallow, uneven. His grip on the tablet tightened like he was trying to crush the emotion from his bones.
"If I find her first…" Matteo's voice cracked. "…I'll make sure she doesn't fall any deeper. I'll protect her — in my own way."
"And that way might get her killed."
Matteo met his gaze. There was pain in those eyes — not from hatred, but from loss. From love turned sour. From helplessness.
"She's my sister too, Raf. But this time… she crossed a line she can't come back from."
Rafael slowly stood, facing his brother. The air between them grew dense.
"If you're serious about killing her, Matteo…" Rafael said quietly, "make sure I don't get there first."
Matteo's eyes narrowed. "What the hell does that mean?"
"It means I never supported Father's reign like you did. And if you think I'll help destroy someone who once called me 'brother,' then you never knew me at all."
"So you're betraying us too?"
"No. I just refuse to be a puppet."
Matteo slammed the tablet onto the desk. "You've always liked playing with fire, Rafael. But this time… the fire's in our house."
He turned and stormed out, leaving the door swinging behind him.
Rafael stood there for a long moment, then turned back to the screen — Ariella's image still lingering.
He pressed a hidden button beneath the desk. A small red dot appeared on a secondary display — somewhere on the outskirts of Florence. Not precise, but enough.
Ariella was alive.
And more importantly — Matteo didn't know what Rafael knew.
Rafael pulled out a burner phone from the drawer. An old, untraceable device — used only when trust no longer existed.
He typed a single message:
//ACTIVATE PLAN B — "LUNA is a decoy. I'll reach her before they do."
Recipient: Unnamed. Code only.
RAVEN.
He stared at the name for a beat. Raven — a codename not used in over ten years. An operative long erased from DeLuca records. But Rafael had kept the line open.
And now… it was time.
He sat again, reaching into his wallet and pulling out a faded handkerchief — the same one he'd given Ariella years ago. The fabric was worn, the edges folded from habit. He kept it close.
Because if he ever forgot who Ariella was…He'd become like Matteo. And if he became like Matteo…
He'd become Salvatore.
And Rafael DeLuca had sworn a long time ago — he'd rather die than become that man.
Outside the window, the Milan fog was rising.
Rafael leaned back, calm. But his eyes were sharp.
He knew time was running out. And this war wasn't just about Kael or Ariella anymore.
It was about the legacy of the DeLuca name — and which brother would be left standing when it ended.
"If Matteo finds her first, she'll bleed. If I find her first... maybe, just maybe, she'll live."