Chapter 3 - THE BROKEN MASK
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I gently set Sophia down on the large wooden prep table in the warm, brightly lit kitchen.
The sweet girl winced in pain as the cold air touched her exposed, torn feet.
I immediately grabbed three thick white towels from the linen pantry and wrapped them snugly around her small shoulders.
"Claire, am I in trouble?" she whispered, her lip quivering as hot tears rolled down her rosy cheeks.
"Never, my sweet princess," I murmured, kissing her damp forehead. "You did nothing wrong."
I filled a porcelain basin with warm water, soothing lavender oil, and gentle antiseptic soap.
Every time the warm sponge touched her scraped heels, she flinched, clutching my apron with trembling fingers.
Outside in the hallway, the heavy footsteps of Luca's armed guards echoed against the marble floor.
Ten minutes later, the kitchen door swung open, and Luca walked in accompanied by Dr. Evans.
The doctor immediately knelt on the floor, opening his black leather medical bag to examine Sophia's feet.
"Superficial lacerations, mild hypothermia, and severe bruising, Luca," Dr. Evans reported grimly after a careful inspection.
"Another twenty minutes barefoot in this freezing downpour, and she would have contracted severe pneumonia."
Luca stood beside the table, gently stroking Sophia's wet hair with a tenderness that defied his terrifying reputation.
"Thank you, Doctor. Dress the wounds and give her something warm for the pain."
Suddenly, Matteo, Luca's second-in-command, burst through the swinging kitchen doors holding an iPad.
"Boss, the principal just uploaded the high-definition security feed from the school's west gate," Matteo announced.
Luca took the tablet, his jaw clenching so hard that the muscles in his neck strained against his collar.
I stepped closer, holding Sophia's hand, and caught a glimpse of the illuminated screen.
The crystal-clear footage showed Vanessa stepping outside the school gate at precisely two o'clock.
She was holding Sophia's navy blue school shoes in her left hand, smiling casually in her cashmere trench coat.
A sleek gray sedan with dark tinted windows pulled smoothly to the curb beside her.
A tall, heavily built man in a leather jacket rolled down his window and exchanged words with Vanessa.
She leaned in, laughed, and tossed Sophia's shoes onto the passenger seat.
Then, she pointed directly down the deserted residential avenue leading toward the highway.
"Zoom in on the driver's hand on the steering wheel," Luca commanded in a terrifyingly flat monotone.
Matteo tapped the screen, magnifying the grainy image until the man's wrist filled the display.
Coiled around the driver's thick wrist was a distinct tattoo of a two-headed viper striking an open bleeding heart.
Sophia gasped loudly from the table, pointing her small finger at the frozen image.
"That's him, Daddy! That's the man with the snake tattoo!"
Luca closed his eyes for two slow seconds, exhaling a breath that sounded like grinding steel.
"The Russo syndicate," Luca whispered, his voice vibrating with absolute venom.
"She didn't just abandon my child in the rain to punish her for keeping Elena's photograph."
"She sold my daughter's exact location to the family that swore to eradicate our bloodline."
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Luca handed the tablet back to Matteo and turned toward the kitchen door with murderous calm.
"Matteo, drag my wife down to the basement cellar right now."
