Chapter 7 - THE LETTER INSIDE THE RABBIT
I didn’t sleep that night.
Not because I wasn’t tired.
I was exhausted.
But every time I closed my eyes, I saw those six words.
Protect her from the Morettis.
The message was hidden inside Mia’s stuffed rabbit.
A toy she had carried since she was a baby.
A toy Daniel had given her.
A toy I never thought twice about.
Until now.
I sat at the edge of the bed, holding the small piece of paper between my fingers.
My hands were shaking.
Because suddenly every memory felt different.
Every unanswered question.
Every strange moment.
Every time Daniel disappeared for hours and refused to explain where he had been.
Maybe there had always been something bigger happening.
Something I was never allowed to see.
The next morning, I went straight to Lorenzo.
I didn’t knock.
I didn’t wait.
I walked into his room holding the letter.
His expression changed immediately.
“What happened?”
I placed the paper on the table.
“Do you know this handwriting?”
Lorenzo stared.
And the color disappeared from his face.
“Where did you get this?”
“It was inside Mia’s rabbit.”
He picked up the paper carefully.
Like it was something fragile.
Like it could break him.
“This is Daniel’s handwriting.”
My heart sank.
“Are you sure?”
“I would recognize it anywhere.”
He looked at the words again.
“Protect her from the Morettis.”
Then he whispered:
“Why would he write this?”
I looked directly at him.
“That’s what I’m asking.”
For the first time since I met him, Lorenzo looked powerless.
Not because of his injuries.
Because he didn’t have the answers.
“I need to tell you something,” he said.
I waited.
“Daniel didn’t trust many people.”
“Apparently not even his own family.”
Lorenzo looked down.
“You don’t understand.”
“Then explain.”
He was quiet for a moment.
Then he said:
“Daniel believed someone inside the Moretti family was dangerous.”
The room became silent.
I crossed my arms.
“Who?”
Lorenzo didn’t answer.
That was the answer.
Later that day, Isabella came to my room.
She closed the door behind her.
“We need to talk.”
I looked at her.
“About Daniel?”
She nodded.
“I knew this day would come.”
That sentence made my stomach tighten.
“You knew?”
She looked away.
“Yes.”
My anger rose.
“You knew who I was?”
Isabella didn’t deny it.
“I suspected.”
“So you hired me knowing I was Daniel’s girlfriend?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Her answer shocked me.
“Because Lorenzo needed someone who would make him fight.”
I stared at her.
“That makes no sense.”
“It does.”
She stepped closer.
“Before your daughter arrived, Lorenzo had already given up.”
I looked at her.
“He wasn’t trying to wake up.”
Isabella’s voice became softer.
“But your daughter reached him.”
I wanted to believe that was the whole truth.
I wanted to believe Mia was just special.
But deep inside, I knew there was more.
That evening, Elena found me.
She looked nervous.
“Clara.”
“What?”
“There’s something you should know.”
I waited.
“Someone has been accessing Lorenzo’s medical records.”
My heart tightened.
“Who?”
Elena handed me a printed report.
At the bottom was a name.
A name I recognized.
Victor Hale.
I looked at Elena.
“Who is he?”
Her face turned serious.
“Someone Lorenzo trusted.”
“That’s impossible.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“That’s exactly why it’s dangerous.”
That night, I checked on Mia.
She was asleep.
Her rabbit was beside her.
I reached for it.
Then stopped.
Because I noticed something.
The rabbit had been repaired.
The torn stitching near the ear was different.
Someone had opened it.
Someone had put the letter inside.
And someone had closed it again.
I stepped back.
Because that meant one thing.
May you like
The letter wasn’t hidden there by accident.
Someone wanted Mia to find it.
