Chapter 4 - THE NAME HIDDEN IN MY MOTHER’S JOURNAL
The sentence written inside the old black notebook felt like a knife cutting through everything I believed.
If my daughter is alive, keep her away from the Viscari family.
I read it again.
And again.
But the words refused to change.
My hands trembled.
“My mother wrote this?”
Adrien didn’t answer immediately.
That scared me more than anything.
Because Adrien Viscari was a man who always had an answer.
A man who controlled every room he entered.
But now…
He looked uncertain.
“That handwriting belongs to your mother,” he finally said.
“How do you know?”
His eyes moved to the notebook.
“Because I’ve seen it before.”
A cold feeling moved through me.
“When?”
Adrien looked away.
“Twenty years ago.”
The room became silent.
I stood up despite the pain.
“You knew my mother?”
“Yes.”
The answer came too quickly.
Too honestly.
My chest tightened.
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I didn’t know who you were.”
I laughed bitterly.
“You expect me to believe that?”
“No.”
His honesty surprised me.
“I expect you to be angry.”
I stared at him.
“You’re right.”
My voice shook.
“I am angry.”
I walked closer.
“My entire life, I thought I knew my story. I thought my mother died. I thought Marcus was the only person lying to me.”
I held up the notebook.
“But now I find out everyone has been hiding something.”
Adrien didn’t defend himself.
He just stood there and accepted my anger.
That somehow made it worse.
“Who was my mother afraid of?”
Adrien’s jaw tightened.
“Someone who wanted power.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“No.”
He looked at me.
“It’s a warning.”
Before I could respond, the door opened.
Marco stepped inside.
The same man who had brought the photograph.
“Adrien, we found the person who shot at the house.”
Adrien turned.
“Who?”
Marco hesitated.
“A former Viscari soldier.”
The room froze.
“Name?”
“Victor Moretti.”
Adrien’s expression changed.
I noticed it immediately.
“You know him.”
Adrien nodded slowly.
“He was my father’s most trusted man.”
My stomach twisted.
“Your family was involved.”
Adrien looked at me.
“Maybe.”
That was the first time I saw something behind his cold expression.
Pain.
Regret.
“Twenty years ago, my father died.”
He paused.
“Three days later, your mother disappeared.”
I swallowed.
“What happened?”
Adrien walked toward the window.
“My father was planning to expose someone inside our organization.”
“Who?”
He looked back at me.
“That’s what your mother spent her life trying to discover.”
A phone rang.
Marco answered.
His face changed.
“Adrien…”
“What?”
“It’s Marcus.”
My heart stopped.
“He’s calling?”
Marco nodded.
“He wants to speak with Lena.”
Adrien took the phone.
“No.”
A voice came through the speaker.
Marcus.
“Still protecting her, Viscari?”
Adrien’s eyes turned cold.
“You have five seconds.”
Marcus laughed.
“You don’t understand what she is.”
Adrien said nothing.
Marcus continued.
“She isn’t just some woman you rescued from an abusive boyfriend.”
My hands clenched.
“She’s the missing piece.”
Adrien’s expression hardened.
“What did you do?”
Marcus laughed.
“I didn’t do anything.”
A pause.
“But the people who hired me did.”
My blood ran cold.
“Hired you?”
Adrien stepped forward.
“Who?”
Silence.
Then Marcus whispered:
“The people who killed her mother.”
The call ended.
Nobody spoke.
Then Adrien looked at me.
And I knew.
May you like
This was no longer about Marcus.
This was much bigger.
