Luca immediately stepped forward.
Alessandro raised a hand.
The men stopped.
Vittorio smiled.
"Good night, little brother."
Alessandro looked at him.
"You have no idea what Father left behind."
Vittorio's smile faded.
"Neither do you."
"Perhaps."
Alessandro turned.
"But I know where to look."
***
The next morning, Elena received a phone call from the hospital.
Daniel had collapsed during a routine examination.
His condition had worsened.
The doctors wanted to perform an urgent procedure.
She reached the hospital in less than twenty minutes.
"Where is he?" she asked the nurse.
"Room 412."
"Is he conscious?"
"Yes."
She ran down the corridor.
Daniel was lying in bed, pale but awake.
When he saw her, he smiled.
"Hey."
She took his hand.
"What happened?"
"Apparently my heart decided to become dramatic."
"Don't joke."
"Sorry."
The doctor entered.
"Miss Rossi?"
She stood.
"Yes."
"We need to discuss your brother's condition."
They stepped outside.
"The latest tests show that his heart function has deteriorated. We recommend intervention as soon as possible."
"How much?"
The doctor hesitated.
"With the procedure, hospitalization, and recovery, the estimated cost is significant."
"How much?"
He gave her the number.
Elena felt her knees weaken.
It was more money than she had ever seen in her life.
"Is there any financial assistance?"
"We can discuss payment arrangements, but the procedure cannot wait indefinitely."
She nodded.
"Give me a day."
The doctor looked concerned.
"Miss Rossi—"
"One day."
She returned to Daniel's room.
He watched her face.
"How bad?"
"Manageable."
"Elena."
"Don't start."
"You're lying."
She sat beside him.
For a moment, she wanted to tell him everything.
The Moretti family.
The photograph.
The threat.
The man who might have known their father better than either of them.
Instead, she squeezed his hand.
"I'm going to fix it."
Daniel looked at her.
"You always try to fix everything."
"Someone has to."
He smiled weakly.
"Maybe let someone help you this time."
Elena looked away.
Her phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
She answered.
"Hello?"
"Miss Rossi."
Alessandro.
She recognized his voice immediately.
"What do you want?"
"I heard about your brother."
She froze.
"How?"
"Your father's old contacts still have people watching over the family."
"That sounds like surveillance."
"It probably is."
"Then stop."
"I can arrange the operation."
Elena closed her eyes.
"No."
"Listen to me."
"I said no."
"This isn't charity."
"Then what is it?"
"A debt."
"My father is dead. You don't owe me anything."
"I owe him."
She looked toward Daniel.
The young man was watching her.
"How much?" she asked.
Alessandro gave her the amount.
She almost laughed.
"Why would you pay that?"
"Because I can."
"And what do you want in return?"
"Nothing from your brother."
"That's not what I asked."
A pause.
"I want the truth."
Elena looked down at her hands.
"About my father?"
"Yes."
She swallowed.
"Then I'll make a deal with you."
"Go on."
"You pay for Daniel's treatment. You give me access to everything you know about my father's death. And you never use my brother to control me."
Alessandro answered immediately.
"Agreed."
"One more condition."
"Yes?"
"If you discover your brother ordered my father's death, you give me the evidence."
Alessandro was silent.
"Not a promise," she said. "Evidence."
"I understand."
"Good."
She ended the call.
Then she looked at Daniel.
"You're getting your operation."
He stared at her.
"How?"
Elena looked toward the window.
"Someone is paying an old debt."
***
Three days later, Daniel underwent surgery.
Elena waited outside the operating room with a paper cup of coffee she never drank.
Luca sat several chairs away.
He had insisted on staying.
She had refused twice.
He had ignored her both times.
"Does your boss always send bodyguards to hospitals?" she asked.
"Only when people are in danger."
"Am I in danger?"
Luca looked at her.
"Yes."
She sighed.
"Wonderful."
He almost smiled.
"You're handling this better than most people."
"I have a brother who needs me. Fear is expensive."
Luca studied her.
"You really were a nurse?"
"Almost."
"What happened?"
"Life."
He nodded.
After a while, Elena asked:
"Did you know my father?"
Luca's expression changed.
"Yes."
"What was he like?"
"Brave."
"Everyone says that about dead people."
"Then let me tell you something less flattering."
She looked at him.
"He was stubborn. He argued with your father about money. He refused to accept gifts. Once, he made Alessandro wait three hours because he believed a financial report had been altered."
Elena smiled faintly.
"That sounds like him."
"He also made the boss laugh."
"That's difficult to imagine."
"Very."
Luca leaned back.
"Your father was one of the few people who could tell Alessandro he was wrong without fearing the consequences."
Elena looked toward the operating room.
"Then why didn't Alessandro protect him?"
Luca had no answer.
An hour later, the surgeon emerged.
The operation had gone well.
Daniel was stable.
Elena covered her mouth.
For the first time in years, she cried without trying to hide it.
Luca stood and stepped aside.