Chapter 6 - Shadows at the Perimeter
By the afternoon, the Rinaldi estate had settled into a fragile, unprecedented peace.
Serena had managed to herd the quadruplets into the massive indoor sunroom for a mandatory reading hour—a concept the boys initially fought with the fury of trapped wildcats, until Serena introduced a book on ancient siege warfare and medieval weaponry. Now, all four boys sat cross-legged on the plush rug, completely absorbed in descriptions of catapults and castle walls.
From the second-floor balcony overlooking the sunroom, Victor watched them.
Luca, his chief of security—a scarred, heavy-set man with eyes like chipped flint—stepped out of the shadows, holding a secure encrypted phone.
“Boss, we have a situation at the outer gate,” Luca reported in a low murmur. “Men belonging to Salvatore Moretti. They’re probing the perimeter sensors near the north entrance. They know the new nanny arrived yesterday. They’re trying to figure out if you’ve brought a new vulnerability into the house.”
Victor’s jaw tightened, a muscle ticking along his jawline. The dark, dangerous aura that made him a feared syndicate leader flared instantly.
“Increase security to level three,” Victor ordered coldly. “Keep the boys in the secure wing. If Moretti’s men cross the property line, take them down.”
“Understood,” Luca nodded, turning to leave before pausing. “And the Valente woman? Should we brief her? Most civilians panic when they realize they’re sitting in the middle of a war zone.”
Victor looked back down through the iron railing. Below, Serena was pointing at a diagram in the book, laughing at something Marco whispered to her. She didn't look like a terrified civilian. She looked like a woman who had faced too many real storms to care about distant thunder.
“No,” Victor said softly. “Let her finish reading. She has enough battles of her own to fight.”
Down in the sunroom, Serena felt the sudden drop in the room's atmospheric tension. She didn't know about Moretti’s men at the gate, but her instincts—honed by years of living on the knife-edge of poverty and insecurity—spickly warned her that things were shifting.
May you like
She looked up toward the balcony, catching a glimpse of Victor’s dark silhouette before he stepped back inside.
Two weeks, she reminded herself, gripping the edge of the book tightly. Just fourteen days until the court date. Keep your head down, protect the boys, get your paycheck, and save Lucia.
