Rain brushed the windows of the old guest wing,
soft and steady.
The fireplace was lit,
throwing a faint glow over the silver clock on the mantel.
It ticked like it had been waiting years for tonight.
Luca had called in a small circle.
Among them—one familiar face.
Elena.
University of Milan. Nights in the lab,
equations scrawled across glass boards,
coffee gone cold on steel tables.
Bright, capable. Not much of a climber.
Still carried that faint trace of innocence in her eyes.
She stepped in, scanning the room.
Black satin dress to the knee, silver chain at her throat,
a clutch clamped in her hand.
"Luca…" Soft, low.
"It's been a while. Heard you were back.
Didn't think you'd call me yourself."
There was a tremor in it—half warmth, half memory.
He handed her a glass.
"I need your mind.
One job, and you won't have to think about money again."
The tone was all business.
The look in his eyes wasn't.
She smiled, a little crooked.
"You still talk like that. Thought you might've changed."
"I have. What I need hasn't."
From the hallway, someone watched.
Bianca.
Leaning in the shadow, arms folded.
Her eyes moved from Luca to Elena, slow and deliberate.
Not looking at her like a guest.
Looking at her like a problem to size up.
Elena excused herself.
The corridor emptied.
Bianca crossed to him.
"That one… part of your 'team'?"
"Yeah. She's good."
"Good for her brain? Or for something else?"
Luca took his time answering. A sip, then—
"Jealous?"
She let out a dry laugh.
"Hardly. I just don't like not knowing."
Their eyes held. Hers—sharp heat.
His—amused, like watching a match burn.
The bathroom door opened. Elena was back.
Bianca's smile was polite. Too polite.
Luca turned back to his guest, voice smooth,
as if nothing had passed.
Later, in his study,
the schematics were spread across the desk.
Formulas, chemical routes, equipment lists.
Elena's handwriting in the margins.
Upstairs, Bianca sat in her room with the lights still on.
Moonlight bled across the carpet.
Her eyes caught the light, bright and dangerous.
Jealousy—yes. But also something else.
A decision.