Bramantya's footsteps felt leaden as he entered his own home. However, the silence that greeted him felt eerie. The metallic stench of blood stung his nostrils. Bram's eyes widened in horror as he found his wife and eldest daughter lying lifeless. Single gunshot wounds to the head—a clean, cold execution.
"My God... Clara! Maura!" Bram's scream broke the silence. He fell to his knees, cradling their stiff bodies with heart-wrenching sobs. "Why did you leave me so soon?"
In the midst of the soul-crushing grief, a thought flashed: Elora!
"El! Come out, sweetheart! Where are you?!" Bram shouted in frustration, scouring every corner of the room, his breath coming in gasps.
He flung open closet doors one by one until he finally found Elora. The fifteen-year-old girl was curled up in the corner of a wardrobe, asleep from sheer exhaustion after the immense shock. When she woke, her body was still trembling violently. Her swollen eyes stared at the red scrawls on the walls of their home.
TRAITOR! WE WILL FIND YOU.
YOU DESERVE TO DIE.
YOU ARE THE ONE WHO KILLED SAMUEL.
Bramantya could only let out a long, heavy sigh; a massive weight now pressed down on his shoulders. That very night, he buried his wife and child in a single grave in total secrecy. Elora screamed hysterically, struggling as she watched her mother and sister placed into the same casket.
"We have to leave, El. Now," Bram whispered firmly, pulling his daughter away from the graveside. They packed in silence and vanished into the darkness of the night, heading for a place where no one could find them.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, Kenzo set foot in Italy under a bright sun. He headed straight for the grand estate of his grandfather, Lorenzo de Luca.
"Kenzo! My grandson, you've grown so much," Lorenzo greeted him in his signature baritone. "Let's speak Indonesian so you feel at home."
Kenzo could no longer hold back his emotions. He ran and hugged his grandfather, who still looked powerful despite his advancing years. Lorenzo returned the embrace, but his eyes searched for another figure.
"Where is your mother, Ken? Where is Maria?" Lorenzo asked hopefully.
Kenzo looked down, tears slowly beginning to fall. "Mama... Mama is dead, Grandpa."
"What?!" Lorenzo growled, a flash of fury igniting in his eyes. Maria was his only daughter, his pride and joy. "How? Explain it to me!"
With a trembling voice, Kenzo told him everything. The strange noises every night, the bruises covering his mother's body, and the final torture inflicted by Samuel.
"Scoundrel! Bastard!" Lorenzo roared, slamming the table until it cracked. "You did the right thing, Ken. Samuel deserved to die at your hands!"
"But Grandpa... someone saved me. He was Papa's friend, but he chose to help me. I'm so worried about him. Do you have someone who can protect him in Indonesia?" Kenzo asked anxiously.
Lorenzo shook his head slowly. "No, Ken. All my men are here in Italy. We can only hope he is clever enough to stay hidden."
The following years were a physical hell for Kenzo. Under Lorenzo's oversight, Kenzo was forged through brutal discipline. He spent his days in firearms training, Taekwondo, boxing, and grueling gym sessions. Kenzo drowned his sorrow in sweat and hard work.
Time passed, and Kenzo was no longer the innocent, terrified teenager. He grew tall, his body built with solid, six-pack muscles. His shooting skills reached a professional level; he never missed.
Now, Kenzo sat in his grandfather's seat of power, overseeing their business empire: the largest casino in Italy. There, he faced hardened men who often turned violent when they lost. But with one sharp look from Kenzo, the bodyguards knew exactly when to drag the troublemaker out.
"How is it? Are you getting used to running the casino?" Lorenzo asked, pouring expensive whisky into Kenzo's glass.
"Not entirely, Grandpa. I still have a lot to learn," Kenzo replied calmly, his voice now deep and authoritative.
"Moreno will help you. Years ago, your mother wanted to run this place, but I forbade it because I never trusted that madman Samuel," Lorenzo said bitterly.
"But Papa was good to me," Kenzo murmured briefly.
"That's because you were his flesh and blood. But he was still a monster to your mother," Lorenzo countered bluntly.
That night, after a long day at the casino, Kenzo stood on his balcony overlooking the city of Rome. His thoughts drifted far across the ocean, back to that bloody night in Indonesia.
"What happened to you, Uncle Bram?" he whispered to the night wind. Kenzo had no idea that his savior was currently living a life just as bitter as his own, all to protect him.