The words stayed on the page.
Protect the children.
Luca had read them more times than he could count.
Yet somehow, every time he looked at them, they felt heavier.
Because those three words changed the meaning of everything.
For years, he believed his life was shaped by accidents.
His mother disappearing.
Sofia vanishing.
His father's empire collapsing into chaos.
The betrayals.
The losses.
The pain.
He believed he had simply been born into darkness.
But now he was beginning to understand something far more frightening.
Maybe the darkness had started before he was even born.
Maybe someone had been moving pieces long before Luca ever knew there was a game.
And Isabella was standing right beside him, just as confused.
Just as shaken.
"Children," she whispered.
Her eyes remained on the document.
"They were talking about us."
Luca didn't answer immediately.
Because saying it out loud made it more real.
His mother had known.
Her father had known.
Somehow, their families had seen a connection between them before Luca and Isabella had ever met.
But why?
Why would anyone believe two children would one day cross paths?
Why would they need protection?
Unless…
Unless someone knew what was coming.
"I hate this."
Isabella looked at him.
"What?"
"Knowing that people have been making decisions about my life before I even had a chance to make them myself."
The honesty surprised her.
Because Luca was rarely angry about losing control.
He was usually angry about losing power.
This was different.
This was personal.
"They treated us like pieces on a board," she said.
Luca looked at her.
"Yes."
"But we're not."
His eyes softened.
"No."
She stepped closer.
"We choose what happens next."
For a moment, Luca simply looked at her.
Because that was exactly what he needed to hear.
Not someone telling him everything would be okay.
Not someone promising there was no danger.
Someone reminding him that despite everything, he still had a choice.
That night, neither of them slept much.
The discovery had changed the atmosphere between them.
Not because they trusted each other less.
Because they understood the danger more.
Their relationship had started as something unexpected.
A challenge.
A journey.
A decision to spend ninety days exploring a connection neither of them fully understood.
But somewhere along the way, the challenge had become real.
The attraction became attachment.
The curiosity became trust.
And the trust became something neither of them could easily walk away from.
Isabella sat on the edge of the bed, looking through their journal.
The pages were filled with memories.
Not just moments of desire.
Moments of truth.
The first time Luca laughed without forcing it.
The first time he admitted he was afraid.
The first time she realized the dangerous man everyone feared was also someone capable of tenderness.
The first time she saw him choose her.
She smiled sadly.
"Do you ever think about how different things would be if we never met?"
Luca, standing by the window, turned.
"All the time."
The answer surprised her.
"What do you think?"
He walked closer.
"I think I would still be alive."
She frowned.
"Luca."
"But I don't think I would actually be living."
The words were quiet.
But they carried everything.
Before Isabella, Luca existed.
He worked.
He fought.
He survived.
But he didn't allow himself to hope.
He didn't allow himself to need anyone.
She changed that.
And that terrified him more than any enemy.
Because losing her would hurt more than losing anything else.
"You know what scares me?" Isabella asked.
"What?"
"That I don't know where the truth ends and the lies begin."
Luca sat beside her.
"Neither do I."
Another honest answer.
Another reminder that they were facing this together.
"Then maybe we stop looking for answers separately."
He looked at her.
"What do you mean?"
"We stop trying to protect each other from the truth."
A pause.
"No more secrets."
The words hung between them.
Because both of them knew how difficult that would be.
Luca had built his entire life around keeping secrets.
Isabella had spent years accepting the version of her family that was given to her.
But if they wanted to survive this, they needed honesty.
Not half-truths.
Not protection disguised as love.
Everything.
Luca nodded slowly.
"Okay."
She looked surprised.
"That's it?"
"What did you expect?"
"I expected an argument."
A small smile appeared.
"I'm learning."
And that was the thing Isabella loved most about him.
Not that he was perfect.
He wasn't.
But he tried.
The next morning, they returned to the hidden room beneath the old estate.
The place where the first real answers had appeared.
They searched deeper.
Every document.
Every hidden compartment.
Every forgotten record.
Then Marco found something.
"Boss."
The seriousness in his voice made Luca turn.
"What?"
Marco held a small envelope.
"It was hidden behind the wall."
Luca took it.
No name.
No address.
Only one word written on the front.
Isabella.
The room became silent.
Her heart dropped.
"Why is my name on that?"
Luca opened it carefully.
Inside was a letter.
Not from his mother.
Not from her father.
From someone else.
Someone who knew them both.
He read the first line.
And his expression changed.
"What?"
Isabella watched him.
"Luca?"
He handed her the letter.
Her hands trembled as she read.
If you are reading this, then the two people we tried to protect have finally found each other.
She looked up.
Her heartbeat increased.
The letter continued.
We knew one day Luca Moretti and Isabella would meet. We knew the world around them would try to separate them. We knew they would question whether their connection was real.
Isabella looked at Luca.
The next words felt impossible.
But there is one thing they must understand. Their meeting was never planned because of power. It was planned because they are the only two people who can uncover the truth.
Silence.
The letter continued.
The enemy will try to convince them that their love is a weakness. They must never believe it. Their connection is the reason the truth can finally come out.
Isabella lowered the paper.
"This is impossible."
Luca stared ahead.
Because for the first time, he wondered if the thing he feared most was actually the thing that could save him.
Their love.
Their connection.
The very thing someone was trying to destroy.
But then Isabella noticed something.
A final line.
A warning.
She read it aloud.
But beware. The person closest to you is not who they appear to be.
The room went cold.
Luca looked around.
Because suddenly, the danger wasn't just outside.
It wasn't just enemies waiting in the shadows.
It was someone close.
Someone trusted.
Someone who had access to their lives.
And as they stood there, trying to understand the message, Luca's phone buzzed.
Another unknown number.
Another message.
This time, only one sentence.
Ask Isabella what happened the night your mother disappeared.
The silence that followed was different.
Because now the question wasn't about trusting Isabella.
It was about whether there was a part of her story she didn't know herself.
Luca looked at her.
Isabella looked back.
And for the first time since they began their journey…
Both of them wondered if the truth they were chasing would bring them closer.
Or finally tear them apart.