Chapter 72: The secrets of flames
The bathroom door slammed against the wall as Luca rushed out, droplets of water still clinging to his damp skin.
His chest heaved as though he had run a mile, his hair tousled and dripping.
He didn’t care... The moment he had heard her scream, instinct had propelled him forward.
He wrapped his arms tightly around Alessia from behind, pulling her into the fortress of his body.
His voice was raw with urgency.
"What is it? Why did you scream?"
Alessia trembled against him, her heartbeat wild, uneven.
She didn’t know how to say it, how to tear open the truth that had been clawing at her soul since Virenkai.
She had rehearsed the words in silence, in whispers to the dark.. but now that his warmth enveloped her, fear nearly silenced her.
"I..." Her voice cracked. "I wanted to tell you this during our midnight conversation, but.... "
"Spill," Luca urged, his hands gripping her waist firmly, his breath hot against her ear. "Spill, my queen. If it’s good, I will celebrate you. If it’s bad, I will never judge you. What happened?"
His words so fierce, so gentle and cut through her hesitation.
Alessia turned in his arms, her eyes glossy with the storm of truth.
"In Virenkai," she whispered, "when I left their apartment and went to the river... the moment water touched my flesh, it revealed something to me."
Luca’s gaze sharpened like steel, every muscle tensed. "Which is?"
Her lips parted, her chest rose and fell rapidly. "Our suspicious is right. Luca... I am the Red Moon Blood Child."
The silence between them throbbed, heavy as thunder.
Alessia waited for him to recoil, to curse fate, to question her loyalty to the Moranos.
But Luca’s reaction was nothing like she feared.
Instead, his lips curved into a slow, breathtaking smile.
He pressed a tender kiss to her forehead, lingering there as though sealing his vow into her skin.
"Regardless of who you are or what you later turn out to be," he murmured, voice velvet, "I love you without wax. I love you for who you are, not what you are."
Her chest tightened, tears threatening to spill.
Peace washed over her like sunlight after a storm.
She held his neck with a soft smile across her face and whispered back, "I love you without wax too.
You turn me on always, my little bad, sexy devil." Luca said and chuckled lowly, his eyes dark with desire, but he tapped her nose playfully. "Careful, my queen. We have our anniversary to plan. Soon, in an hour, our IV will flood the town and become the talk of the century."
Her cheeks flushed crimson.
She melted against him, memorizing the way his love drowned out every fear.
****
Far from Morano’s mansion, the cold torches of Seraphina’s chamber flickered, throwing monstrous shadows across the walls.
Daisy stumbled backward, her breath caught in her throat as the masked stranger kisses her.
"How dare you... " she hissed, trying to summon courage.
The man raised a finger, silencing her.
Then, with a slow deliberate movement, he removed the mask.
Daisy’s breath lodged in her lungs.
"Romeo..."
Her knees weakened.
She rushed into his arms, hugging him so tightly it felt as if the world outside no longer existed.
Her body shook with relief and disbelief.
"I... I’m so happy to see you. How did you even know I was here? Why did you come?"
He kissed the top of her head fiercely. "I will explain later. But right now we need to leave as soon as possible, please have you find any bracelet, since you came into this place.?"
"Yes," she whispered, fumbling in her pocket.
"Good." His eyes darted to the door. "Then let’s get out of here. That’s the exit. And stay quiet."
He clasped her trembling hand, and they slipped into the shadows, running silently, their hearts pounding in unison.
But fate had sharp claws.
They turned a corner and froze.
Seraphina appeared, gliding toward them, her crimson gown brushing against the marble floor.
Her lips curled in an amused smile, a phone pressed to her ear.
Romeo reacted instantly.
He pushed Daisy back and straightened, assuming the posture of a guard on duty.
Daisy mirrored him, her head bowed, hoping
Seraphina wouldn’t look too closely, she stood between them and continued her call.
The woman’s voice oozed malice into the phone.
"I will disguise myself for the Morano anniversary. If the fools I hired can’t bring me what I want, I will go and claim it myself. I will change my look, I will fake my every move, and I will make the Morano’s heart bleed, after I get what I want."
She passed by, laughing loudly, her words dripping venom.
Daisy bit her lip to keep from gasping.
The moment Seraphina disappeared down the hall, Daisy sagged with relief.
Romeo grabbed her hand again. "Come, fast...."
But before they could slip away, iron fingers clamped around their arms.
A guard leaned close, his breath foul.
His eyes gleamed with recognition.
"I know you two moves."
****"
Back at Morano’s mansion, Alessia saw Luca off.
His car rolled away into the morning glow, and she waved, her heart full from his love.
She climbed the staircase, the silence of the house pressing in.
A notification blinked on her phone.
She didn’t open it until she returned to their room.
The message chilled her blood.
"You are the Red Moon Blood Child. Aren’t you willing to work with us? Luca isn’t the man you think he is. Remember you hold the power to his success and his destruction. Why are you still reluctant?"
Alessia’s fingers trembled as she lowered the phone.
Her lips tightened, disdain and unease warring inside her. Who is this person? Why now?
Alessia read the anonymous words three times before the panic that always tried to bloom at the edge of her ribs could find purchase.
The screen glowed too brightly in the dim of her room, each letter a tiny accusation.
For a long, measured second she did nothing not out of fear but out of fierce, collecting calm.
If panic was a splinter, she told herself, she would pull it out clean.
Her thumb hovered over the reply field.
She pictured Luca asleep down the hall, the steady rise of his chest, the slow, permanent way he owned the air in their home.
He was more than a husband, he was the axis around which everything dangerous in her life tilted and fell.
He was her refuge.
She would not let anyone pry.
She typed.
Come out clear. Stop hiding behind shades.
The words were short as a blade. She read them, rearranged them, then hit send. No flourish, No pleading. Only the kind of cold, flawless sentence that belonged to someone who would not be trifled with.
A beat later she added another line, and then another, each one measured with a cruelty she almost surprised herself by wielding
I trust Luca.
If I had the means to his downfall, I would sooner die than wield them.
Luca is my man, my safe haven, and all I have left.
You know what he is capable of, Stop sending the threats.
Don’t give him reason to find you he will, and his punishments are severe.
She read what she’d written and felt the words land with the exact weight she intended.
Not a threat not quite but a map of consequences.
It was a message that left no room for ambiguity.
It smelled of winter and iron and a woman who had learned to keep her hands steady.
Her thumb hovered over send.
A reply arrived, but it was not the one she expected.
The anonymous account did not answer with threats.
Instead there was a single line, thin as a whisper. You should choose carefully, Alessia.
Alessia kept her phone on the bed and was lost in thought.. "What did they mean she should choose carefully, they must be trying to blackmail my husband"...
Her thoughts shattered with a knock. "Come in," she called.
Mrs. Brown, the elder maid, entered with a bow. "Good day, ma’am."
"Hello, Mrs. Brown. What brings you here?"
The maid clutched her phone nervously. "I went to the supermarket to restock, but I overheard some women speaking. They were mocking you. One said you act too pompous. Another said, ’A mere slave turned mistress? We’ will see how long she shines.’ Then they laughed about ruining your anniversary."
Mrs. Brown pressed play. The recording filled the room, their laughter cruel, echoing like knives.
Alessia exhaled slowly, steadying her heart. "Hmm." She smiled faintly, though her eyes burned. "Let them talk. They will see the power of a woman who refuses to bow."
But deep down, a knot of worry grew.
***"
Later, Alessia tidied their room. She dusted every corner until she reached Luca’s study shelf.
The faint layer of dust tickled her nose, and she sighed.
He keeps everything sharp and polished, but not this?
She opened the shelf carefully and froze.
Behind the ordinary books was a hidden compartment, its edges faint but visible if one looked closely.
Her fingers traced it, curiosity mounting.
A small lock held it shut, but the key lay carelessly nearby.
Her pulse quickened. Why would Luca hide something here?
She slipped the key in, and with a soft click, the compartment opened. Inside lay two books.
One was dark, leather-bound, with no title.
The other was smaller, bound in brown with golden edges.
Her heart thudded violently as she pulled it out.
Across the cover, in bold golden letters, a name burned into her vision:
ALESSIA.
It was her name. Written in capital letters.
Her breath faltered. A secret diary.
A hidden book with her name on it.
Her hands shook as she held it, fear and curiosity clashing in her chest.
Why would Luca have this? What secrets does it hold?
The door creaked faintly behind her.
Alessia turned, clutching the diary to her chest...