Chapter 20 – Grace To Grass
The house was quiet. I sat alone, the file Kale gave me earlier still unopened on my table.
I didn’t want to look at it. Something deep in my gut told me that whatever was in those pages. would mess with my head.
But I had to know.
My fingers trembled slightly as I flipped the file open. The name glared back at me like a slap.
Mateo De Luca.
Background. Photo. Fingerprints. Origin.
And then it hit me.
Blood relation: 48.3% match… with Alessandro Moretti. My father.
I blinked. My heart started pounding.
Mateo wasn’t just some outsider with a grudge.
He was my half-brother.
I shot up from the chair and grabbed my car keys. I couldn’t believe it. This-this was insane.
–
I barged into my father’s estate without knocking. The guards didn’t even try to stop me.
My father, grandfather, and grandmother were already in the study, like they’d been expecting
“You lost the company,” my grandfather said coldly. “To your ex-wife.”
“You brought shame to our name,” my grandmother added.
“We told you to control her. Instead, she played you like a fool,” my father finished.
I laughed bitterly and tossed the file onto the desk. “You want to talk about shame? Let’s talk about this!”
They glanced at it, confused.
“Mateo De Luca is your son,” I snapped at my father. “Your bastard.”
“What are you talking about?” Grandfather frowned.
“His mother was one of our maids, wasn’t she?” I shouted. “You raped her. Got her pregnant. And then what? Tried to kill her? You failed. But guess what? The kid survived.”
My father stiffened.
“Say something!” I yelled. “You fucked up, not me. He didn’t come after us for no reason. He came for revenge.”
“Watch your tone, Lorenzo, my grandfather said sharply.
“No,” I snapped. “I won’t. You’re all acting like I’m the one who ruined this family, but the rot started long before me. Mateo didn’t just appear from nowhere. He’s blood. And now he’s back- richer, more powerful, and angrier than ever. And guess what? He helped Sophia take everything
My father’s eyes darkened. “How do you know this?”
“It’s called investigation, maybe you’d know it if you weren’t such a dimwit who fucked everything in skirts. No wonder mother committed suicide!” I ranted.
The room went silent.
My head was pounding. My chest was tight.
“I’m done here,” I said and stormed out before anyone could respond.
I went straight to one of my clubs downtown.
The music was loud. The women were beautiful. But nothing could drown the noise in my head.
I slid into a booth and waved the bartender over.
“Whiskey. Straight. No ice.”
He nodded and disappeared.
The club’s giant TV screen played the news on mute, but the headlines were enough. “LORENZO MORETTI STRIPPED OF CEO TITLE – SOPHIA CALDERON RISES.”
“FROM MAFIA WIFE TO MAFIA QUEEN.”
“IS THE FORMER DON DONE FOR?”
“Turn that shit off!” I shouted at the bartender.
But it was too late.
A group of friend.
guys near the bar had already seen it. One of them laughed and leaned toward his
“Isn’t that the guy whose ex-wife took his company?”
Another one snorted. “Yeah. The man played hard.”
I stood up, fists clenched. “You got something to say to me?”
“Relax, pretty boy,” the guy sneered. “Go cry to your woman-oh wait, she dumped you.”
I swung before he finished the sentence.
But I was outnumbered. Three of them jumped me, fists flying from every direction. I fought back, but the pain overwhelmed me.
They kicked me. Punched me. Spit on me.
When they were done, I was bleeding and crawling on the floor. I looked pathetic.
I somehow made it to my car and home with a swollen lip and a cracked rib.
Renata gasped when she saw me. “Oh my God, Lorenzo! What happened?!”
She rushed to get the first aid kit, dabbing at my wounds.
“Who did this to you?” she asked, tears in her eyes.
I didn’t answer. I stared straight ahead like she wasn’t even there.
“Say something,” she pleaded.
22 20
“Leave me alone,” I muttered, pulling away.
She sat beside me anyway, stroking my arm. “We’ll fix this. You’ll get everything back.”
But her voice was distant. Her hands? Cold.
I felt nothing.
The next day, I met with some of my old allies-people I used to control with a single call.
None of them wanted to be seen with me now.
“Sorry, Lorenzo. It’s business. You’re not the power you used to be.”
“She owns the shares now. We can’t help you.”
“It’s best to lay low.”
That was the last straw.
I had no one. No support. No allies. No power.
I showed up at Sophia’s office unannounced.
Her assistant looked terrified, but she didn’t stop me.
Sophia was in her chair, reading some papers. She didn’t even flinch when I walked in.
She looked up, calm and unbothered.
“Lorenzo,” she said with a smirk. “You look like hell.”
“I want my company back,” I said, walking toward her.
She leaned back. “Of course you do.”
‘Name your price.”
She dropped the papers on the desk. “Divorce Renata.”
I blinked. “What?”
“You heard me,” she said slowly. “Divorce her. And get rid of that child she’s carrying.”
I stared at her in shock.
“Do that,” she continued, “and maybe we can talk about giving you your company back.”
“You’re insane,” I whispered.
“No,” she said, rising to her feet and walking toward me. “I’m in charge now. You just haven’t accepted it.”
