Chapter 6 – The Thumbprint And The Ledger

“Fifteen seconds to incineration.”

The red alarm light bathed the library in a harsh, pulsing glow. The mechanical voice echoed off the high, vaulted ceilings. Vanessa was scrambled back against the leather sofa, watching in horror as her prize was about to turn to ash.

“Give me your hand!” Luca yelled over the alarm, reaching for me.

I didn’t think. I thrust my right hand forward. Luca grabbed my wrist, his grip iron-tight but desperate. He pressed my thumb flat against the glowing green biometric scanner.

I held my breath, closing my eyes, waiting for the devastating Access Denied to echo through the room. My father had been a mechanic, not a mob boss. There was no way his thumbprint—or mine, sharing his genetic markers—would be coded into a mafia vault.

The scanner beeped loudly.

The red flashing light turned solid green.

“Identity confirmed. Welcome, Thomas.”

Heavy steel locks disengaged with a series of loud, echoing clacks. The vault door hissed as the pressure seal broke, swinging open heavily on its massive hinges.

The alarm abruptly silenced.

I pulled my hand back, staring at the green light in absolute shock. “How…”

“My father trusted yours more than anyone in the world,” Luca said, his voice thick with emotion. “He didn’t just give him the key. He gave him control.”

I looked inside the vault. It wasn’t filled with stacks of cash or gold bars like in the movies. It was filled with rows of pristine, organized black ledgers.

Luca reached in and pulled out a heavy, leather-bound book from the center shelf. He flipped it open. The pages were densely packed with handwritten notes, dates, and bank account numbers.

“This is it,” Luca whispered, his eyes scanning the columns. “This is the complete financial record of the Bellini family’s embezzlement. Every dollar they stole from us, every bribe they paid, and every hit they ordered.”

Vanessa pushed herself off the floor, her hair wild and her designer dress torn. “You can’t use that! If you take that to the Commission, they’ll declare open war! The Bellinis will kill you all!”

Luca slowly closed the ledger. He turned to face his fiancée, his expression completely devoid of mercy.

“There won’t be a war, Vanessa,” Luca said coldly. “Because Carlo isn’t going to fight. He’s going to surrender.”

“My father surrenders to no one!” she shrieked.

“He will when the heads of the Five Families see this ledger on my wedding day,” Luca replied.

Vanessa froze. “What?”

“You wanted a grand wedding,” Luca said, walking slowly toward her, the heavy ledger in his hand. “You wanted all the bosses under one roof to watch you take my name. You’re going to get exactly what you want. We are having this wedding on Saturday. In the grand ballroom. But when the priest asks if anyone objects, I’m handing this book to the Commission.”

Vanessa’s face went chalk white. In the mafia world, presenting proof of inter-family theft and unsanctioned murder to the Commission wasn’t just a scandal—it was a death sentence for the offending family.

“You’re bluffing,” she whispered, backing away.

“Try me,” Luca challenged. He gestured to the two groaning guards on the floor. “Take your trash and get out of my house. And if you or your father come near Hannah, her mother, or Teresa before Saturday, I will skip the Commission and put a bullet in Carlo’s head myself.”

Vanessa stared at the absolute conviction in his eyes. She knew he wasn’t bluffing. She turned and fled through the open library doors, the two injured guards limping hastily behind her.

As soon as they were gone, the adrenaline left my body all at once. My knees buckled.

Luca dropped the ledger onto a reading table and caught me before I hit the floor. He held me up, his strong arms wrapping securely around my waist.

“I’ve got you,” he murmured, his breath warm against my temple. “You’re okay, Hannah. We have them.”

I leaned against his chest for a second, listening to the steady, reassuring beat of his heart beneath his ruined dress shirt. “My father,” I whispered, tears finally falling. “He was protecting your family. He died protecting you.”

“He did,” Luca said softly, resting his chin on the top of my head. “And I am going to spend the rest of my life repaying that debt to you and your mother.”

He gently helped me stand. He picked up the ledger and walked over to the library doors, locking them securely.

We made our way back up to the second floor. When I unlocked the guest suite, my mother rushed into my arms. Luca stood in the doorway, giving us a moment before stepping inside.

“Mrs. Collins,” Luca said, his tone respectful and gentle. “My name is Luca Moretti. Your husband was a hero to my family. And from this moment on, you are a guest in my home. Nobody will ever threaten you or your house again.”

My mother wept, thanking him repeatedly.

Over the next three days, the mansion transformed into a fortress. Luca brought in dozens of his most loyal men, locking down the perimeter. Vanessa and Carlo didn’t make a sound. They didn’t retaliate. They were trapped, playing along with the wedding preparations because running would admit guilt to the Commission.

Saturday morning arrived with a bitter chill in the air.

The ground-floor ballroom of the Hawthorne Club was decorated exactly as Vanessa had wanted—extravagant, cold, and flawless. Over three hundred guests filled the gilded chairs, including the heads of the most powerful crime families on the East Coast.

I was standing in the bridal suite with Claire, the wedding planner, helping arrange the final details. I wasn’t wearing a maid’s uniform today. Luca had insisted I wear a beautiful, understated navy blue gown, attending as an honored guest of his family.

The door to the suite opened. Luca walked in, looking devastating in a tailored black tuxedo. He held the black leather folder containing the ledger pages.

He looked at me, a soft, genuine smile touching his lips. “You look beautiful, Hannah.”

“Thank you,” I said, blushing slightly. “Are you ready for this?”

“I’ve been ready for eight years,” he said. He looked around the room. “Where is my mother?”

Claire frowned, checking her clipboard. “Mrs. Moretti hasn’t arrived from the mansion yet, sir. Her driver was supposed to drop her off twenty minutes ago.”

Luca’s smile vanished instantly. He pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed the head of his security detail.

“Where is my mother?” he barked into the phone.

A moment of silence passed. Luca’s face turned completely white.

“What do you mean she’s not in the car?” Luca whispered, the absolute terror returning to his voice.

He hung up the phone and looked at me.

“Carlo took her.”