Chapter 4 - Carlo Wasn’t the Real Decision-Maker
Anyone who didn’t know our family would have blamed Carlo.
And on the surface, that made sense.
My older brother had always been volatile. At forty-three, he was still built like a brawler, still quick to anger, still pathetic enough to confuse brute force with authority. He had turned every business dispute, family disagreement, and personal insecurity into someone else’s problem since he was sixteen.
But for all his aggression, Carlo almost never acted alone.
He liked approval too much.
Especially hers.
Our mother never needed to raise her voice to control him. She only needed to give him that look—the one that said do this for me, prove yourself, defend the family, be the son I trust more.
He would have walked into fire for that look.
Maybe that was why I couldn’t stop replaying Viola’s expression after the attack. It wasn’t just that she wasn’t surprised.
It was that she was annoyed things had gone wrong.
As if the problem wasn’t what Carlo had done.
The problem was that I had arrived in time to stop it.
That idea turned my blood cold.
Because if she had expected me later…
If she had assumed I wouldn’t be there…
Then this wasn’t only about frightening Elena.
It was about timing.
Which meant it had a purpose.
And purpose meant motive.
So I asked the question that had been growing heavier in my chest since the terrace.
“What does she want from us?”
Elena lowered her eyes to Luca’s tiny hand curled against her gown.
“Matteo,” she said softly, “I think this started before the wedding.”
I stared at her.
May you like
Then she told me about the papers.
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