Blood Will Choose

Aria’s POV

“Now turn the page” Don Viti ordered “And discover which brother was born to kill the other”

Massimo stood beside me, his injured arm pressed against his chest. The gun in his good hand remained trained on Don Viti, but I could see the strain in his face he had lost blood, endured an ambush, and learned that the family he trusted might have been built on lies.

Now we were being asked to believe that his own brother was destined to destroy him I looked down at the ledger the two names stared back at me.

Massimo Livoti

Kelvin Livoti

Beneath them, the sentence about one son ruling and the other destroying the family had been written in dark ink. There was no explanation, no signature, and no proof that the words meant anything beyond a threat “I won't read another word until you tell us what this is” I said

Don Viti's expression hardened “You are in no position to negotiate”

“Then shoot me” I replied “But if you want us to believe you, give us something more than a sentence written in an old book”

For the first time, he seemed genuinely irritated “You have no idea what you're dealing with”

“Neither do you, apparently otherwise, you wouldn't need to threaten us with riddles”

Massimo glanced at me I could tell he wanted me to stop provoking the man, but Don Viti had already shown us what happened when people accepted his instructions without question. I turned another page a folded document had been attached to the paper with a strip of yellowed tape I carefully removed it and unfolded it beneath the dim light It was a birth record two boys had been delivered at the same hospital on the same night. The first entry carried Alessandro's name as the father the second listed the father's identity as unknown but the dates were identical so were the hospital stamps.

At the bottom of the second record was a handwritten note Transfer authorized by D. Viti I looked up “You were there”

Don Viti didn't answer “You arranged the transfer of one of the babies”

His jaw tightened Massimo stepped closer to the altar “Why?”

“Because Alessandro had enemies” Don Viti replied “And he was too proud to recognize that his own house was vulnerable”

“That doesn't explain the records”

“It explains everything”

“No,” Massimo said “It explains nothing”

Don Viti lowered his gun slightly, but not enough to make me feel safe “Your father discovered that someone had been stealing from the organization millions were disappearing from accounts controlled by his closest advisers. He suspected betrayal, but he didn't know whom to trust”

“And you decided to switch babies?” I asked

“I decided to protect the heir”

“Which heir?”

His gaze moved between Massimo and the names in the ledger “The one who could keep the organization alive”

Massimo let out a bitter laugh “You expect me to believe you switched newborns because you were worried about the family's future?”

“I expect you to understand that leadership is not a birthright It is a responsibility Alessandro was a powerful man, but power made him careless. He believed blood alone could guarantee loyalty”

“And you believe you can decide who deserves to be my brother?”

“I made a decision that saved this family”

“Then why is everyone trying to kill us?"

For the first time, Don Viti had no immediate answer I seized the opportunity “You keep saying one brother was born to destroy the family. Who wrote that sentence?”

He looked at the ledger “Your husband's father”

Massimo went rigid “Alessandro wrote this?”

“Yes”

“When?”

“Three days before he died”

Massimo stared at the page as if it had betrayed him “My father never told me about this ledger"

“He didn't trust you with it”

The words struck their target I watched Massimo's expression change, but he didn't lower his weapon “Why not?”

“Because he feared what you would become if you learned the truth too early.”

“Which truth?"

Don Viti took a slow breath “The child who was supposed to inherit the organization was not the child Alessandro raised. Your father learned that the hospital records had been altered he ordered an investigation, and the results forced him to question everything he believed about his sons”

I glanced at the birth records “Did he discover which child was which?”

“Yes”

“Then tell us"

Don Viti's silence answered before his words did “He died before he could correct the mistake”

Massimo shook his head “You're lying my father knew who his sons were”

“He knew who he loved. That was not the same thing”

The chapel seemed colder I could see the effect of those words on Massimo. His entire life had been spent preparing to take his father's place every lesson, every sacrifice, every brutal decision had been shaped by the belief that he was Alessandro's chosen heir. Now a stranger was telling him that even his father had doubted him I reached for Massimo's free hand.

He squeezed mine once, then released it “Where is the original record?” he asked

Don Viti frowned “This is the original”

“No this is a copy. The ink on the hospital stamp is different from the ink on the doctor's signature, and the paper has been folded more recently than the rest of the ledger”

Don Viti studied him Massimo continued, “You brought us here because you want something. If all you needed was to kill us, you could have done that at the estate what are you really after?”

A slow smile spread across Don Viti's face “Alessandro was right about you. You always were the difficult one”

He reached inside his jacket Massimo raised his gun “Don't move”

Don Viti froze, then slowly withdrew a small photograph he placed it on the altar. It showed two newborn boys wrapped in white blankets a nurse stood beside them, her face turned away from the camera. On the back was a date and a single name Kelvin.

I picked up the photograph the baby on the left had a small mark near his shoulder.

The same mark Massimo had noticed on himself when Lorenzo showed us the hospital record but the photograph did not prove which child had been raised in the wrong family. It only proved that someone had deliberately kept records of the two babies “Where is Kelvin now?” Massimo demanded

Don Viti's smile disappeared “You should be more concerned about yourself”

“I asked you a question”

“And I gave you an answer you didn't want”

Massimo moved forward his wounded leg faltered, and I caught his arm before he fell. Don Viti immediately raised his gun again “Careful” he warned “I would hate for the future of this family to end on a chapel floor”

A noise came from the entrance all three of us turned. A man stood in the doorway, his clothes stained with blood and his face bruised. It was one of the guards who had accompanied Kelvin earlier he struggled to catch his breath “Don Viti” he said “We found him”

“Where?”

“The eastern gate he was trying to reach the road”

Massimo stepped forward despite my grip on his arm “Kelvin?”

The guard nodded “He's alive”

Relief crossed Massimo's face, but it vanished when the guard continued “He was carrying a gun and he refused to surrender we had to restrain him”

“Bring him here” Massimo ordered

The guard hesitated Don Viti smiled faintly “Go on” he told the guard “Bring him in”

A few minutes later, two armed men escorted Kelvin into the chapel his hands were tied, and a dark bruise spread across his cheek but he was standing on his own, his eyes moving rapidly between Massimo, me, and Don Viti. When he saw the ledger, he stopped “What have you done?” he demanded

“That's what we're trying to find out” Massimo replied

Kelvin's gaze settled on Don Viti “You told me the ledger had been destroyed”

Massimo turned sharply toward him “You've seen it before?”

Kelvin looked away “Kelvin” I said carefully “What aren't you telling us?”

He swallowed “I found the ledger in father's study a few days after he died. I didn't understand what it meant, but I recognized my name I took it to Don Viti because I thought he could explain it”

“And he told you it had been destroyed?” Massimo asked

Kelvin nodded “Then why did you keep quiet?”

“Because he told me the truth would put you in danger”

Don Viti gave a quiet laugh “Your brother has always been easy to frighten”

Kelvin lunged toward him, but the guards held him back “You said you'd protect my family”

“I did protect your family I protected it from the consequences of your existence”

Massimo raised his gun “Enough”

Don Viti's eyes shifted toward him “You still don't understand, do you? This was never about which of you deserved the crown. It was about making certain neither of you could challenge the person who was supposed to inherit it”

“Who?” I demanded

Don Viti looked directly at Kelvin then he answered “The child Alessandro believed had died that night”

Before anyone could move, the chapel doors slammed shut a lock clicked into place behind us. The lights above the altar flickered, revealing a figure standing on the narrow staircase behind Don Viti a woman stepped into view, dressed in black, a pistol hanging loosely from her hand Maria Massimo's mother but she wasn't looking at either of her sons. She was staring at Don Viti with undisguised hatred “You've said enough” she told him

Don Viti's smile returned “I'm afraid not, Maria”

He stepped aside, revealing a second figure emerging from the shadows. A young man walked down the stairs, his eyes fixed on Massimo he looked so much like him that, for a moment, I couldn't tell them apart. Then he raised his hand and pointed a gun at Kelvin “Hello brother,” he said

And Maria whispered the words that shattered whatever remained of our family “Massimo, Kelvin... meet the son I was told had died”