로그인Chapter 61The moment I stepped inside the small hut, a familiar heaviness pressed down on my chest.Every corner whispered memories — and in all of them, she was there.Nanny.No matter how much time had passed, I could still see her in this place — sitting by the window, folding laundry, humming softly to herself.Even the silence seemed haunted by her presence.I wiped my cheeks with the back of my hand and glanced around. The furniture lay broken and scattered, the floor layered with dust and dried mud. The air was thick, still, like time had stopped moving since she left.My feet carried me toward what used to be our shared room. When I drew the curtain open, I nearly lost my breath — Nanny was sitting on the edge of the bed, her back turned to me. Then, just as quickly as she appeared, she vanished into the thin air.“Nanny…” I whispered.I took a cautious step forward — and froze when my foot hit something.Looking down, I saw her old suitcase.Her favorite one.I knelt down an
Chapter 60“I’m here to reclaim the mansion.”Hilda’s voice cut through the air, calm but firm.Across from her, her stepmother laughed—a brittle, mocking sound that echoed through the grand foyer of the Alegre mansion.“You don’t understand what you’re dealing with, Hilda,” the woman said, her tone dripping with arrogance.Armed men stepped out from the shadows, their rifles raised and trained on Hilda and Aron.Aron’s lips curved into a faint smirk. “I hope you’ve got a plan,” he murmured to her without taking his eyes off the men.Hilda straightened. “I’ll call the police.”Aron almost lost his balance. The police? He shot her a disbelieving glance.Her stepmother burst out laughing. “Oh, you sweet fool,” she sneered. “Do you think the police will help you? I could shoot you right here and bury your body before sunrise—and no one would ever know.”Hilda’s expression didn’t waver, but inside, her pulse thundered. She knew exactly what kind of woman she was dealing with. Her stepmoth
Chapter 59The cold night air bit against Hilda’s skin as they emerged from the decrepit factory. The building loomed behind them, skeletal and silent, like it had been holding its breath. Aron guided them swiftly toward a black SUV waiting by the gate.“It’s bulletproof,” he muttered, opening the rear door. “We’ll be safe inside.”Hilda nodded, ushering the children into the back seat while Khan secured their bags. Aron took the driver’s seat, and she could see his knuckles tighten on the wheel—his every motion sharp, efficient, controlled.She drew in a deep breath and said quietly, “We’re heading back to the Alegre mansion. The place where I was born.”For a moment, there was silence except for the low hum of the engine. Then, out of nowhere, Hilda spoke again.“After this, come have dinner with us, Aron. I’ll cook something for you—and for the kids.”Aron glanced at her through the side mirror, his expression unreadable. “Let’s do that.”The SUV rolled out of the factory grounds.
Chapter 58“Why aren’t you asleep yet? Does this mean our departure is canceled?”Aron found Hilda sitting on a bench, her gaze fixed on the vast expanse of the sea.“With everything weighing on my mind right now, I just can’t bring myself to sleep,” Hilda admitted, brushing a strand of hair away from her face. Aron walked over casually, hands in his pockets, and sat down beside her.“My dad isn’t that easy to kill. He won’t die so easily,” Aron muttered. But in his heart, he knew the truth—if anyone was going to end his father’s life, it would be him. No one else.“I know,” Hilda whispered, her fingers absently playing with the engagement ring on her finger. “Because he promised me he wouldn’t die.”“Then what are you thinking about, sitting out here instead of resting?” Aron asked.Hilda sighed and confessed that she had been wondering where she should even begin looking. Her father had once told her there were people who would come for her before she turned twenty-five—people who w
Chapter 57 Arthur had no one he could truly trust—neither inside the city, nor beyond its walls.He and Fiona suddenly froze when they both sensed a presence outside the door. A faint whistling sound followed. Fiona immediately pulled out her blade, instinctively on guard. She was certain—it wasn’t Aoi.“I don’t even know how to read a map. What the hell am I supposed to do with this useless scrap of paper?”The footsteps outside stopped just as they reached the door. At the very moment it swung open, Fiona’s eyes widened. A heartbeat before the edge of her dagger could touch the intruder’s throat, his hand shot forward and caught her wrist.In one swift motion, the man twisted, forcing Fiona off balance. Out of sheer instinct, she fought back, but before she could regain footing, he pivoted smoothly, gripped her waist to redirect her movement, and then kicked Arthur’s side to ward him off.Everything happened in a blur—so fast Fiona didn’t even have the chance to react properly.“Wh
Chapter 56“Padrino!”Arthur held his breath and winced sharply, an agonizing, unexplainable pain surging from his side.“Argh!”He barely registered Aoi’s desperate scream calling out Fiona’s name before the woman burst into the room. With practiced urgency, Fiona rummaged through a tray on the nearby table and grabbed a syringe without hesitation.Veins bulged from Arthur’s arms and neck, his body tense from the sheer effort of enduring the pain coursing through every inch of him. He was soaked in sweat, his muscles twitching involuntarily.Fiona grabbed hold of Arthur and quickly injected the solution into the side of his neck. Slowly, his breathing began to ease. The tension in his limbs softened. Across the room, Ivory swallowed hard, eyes fixed on the metal bedframe beneath Arthur—deep gouges marked the steel where his fingers had gripped so tightly it bent under his strain.Arthur’s voice rasped through gritted teeth, “What happened… where are we?”He lay weakly on the cold met
Chapter 06The car came to a halt in the middle of the road due to heavy traffic. I found myself staring at the people passing by outside the window and at the various lights scattered throughout the surroundings, my eyes drinking in sights I had never been allowed to see before.I couldn't help bu
Chapter 05The cold Italian air bit at Hilda's exposed skin as she stumbled through the unfamiliar streets, her heart still pounding from her narrow escape at the airport. The adrenaline that had carried her through her desperate flight was beginning to fade, replaced by a bone-deep exhaustion and
Chapter 04"Nanny!"A young girl approached excitedly, holding a flower in her small hands and offering it to an elderly woman who sat on a wooden chair, sewing a piece of clothing. The child's eyes sparkled with innocent joy as she presented her gift."Hilda, where did you get that? Did you pluck
Chapter 03In the depths of a dimly lit apartment in Palermo, Arthur Cage Nicastro lay sprawled across a bare mattress, his designer suit wrinkled and stained from sleepless nights. His arm draped across his forehead, attempting to shield himself from memories that haunted him even in darkness. Th







