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Chapter 7
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When Lina Vale Became Elena Valenti Again Chapter 10
By the time the Malta trip ended, the Manhattan condo had sold.Ava called me screaming from a bathroom stall at work. "Elena Valenti, tell me you did not just wire half the sale proceeds into the foundation account and earmark the other half for a house on the coast.""I didn’t.""Liar. The bank notification is staring at me. Are we really doing this?"I leaned against the balcony railing of my hotel suite and looked out at the harbor. "We’re doing it. Resign whenever you’re ready.""I have never loved you more. If my manager asks why I’m leaving, I’m telling him my best friend became scary rich again and needs emotional support near the ocean.""Say it exactly like that.""Don’t tempt me."After the call, I stayed on the balcony until the last strip of sunlight slipped behind the old city walls.The sky changed slowly: gold to coral, coral to violet, violet to deep blue. A few stars appeared above the water, small and stubborn.For years, I had believed the sky I wanted belonged behi
When Lina Vale Became Elena Valenti Again Chapter 9
Three months later, the foundation held its first international launch in Malta.My father hated the idea of me traveling so soon after returning. Dante hated it more. Between them, they built a security plan so tight I couldn’t sneeze without three men checking the wind direction."This is excessive," I said as the convoy rolled toward the private terminal.Dante didn’t look up from his tablet. "You disappeared for eight years. We’re catching up.""That’s not how math works.""It’s how family works."I wanted to argue, but the words sat warm in my chest instead.On the jet, I sat by the window while the coastline slipped away below us. The engines roared, and for once the sound didn’t make me think of Julian.No wondering whether he had eaten. No waiting for landing messages. No planning my day around a man who treated my time like loose change.A young flight attendant served coffee with nervous hands. When a drop splashed into the saucer, she went pale."It’s fine," I said. "You’re
When Lina Vale Became Elena Valenti Again Chapter 8
Julian didn’t give up immediately. He sent flowers. The guards returned them. He sent letters. Dante shredded them. He tried calling the foundation office until Ava answered and told him that harassment looked ugly on a pilot with a license to protect.Eventually, the silence forced him inward.He requested cargo routes and stopped flying passengers. Rumor said he froze the first time he saw the observer seat empty after takeoff. Another rumor said he had asked the airline to remove Clara from any crew list tied to him, then reported every favor he had arranged for her.Clara’s little kingdom collapsed fast.Without Julian smoothing schedules and pulling strings, people remembered every nasty thing she had said, every shortcut she had taken, every time she had played helpless to climb over someone else. She resigned within a month.Ava forwarded me the news with zero shame.[The teddy bear has left the building. Pour one out for nepotism.]I sent back, [Don’t be mean.][You’re right. I
When Lina Vale Became Elena Valenti Again Chapter 7
The Valenti estate stood north of the city behind iron gates and old trees.When I stepped out of the car, my father was waiting at the top of the marble stairs.Lorenzo Valenti had aged in eight years, but not softened. His hair was silver at the temples, his black suit immaculate, his eyes the same dark gray that used to make grown men choose honesty.I stopped at the bottom step. "Papa."For one long second, neither of us moved.Then he came down the steps and pulled me into his arms so hard I could barely breathe. "Stupid girl," he said into my hair.My throat tightened. "I know.""Eight years," he snapped, still holding me. "Eight years for a pilot who didn’t know what he had at his table.""I know."His hand shook once against my back before he steadied it. "You will not vanish like that again.""I won’t."That night, I ate pasta in the family dining room while Dante briefed me on what had changed. Shipments had shifted. Alliances had soured. A cousin had betrayed us and disappea
When Lina Vale Became Elena Valenti Again Chapter 6
Julian called everyone who might know where I was.The first person who answered was Ava Grant, my only close friend from the airline and the only outsider who had known enough to worry."Ava, where is she?" he demanded the second the line connected. "Where did Lina go?"Ava laughed sharply. "You finished your romantic aurora vacation already? How touching.""Cut the crap. She’s taking this too far.""Taking this too far? Julian, people don’t quit their job, delete their number, and disappear into a Mafia convoy because they’re throwing a fit."He went still. "You knew.""I knew enough. Unlike you, I listened.""If this is about Clara—""It’s about everything." Ava’s voice hardened. "It’s about the biopsy scare six years ago when she sat in a hospital bathroom shaking and you told her not to ruin your mood before takeoff. She told you it was only inflammation because you sounded annoyed."Julian’s breathing changed."It’s about her mother’s heart surgery three years ago. She flew back
When Lina Vale Became Elena Valenti Again Chapter 5
Julian landed in Finland with Clara tucked against his arm and a hotel suite waiting under the northern lights.Habit made him pull out his phone the moment they reached the glass-roofed cabin. For years, no matter how careless he was, he sent me one message after landing. It was the bare minimum, and he treated it like proof he was a decent man.[Lina, I’m at the hotel.]A red warning appeared beneath the message.[Message not delivered.]He frowned.Clara came out of the bathroom in a silk slip and hugged him from behind. "What are you looking at? The aurora’s starting.""Nothing." He locked the phone. "Probably her signal."He told himself I was sulking, that I had blocked him to force an apology. I had never blocked him in eight years, not even after the worst fights, but he still believed I would circle back once he bought a bag and lowered his voice.For three days, he watched the aurora with Clara. He posted scenery and carefully cropped silhouettes. He drank wine, smiled for ph
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