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HE WAS BOUND TO A WHEELCHAIR FOR 12 YEARS BY A DEADLY LIE. THEN HIS DAUGHTER TOUCHED HIS KNEE AND UNLOCKED A MAFIA WAR! / Chapter 3 / 20

Chapter 3 - THE FIRST STEP IN THE DARK

Night fell over the compound, bringing a heavy rain that drummed relentlessly against the high glass windows. Elena knocked softly on the study door, carrying a tray with warm tea. Luca motioned for her to enter.

"She's fast asleep," Elena said quietly, referring to Maya. "She kept asking if 'Mr. Luca' liked the dance she showed him today."

"She saved my life, Elena," Luca said, his voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "If she hadn't come through that hedge, I would have died in this chair, believing my own body had betrayed me."

Elena stepped closer, her hands trembling as she set down the tray. "Luca, if Marcus finds out who she is—who we are—he won't just lock you away. He'll eliminate us. He took over your empire piece by piece while you were sick. He won't give it back."

"He won't have a choice," Luca said. He reached down, grabbed the handrails of his chair, and with a low growl of sheer willpower, he stood up.

Elena gasped, covering her mouth with both hands. Luca stood unsteadily, his frame tall and imposing, towering over the room just as he had twelve years ago. He took one ragged, unassisted step forward. His foot landed flat on the floor. Then another. He stumbled, and Elena rushed forward, catching him against her chest.

For a long moment, they held each other—the crime lord who had lost his kingdom and the woman who had spent a decade running from his shadow. The warmth between them was real, forged in shared grief and survival.

"I need three weeks," Luca breathed into her hair, holding onto her shoulder for support. "Three weeks of physical therapy in absolute secret. I need to purge this toxin from my system and rebuild my strength. Can you help me?"

"I'll die before I let them hurt you again," Elena whispered back.

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Unbeknownst to both of them, outside in the pouring rain, Dr. Thorne was standing under the canopy of the east wing, watching the silhouette of the study window through a pair of high-powered night-vision binoculars. He saw Luca standing. He saw him walking. And he immediately pulled out his encrypted satellite phone.

"Marcus," Thorne said into the receiver. "We have an emergency. The poison has stopped working. He's standing up."

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