Chapter 4 - The Watch In My Pocket
Nobody breathed.
The man who took my mommy’s car.
Leo’s mother—Luca’s sister—had died in a hit-and-run three years ago. The driver was never caught. The police called it a tragic accident.
But in the mafia world, there are no accidents.
Luca slowly handed the drawing to Marco, his head of security. Then he picked Leo up, holding the boy securely against his chest.
“Marco,” Luca said calmly. “Take Leo back to his room. Stay at his door. Do not leave him.”
“Yes, Boss.” Marco gently took the boy and left the dining room.
The heavy doors clicked shut.
Luca turned back to Vanessa.
She was shaking violently. “Luca, I swear to God, I didn’t know who he was. I just owed him.”
“You owed the man who murdered my sister?”
“I didn’t know that!” she screamed. “He’s a loan shark! I owed him money from years ago. He said if I gave him the ring, my debt was clear. He told me to print the fake pawn ticket to throw you off!”
“Why?” Luca demanded.
“He didn’t want money,” Vanessa sobbed. “He wanted something else. Something in this house. The ring was just a down payment.”
I stood frozen.
He wanted something in this house.
“What did he want, Vanessa?” Luca stepped toward her.
She looked at me. Then she looked back at Luca.
“A pocket watch,” she whispered. “A silver pocket watch with a broken glass face.”
Luca froze.
For the first time tonight, the untouchable mafia boss looked truly shaken.
“My grandfather’s watch,” Luca said. “The one my sister was carrying the night she died.”
Vanessa nodded frantically. “He said you locked it in your safe. He said he needed it back. He told me to find it, or he’d kill me.”
Answer one: The scarred man wanted a family heirloom, not the diamond.
Open two: Why did the murderer want a broken watch he left at the crime scene three years ago?
Luca didn’t speak. He turned on his heel and strode out of the dining room toward his private office.
The guests sat in stunned silence.
Vanessa slumped into her chair, burying her face in her hands.
A minute later, Luca returned.
His face was completely drained of blood.
“The safe was opened,” he said quietly. “The watch is gone.”
Vanessa gasped. “I didn’t take it! I swear on my life, Luca, I didn’t take it. I couldn’t get the safe open!”
“Then who did?”
Suddenly, I felt a heavy weight pulling against the fabric of my black uniform.
Down by my right hip.
In the deep, square pocket of my white apron.
I hadn’t noticed it before because of the adrenaline. But now, the heavy, metallic drag was unmistakable.
My heart stopped.
Vanessa bumped into me in the hallway fifteen minutes ago.
She had pretended to stumble, grabbing my waist to steady herself.
Slowly, my trembling fingers moved toward my apron pocket.
Luca saw my movement.
His dark eyes locked onto my hand.
“Emma,” he said. “What is in your pocket?”
I reached inside. The metal was cold.
I pulled it out.
A heavy, silver pocket watch. The glass face was shattered.
The entire room gasped.
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Vanessa pointed at me, her eyes wide with fake shock. “She took it! She’s working for him, Luca! I told you she was a thief!”
TITLE: The Dust On The Glass
