Page 50 of Silent Night with Massimo

She thinksshe can resist me. That she can win herfreedom.

She’s wrong.

By the timeChristmas morning comes, she won’t just surrender.

She’ll beon her knees, begging for everything I want to give her.

Wantto know how far Adrian willgo?

DownloadSilent Night with Adrian now!

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Epilogue

The snow is relentless, casting a dense white blanket over Bellini Lodge as I step to the window, watching it pile higher and thicker with each passing hour. Christmas Day should feel like a break from the battles and shadows, but this storm—something about it brings a knot to my chest. The storm itself, I know, will pass. But I can’t shake the sense that it’s a warning, the calm that builds before the strike.

Behind me, laughter rings out as Bella, never one to sit still, dances around the room. She’s still bouncing between calling Vera “Pretty V” and “Vera,” with the occasional slip of “Mama” finding its way through. It’s a small but steady reminder of just how far we’ve come to rebuild this family, despite everything it took to get here.

“Pritty V! Come see!” Bella exclaims, practically pulling Vera off the couch to show her the Christmas village Uncle Marzio helped her set up yesterday. A simple task for most, but I saw how proud it made Bella. And it’s brought something new to Mateo, too. There’s still a guarded nature to him, but he’s coming alive in a way I’d only hoped for until now.

Vera kneels down beside Bella, her hand resting protectively on Mateo’s shoulder as he watches his sister with a mix of awe and quiet curiosity. Even in her careful tenderness, she has this way of moving that says she’s both guard and guide to them now, a role I know she’d feared she’d never hold again. My chest tightens, a feeling of fierce pride welling up inside me. I’ve seen her strength through some of our darkest hours but seeing her like this—her gentle steadiness with Bella and patience with Mateo—is something new entirely.

“They’re perfect, aren’t they?” Vera whispers as I join her by the window, her hand finding mine. I nod, holding her gaze. It’s a quiet moment, and I want to say more, to tell her how grateful I am, but before I can, my phone buzzes.

It’s a text from Adrian, his third check-in since sunrise. I’m relieved to hear from him, though my unease grows with each message. He’s updating me constantly, as planned, but knowing he’s out there, somewhere in the storm, on the front lines of our family’s strike against the Vitales, gnaws at me. I shake my head slightly, brushing it off when Vera glances over in question, and slip the phone back in my pocket. I don’t want to disrupt today with those concerns, not when my family is here in front of me.

Vera senses it, though. She gives me a searching look. “Adrian?”

“He’s checking in,” I reply. “But this storm…it’s hitting everything in its path, including him.”

“I know you trust him,” she says softly, her fingers lacing through mine, grounding me back in the present.

“I do,” I admit, “but I don’t like that he’s out there in this. With the Vitales. In the middle of…well, whatever comes next.” My voice lowers so only she can hear. “It’s an uneasy feeling. Hard to shake.”

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