Chapter 3 CHAPTER
"What?" I shook my head slowly, like the words didn’t make sense. My chest tightened. No way. There's no way this could be true.
My voice cracked. "That’s not true. She can’t be dead. You’re lying! He told you to say that, didn’t he? Just to get me to come back!"
My fists flew before I could stop them, punching Matteo hard in the chest. He didn’t move. Didn’t flinch. He simply stood there, as though the world had already come to an end.
He looked down at me, jaw tight. "I wish I was lying, Isadora... but your Capo... your sister... she was killed by rogues a week ago."
I dropped. That was it. I dropped to my knees. My whole body started to shake, sobs choking me like water in my lungs. I couldn’t even breathe.
This can't be real. No. She's my twin. I would have felt it. We had a bond. Twins like us? We shared everything, even our wolf senses. When I left, I blocked her out on purpose. I had to. I knew she'd come after me if she could. But death? I should've felt that. Something. Anything.
I held my head in my hands, rocking as if movement might alleviate the pain.
"How? How is she dead? Why didn’t I feel it? This situation doesn’t make sense!"
Enzo shifted next to Matteo, lowering his voice. "I haven’t felt Serafina in eight years."
My head snapped up. "We stopped them!" You know that."
"No, Isadora. I mean... really blocked. I felt nothing. Like she was already gone."
"Why didn’t you say anything sooner?"
He rubbed the back of his neck, ashamed. "Because I was drowning in my own heartbreak. I pulled away from everyone. Even her. Even you."
I wanted to scream, but what was the point? He wasn't wrong. I did the same. We were both just broken in different corners of the world.
Dylan—no, Enzo—looked me in the eyes. "When you cut off the bond with the Luna Nera Clan, you didn’t just break ties with the pack. You severed it all. Even her."
That couldn't be. I blocked Giulia out, sure. But not forever. It wasn't meant to be this way. The bond should’ve snapped with her last breath. So why didn’t it?
I turned to look at them both. Tell me this is a mistake. That she’s alive and just hiding somewhere like I was. Maybe she's doing laundry. Maybe she's on a beach in Isola del Sole, drinking coconut water and hiding from Xavier.
But their eyes said otherwise.
Flat. Dead. Apologetic.
Reality hit me in waves. She was no longer with us. My sister was really gone.
"When is the funeral?"
"In two days," Enzo said quietly.
That snapped me out of it. "Two days? She’s been dead a week. What kind of funeral is that? That goes against everything we believe."
He nodded slowly. "The Capo wanted to wait."
I blinked at him. "Wait? Wait for what?"
Matteo stepped in, voice tight. "You. He would rather not bury her until we found you. We’ve been searching everywhere. Every pack. Even across Europe. Your brother told us to start looking among humans. That was the moment we discovered the advertisement for the cleaning service. Your face was right there. We came as fast as we could."
Wait... they were really looking for me? For how long? Why now? What does Lorenzo want from me?
Is it your intention to hold me accountable? Is it meant to emphasize that I wasn't present? That I chose myself over the pack?
Or worse... to make me stand there and pretend like any of this makes sense.
I sat on the floor, feeling like my heart had cracked in half.
If they hadn’t come, I wouldn’t have known. I would have stayed here in Bellavista, surrounded by humans, pretending the world had stopped eight years ago. I would have pretended that everyone was still alive. I acted as if I hadn't left everything behind.
I rubbed my face, the sting of tears still fresh.
"I’ll go," I said, my voice flat. "I need to pack."
Enzo gave a small nod. "We’ll wait."
I started to stand but paused. My legs felt like wet spaghetti.
"Are you okay?" Serafina’s voice echoed softly in my head.
"No," I answered without moving my lips.
"You will be. We have to do this. For her."
"I know."
Enzo looked down. "I haven’t been there for you. I should have. But I’m here now. And I’ll stay."
"Thank you. I love you."
"Love you more, my human," she whispered back.
I turned and headed into the small bedroom I’d rented for too long.
My hands moved on autopilot. I meticulously packed my clothes into a duffel bag. Tossing shoes on top. Zip. Done. It wasn’t about packing anymore. It was about bracing myself.
I was going back.
I have returned to the place from which I fled.
I returned to the family I hadn't communicated with in almost ten years.
I am going back to Lorenzo Ricci, the mate who broke me.
Back to the Luna Nera Clan.
And I wasn’t ready.
But I was going.
The truth? I didn’t have a choice.
My sister deserved that much.