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Grandmother

In the days following the gathering, things returned to normal. His days, filled with lessons, blurred into one another. He spent sleepless nights thinking of a way to escape. The woods surrounding the property were part of the property itself and were surrounded by a tall barbed fence. The only way off the property was either flying or driving; neither he could do on his own.

The boy's grandparents both visited him weekly, replacing Assistant Morbidelli. Claudia tagged along with her husband to ensure he was not engaged in further adultery. The second week of January, the couple arrived with a guest. A young man from the company chosen by the rest of the family to determine whether Francesco was of Luciano's bloodline. The man took samples from Francesco and his grandfather, and as he began packing away his instruments, Luciano advised his wife to also provide a sample.

"What games are you trying to play?" She asked.

"Take the test, Claudia." Luciano ordered.

"He is your son! Why would he have my DNA?"

Luciano glared at his wife, who eventually gave in.

The following week, when his grandparents visited, Claudia approached Francesco with shaking hands. She laid a hand on his head and carefully caressed his cheek before pulling him into a warm embrace.

"Piccolo, tell me about your mother. How is my piccola? My Aurora, is she safe?" She asked, releasing him and looking deep into his eyes.

Francesco glanced at his grandfather.

"No. Do not take direction from him. Where is my child?"

"She's safe," the boy answered.

Claudia released a sigh of relief filled with years of worry.

"You have that Olíveira boy's eyes. Is he your father?" She asked. Her question laced with disgust.

A rush of hot anger flared through Francesco; his eyes stung and burned. No one else knows he's your father.

"No. Mom married my father."

"She's married?!" Claudia exclaimed, her tears spilling over.

"Enough!" Luciano shouted. "Francesco does not need distractions."

Claudia turned to her husband angrily. "You made my piccola runaway! The only reason you are still married is because I don't want my daughter to return to your family with no one on her side." She spat.

Francesco seized the opportunity in front of him. "I want to see mom," the boy said to his grandparents.

"Your task is to focus on your studies," his grandfather said sternly.

"You bastard, you took him from her?" Claudia turned to her husband, horrified. "Is tearing mothers from their children all you can do?"

"Don't be stupid, Claudia. Aurora refused to come back with him."

"Of course she refused! You forced her into that engagement because 'the family would benefit'. She told you she did not like that boy."

Claudia stepped closer to Luciano, poking his chest with a shaky finger. "And you told her the business was more important."

Luciano grabbed Claudia's hand, raising it in the air. "The luxuries we enjoy are the result of centuries of prioritising business. Personal inconveniences are irrelevant!"

"The personal inconvenience of you not having an heir—"

"Shut up!"

Francesco watched his grandparents square off. Claudia had no intention of backing down as her husband tried to force her submission.

Their stand-off was interrupted by the timely announcement of lunch. The tension between husband and wife hung over the family as they ate. Like Aurora, Claudia deliberately ignored her husband in favour of chatting with Francesco.

"Tell me about your father. Is he a good man to my piccola?"

A mix of emotions flooded Francesco at the word 'father'. He hated the word and the man it referred to. It made him hate himself. Logan wasn't his father, but he was a father to him for a short while.

"Dad... loves mom. A lot. He said wealth is just a means to take care of her."

Claudia nodded affirmatively. "At least both of my daughters married men who love them."

Francesco and his grandmother chatted through lunch and tea time. Much to Luciano's annoyance. Before the couple left, he spoke to the boy privately, reminding him of his responsibility and that his mother had agreed to give him up. Luciano gave the boy another stern warning that he should stop mentioning Aurora, especially in front of Claudia. But the boy, confident in his grandmother's support, dared to challenge his grandfather.

"You need me more than I need you. I want to see my mother!"

"Watch your tone with me, boy. I am not asking you to obey. I'm ordering you."

Francesco pulled a knife from his trousers and pressed the blade against his neck. Luciano watched the boy hard, taking a slow breath and then holding it.

"Go ahead," the elder man encouraged, leaning back onto the desk. "Kill yourself."