Chapter 3 - The Viper’s Bite
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“What in God’s name are you doing on the floor?”
The sharp, aristocratic voice sliced through the quiet hallway like a blade. I stood up immediately, smoothing my black housekeeping dress. Vanessa Bellini marched toward us, her red gown swishing violently around her ankles. Her eyes were narrowed, scanning Matteo’s dusty clothes with blatant disgust.
Matteo scrambled to his feet, clutching the wooden box tightly to his chest. His previous smile vanished completely.
“My engagement present for Dad,” Matteo said, his voice trembling slightly, though he tried to stand tall.
“You made it?” Vanessa asked, her tone dripping with condescension.
He nodded proudly, extending his arms to show her.
Vanessa didn't hesitate. She snatched the box from his hands with a startling roughness. She held it at arm's length, inspecting the uneven joints and the rough, unvarnished wood as if it were something rotting. She turned it over and noticed the tiny, crude initials burned into the underside.
“A.M.,” Vanessa read aloud, her lip curling. “Where did you get this wood?”
“From Grandpa Antonio’s workbench,” Matteo explained, stepping forward. “It was a loose piece underneath.”
Vanessa’s expression hardened from disgust to outright fury. “You cut up that filthy old workbench?”
“No,” Matteo pleaded, his eyes wide. “Just a loose piece! I sanded it down myself.”
She didn't care. She looked directly at me, her eyes flashing with a cruel authority. “Claire, take this downstairs and throw it in the trash.”
Matteo gasped, stepping between us. “Why?”
“Because your father has the most important people in the city coming tonight,” Vanessa snapped, glaring down at the boy.
“So?”
“So he doesn’t need a crooked, ugly box made from scrap wood sitting among his actual engagement gifts.”
The boy’s face fell, his lower lip trembling. “But I made it for him.”
Vanessa let out an exaggerated, theatrical sigh. “Matteo, look around you. Your father can buy anything he wants in this world.”
“But he can’t buy this!” Matteo argued, a tear finally escaping his eye.
She stared at him, cold and unblinking. Then she delivered a line that made my blood run cold. “Your father is starting a new chapter, Matteo. Stop dragging dead, old things into it.”
Matteo lowered his head, utterly defeated. I stepped forward, reaching for the box. “I’ll take it, Mrs. Bellini. I’ll keep it safe in my quarters.”
May you like
Vanessa pulled it back, her eyes locking onto mine with venomous intent. “No. You won't.”
She turned on her heel and carried it downstairs herself.
