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Short filmTranscript
00:00I paid a fortune to wipe my memory clean. I forgot the fiancé who forged me from a street kid
00:06into a blade.
00:06I forgot the girl I once saved off a trafficking line, who then stole everything I had.
00:11I only remembered life before 18. Rainy nights, the orphanage, the bitter taste of cheap coffee, and one old poetry
00:19book, swollen from water.
00:22Three years later, I ran a used bookshop in Palermo. That dusk, the shop was empty. The bell over the
00:28door suddenly rang.
00:30Three men in black suits stepped out of the shadows. The lead one peeled off his leather gloves. His voice
00:36was low.
00:37Nightshade, why did you never answer the Don's recall?
00:41I stopped sliding a book back onto the shelf. Sorry, you have the wrong person.
00:49He took a step closer.
00:53Luca Moretti drowned the whole commission in blood for you.
00:58And you don't even give one explanation.
01:02The shop went so quiet I could hear a motorbike pass the corner.
01:06I looked at him. My chest ached for no reason.
01:09I had a memory override once.
01:11I kept my voice polite.
01:14Who is this Luca Moretti you're talking about?
01:16All three men froze at once.
01:20I followed their eyes to the other side of the street.
01:23A man stood in the dusk.
01:26Black coat.
01:27Tall.
01:28Lean.
01:30I didn't know him.
01:31But he looked at me like I had once killed him with my own hands.
01:37Later I learned his name was Luca Moretti.
01:42He was once my fiancé.
01:45He was also the man who drove me onto that operating table.
01:49It all began at dawn, on the day of our wedding.
01:52That night the terrace of Villa Moretti was still lit.
01:55White roses filled the small chapel.
01:58Everyone was waiting for me to become Mrs. Moretti.
02:01But I couldn't find Luca.
02:03I went around the long hall and pushed open the terrace door.
02:05And I saw him holding Mia Bellini in his arms.
02:09She rose on her toes and kissed his lips.
02:12I didn't cry.
02:14I didn't scream.
02:15I was Nightshade.
02:16Red Lily's sharpest cleaner.
02:20Before my emotions broke, my body moved first.
02:23I struck for Luca's throat.
02:25My fingertips stopped on his artery.
02:28Mia screamed and threw herself at me.
02:30Valina, don't hurt him!
02:32The next second, she shoved me into the pool.
02:36My head hit the wall.
02:38Cold water flooded my mouth.
02:40I opened my eyes underwater and almost laughed.
02:43Five years ago, I pulled Mia off a trafficking line.
02:46She was 15 then, thin as a sheet of paper.
02:50I taught her to read codes.
02:51I taught her to clean ledgers.
02:53She would make hot soup for the men after a job.
02:56She would say thank you in a trembling voice.
02:59Those blood-soaked men did no time.
03:01They said Red Lily finally had a real woman in it.
03:05When they said that, I was in the corner stitching a knife wound on my arm.
03:11Back then, Luca would frown, walk over, and take the needle from me.
03:16You're always harder on yourself than on the enemy.
03:18He tied the knot.
03:20I laughed at his shaking hands.
03:22Clumsy for a man who could strip a gun in three seconds.
03:26I believed that line.
03:28For ten years, we dodged hunters in the jungle.
03:33We emptied our magazines back-to-back in warehouses.
03:37We dragged each other out of blood at the docks.
03:40The first time I took the fall for him, I was locked for three days in the black site.
03:44He knelt outside the cell, eyes red enough to kill everyone.
03:47He said that for the rest of his life, he would never betray me.
03:50But a vow doesn't break in a single moment.
03:52It rots slowly from the first time someone starts playing favorites.
03:57I woke in the medical wing.
03:59I thought he would at least ask if it hurt.
04:02But when he spoke, his voice held only a tired warning.
04:06Mia was just scared.
04:08Don't use your night sheep methods on her.
04:12I looked at the old scar below his collarbone.
04:15Ten years ago, that bullet should have gone through my heart.
04:19You're afraid I'll deal with her in private?
04:24Red Lily forbids infighting.
04:26The wedding moves to next week.
04:28This ends here.
04:30The encrypt device by the bed bugged.
04:32Mia's name flashed on the screen.
04:34Luca glanced at it once.
04:35His brow tightened.
04:37She's having a panic attack.
04:38I'll go check on her.
04:39Luca.
04:40He stopped at the door.
04:42I asked him calmly.
04:44If it were her in the water tonight, would you also tell me it ends here?
04:47He didn't turn around.
04:49You're stronger than her.
04:51Don't waste my time on this.
04:53The door closed softly, but it was a nail pinning ten years of love to the bedside.
04:58My private terminal lit up with a black market ad.
05:03Phynex protocol.
05:05Rebuild your identity.
05:07Seal your trauma.
05:09I stared at that line for a long time.
05:11A tainted blade can be reforged, but a tainted love is not worth polishing.
05:17I booked my first neural overwrite.
05:19After the first overrode, my mind felt rinsed in ice water.
05:23Many memories remained, but they were locked behind an invisible door.
05:26I knew I had been hurt, but I couldn't grasp the shape of the pain.
05:30The doctor told me that once the final overhaul was done, I would lose every emotional tie
05:34to red lily that had formed after I came of age.
05:38I signed the consent form.
05:41What if I regret it?
05:43The doctor didn't look up.
05:46Once you enter the final opera round, the regret gets overwrought too.
05:50I smiled.
05:53Good.
05:55When I got back to the safe house, a celebration was underway.
06:00Mia sat in the center, holding a diamond-set tactical watch.
06:04Lana Creechie saw me and rushed over.
06:06Nightshade, Mia gave us key intel on the Balkan contract.
06:11The Don praised her himself.
06:13She pushed the gift box into my hands.
06:15You brought her into the family.
06:16It's only right that you give it to her.
06:17I walked to Mia and held out the box.
06:20She reached for it.
06:21The instant our fingers touched, the box dropped.
06:24The sapphire face shattered like a crushed eye.
06:27Mia's tears fell at once.
06:29Valentina, I know you hate me, but this is from everyone.
06:34Someone whispered.
06:35She went too far.
06:37A maid woman fighting a young girl over a man.
06:40Luca rose from the fireplace.
06:42He came over, picked up the broken watch,
06:45and pressed it back into my palm.
06:50Apologize.
06:51I looked at him.
06:53You saw me drop it?
06:55I saw her cry.
06:56That line cut deeper than any blade.
06:58I set the broken watch on the table.
07:02Then keep watching her cry.
07:05Mia's sobbing paused.
07:06Then she lunged and wrapped herself around my legs.
07:08Sister, don't send me away.
07:10Those men out there will eat me alive.
07:12Her nails dug deep into my ankle.
07:14I stepped back on instinct.
07:16My knee gave a slight push.
07:17But Mia screamed and fell,
07:19her left hand bending at an unnatural angle.
07:21Luca shoved me aside and scooped her up.
07:23I hit the corner of the table.
07:26A dull pain spread through my side.
07:28You have disappointed me.
07:29I braced myself against the table and didn't look at anyone.
07:33Luca.
07:34I apply to leave Red Lily.
07:36The whole safe house went silent.
07:40Luca sneered.
07:41How many days do you think you'd survive outside the family?
07:48That's my business.
07:50You're just jealous.
07:51Cool off for a few days.
07:52The wedding goes on.
07:54That night, I went to Don Salvatore's study.
07:57The old man sat in shadow.
07:59A cigar between his fingers.
08:00Your contract debt was cleared long ago.
08:03He pushed an encrypted key to the edge of the desk.
08:06This is enough to start over anywhere.
08:08But those who leave Omara have no family behind them.
08:11I took the key.
08:12There was never anyone behind me to begin with.
08:14He looked at me for a long while.
08:16Are you certain you want to give up the night sheep seat?
08:18I looked down at my hands.
08:19These hands had cleared 27 targets for Red Lily.
08:22They had taken three fatal hits meant for Luca.
08:24They had carried Mia out of a shipping container.
08:26But now, they only felt dirty.
08:29I'm not giving up a seat.
08:30I pushed the resignation ship onto the desk.
08:33I'm giving up on them.
08:35On the way back to the safe house, Luca called.
08:38I answered by accident.
08:39Your folding blade is with me.
08:40It was the knife we had taken from a target's vault after our first job together.
08:44Luca had carved LM and VR into the handle.
08:47He said if he ever betrayed me, I could use it to stab through his heart.
08:50I went quiet for a moment.
08:53No need to send it.
08:55Nightshade.
08:55We made it through 10 years.
08:57Why blow up over a small thing with Mia?
08:59A small thing.
09:00I repeated those three words.
09:01The last bit of warmth in my body drained away.
09:04Late that night, Luca came anyway.
09:07He set the knife on my nightstand, like he was handing me a step towards peace.
09:11When I woke at dawn, I read the carving on the handle.
09:14LM and MB.
09:17That was not my knife.
09:19I opened the hidden drawer.
09:21My blade still lay there.
09:23Untouched.
09:24So even our token of life and death, he had copied a second one for Mia.
09:28I felt no anger.
09:30I just revoked the safe house permit sheets.
09:32I took one bag and moved into a cash-only motel downtown.
09:36The noise of ordinary people came through the thin walls.
09:39For the first time, a stranger's world felt safer than home.
09:44However, the next morn, Luca issued an urgent order requiring me to go to the medical wing.
09:49The moment I stepped into the hall, Luca burst out of a side door.
09:53He slammed me hard against the metal wall.
09:55His forearm pressed into my throat.
09:57What did you do to Mia last night?
10:00I was at the motel last night.
10:02Who else but you could have bypassed every camera, gotten into her room, and cut her alarm line?
10:08Lana and a few maid men stood behind him.
10:10No one moved.
10:11In the warn, Mia hugged her knees in the corner of the bed.
10:15As soon as she saw me, she let out a tearing scream.
10:19Don't let her near me!
10:21She said she'd send me back to those men!
10:23Luca let go of me.
10:25His voice went cold.
10:26Mia was diagnosed with severe PTSD.
10:28The doctor says her finger tendons are damaged.
10:30She'll never hold a gun steady again.
10:32So you'll face a disciplined hearing.
10:34I looked past his shoulder.
10:36Through the gap in the door, Mia was peeping me.
10:39Her face was wet with tears, but her eyes were utterly fearless.
10:43That was the look of a hunter who had just confirmed the trap had worked.
10:47I suddenly walked into the ward and stood in front of Mia.
10:51Was that person last night really me?
10:54Mia's pupils shrunk.
10:55The next second, she grabbed the metal cup from the bedside table and threw it at me.
10:59The rim grazed my brow.
11:00Blood slid down the corner of my eye.
11:01She shrunk behind Luca, crying so hard she could barely breathe.
11:05Don't touch me, sister.
11:06I'll give Luca back to you.
11:08Just let me go.
11:09Lana spoke first.
11:10Night show.
11:11Enough.
11:12She's terrified.
11:13And you're still pushing her?
11:14I wiped the blood from my eye.
11:17Lana, the year you tripped the alarm, I dragged you out of a pile of corpses.
11:21You owe me a life.
11:23And now you're spending it testifying for her?
11:25She looked away.
11:26One thing has nothing to do with another.
11:28I finally laughed out loud.
11:30Wonderful.
11:31It seems what Red Lavely taught you best was ingratitude.
11:35I looked at Luca.
11:36You want to judge me?
11:38I'm protecting the rules of the family.
11:40No, Luca.
11:42I wiped the blood from my lip.
11:44My voice was very soft.
11:47You're protecting her.
11:51Hours later, I woke in the Blacksite interrogation room.
11:55Restraints held my wrists and ankles.
11:57A thin sensor was taped beside my temple.
12:01Luca stood at the door, like a judge with no feeling.
12:05Valentina Rinaldi.
12:07You are charged with private violence against a family member in breach of Olmagia.
12:12Where's the evidence?
12:13Mia's testimony.
12:15The medical records, the camera blind spot.
12:18Snap your skill.
12:19I laughed.
12:21So skill can be evidence now?
12:23Luca's fingers paused on the discipline order.
12:26For one instant, I thought he would look at me.
12:29But he didn't.
12:30The pen came down.
12:31The signature was sharp.
12:34Begin.
12:34Two masked figures stepped closer.
12:37One drove a probe into the back of my neck.
12:40The torture leaned close to my ear and smiled.
12:42Don't worry.
12:43Someone gave special orders.
12:45There will be no scar on you.
12:47The moment the device started, pain exploded from my spine into my brain,
12:51as if someone were threading a red hot wire through every nerve I had.
12:55I bit through my lip.
12:56Blood filled my mouth.
12:57But I made no sound.
12:59Faint footsteps came from outside the wall.
13:01I knew Luca hadn't gone far.
13:03I also knew he would not come back.
13:06I don't know how long it lasted.
13:08The restraints loosened.
13:09I slid off the chair, not even feeling my nails tear and break.
13:13The next day, the door opened.
13:15Luca stood in the backlight.
13:17Exhaustion in his eyes.
13:19And a late, tangled something.
13:21So many eyes were watching last night.
13:23I had to give everyone an answer.
13:25I braced on the wall, stood, and walked around him.
13:31Done giving answers?
13:33Mia's cry came from the end of the hall.
13:35Luca, I'm so scared.
13:37His hand stopped in midair, then withdrew.
13:40Go back to your room.
13:41Don't cause more trouble.
13:43I watched him run towards that voice.
13:46My terminal buzzed.
13:48The final transfer had cleared.
13:49I flagged down a taxi and gave the address of Phoenix Clinic.
13:54The doctor attached the sensors to me and confirmed the final procedure.
13:57After the overroute, you'll forget Red Lily, forget Nightshake, and forget Luca Moretti.
14:04Will the body memory go too?
14:06No.
14:08So I might still flinch from gunfire.
14:11And I might still grip a knife that isn't there in my sleep.
14:15The doctor glanced at me.
14:17Yes.
14:18But you won't know why.
14:19That's enough.
14:20I nodded.
14:21He handed me one last document.
14:23That was a refusal of restoration clause.
14:26Once signed, no one could wake my memory in the name of lover, family, or guardian.
14:32I signed it fast.
14:33As the pen came down, the back of my hand still trembled from the nerve pain after to the torture.
14:38The doctor asked if I wanted to leave a message.
14:41I thought for a long time, then recorded these words.
14:45If Luca Moretti finds this place, please don't let him see me.
14:49I don't hate him.
14:51Hate still means remembering him.
14:53But I don't want to remember anymore.
14:55I closed my eyes.
14:59Begin.
15:01My consciousness was pulled away, piece by piece.
15:05Gunshots.
15:06Vows.
15:07The jungle.
15:08The carving on the knife.
15:09Luca's back once shielding me, all curling and blacking like old photographs.
15:14The last thing burned away was the part of me that loved him.
15:17Before the deep sleep took me, I had already arranged my own death.
15:21I bought an unidentified female body.
15:23A death certificate scorched by fire.
15:25A clean route to Sicily.
15:27I made every clue point to the eastern border.
15:30While the real me would be loaded onto a freighter bound for Polesmo, after the final overrode.
15:35When the doctor counted to three, I said one last line.
15:38To night shale.
15:38In my heart.
15:39You did well.
15:40You can die now.
15:42After I disappeared, Luca had really come looking for me.
15:45It was the third day after my overhoad.
15:47He went to the safe house first.
15:49He wanted to swap back the knife with the wrong name and to end the cold war with a new
15:53ring.
15:53But the fingerprint scanner flashed red.
15:56It let out a harsh rejection tone.
15:58He tried again.
15:59Still red.
16:00The permission had been permanently revoked.
16:03He called in the family's cleanup staff.
16:05The man pulled up the back ward and his face dartened.
16:09Boss, her file status is permanent separation.
16:13Signed off by the Don himself three days ago.
16:16Luca stared at that line and didn't move for a long time.
16:18Where did she go?
16:21There's no destination in the system.
16:23What did she take?
16:25One bag.
16:26One encrypted fund.
16:28The man paused.
16:30And all her operation records.
16:32She wiped them clean herself.
16:35Luca rushed into my room.
16:37The closet, empty.
16:39The drawers, empty.
16:40Even the pen I used was gone.
16:43Only the knife he'd sent lay on the nightstand.
16:45LM and MB.
16:46He finally read the names on the handle.
16:48In that moment, he felt uneasy for the first time.
16:51But he still didn't think of the worst.
16:52He thought I was only hiding for a few days.
16:54He thought I would come back on my own like every other fight before.
16:57But he didn't know I had deleted the option of coming back with my own hands.
17:01Mia moved into Luca's room soon after.
17:03Because she said she had nightmares living alone.
17:07She said she only felt safe close to him.
17:10She made soup.
17:12Changed bandages.
17:13Stayed up until dawn when he drank.
17:15She would press a wet cloth to his forehead.
17:17Over and over.
17:18When he ran a fever.
17:19She would show every passing maid man a smile.
17:22Restrained and brave.
17:23Hence, a new saying spread through the family.
17:26They said Mia was a good girl.
17:27They said nightshade was too cruel.
17:30Unworthy of the boss's tenderness.
17:31Only one person never echoed any of it.
17:34That was Luca.
17:36He didn't turn the page just because he married Mia the way everyone assumed.
17:40He started drinking.
17:41Villa Morelli's liquor cabinet emptied by half in a week.
17:45The living room reeked of whiskey and tobacco all year round.
17:48He took every cleanup contract no one else dared touch.
17:51Like he was sending himself into the muzzle on purpose.
17:53On the Balkan job, he cleared an entire warehouse alone.
17:57He came back with two new bullet holes in his left shoulder.
18:00He didn't even wipe the blood before taking the next job.
18:03It was on the docks of Chicago Southside.
18:06It was meant to be the simplest recycling job.
18:08But he blanked out right before pulling the trigger.
18:11The dying target lashed back and a blade sank into his stomach.
18:15Blood ran down his black suit.
18:17But he felt nothing and pushed the man's head under the river.
18:21Back on shore, he leaned on the railer and laughed.
18:24There was no life in that laugh.
18:26That was the first time Red Lily pulled Luca off the active roster.
18:31Don Salvatore ordered him to rest, with no end date.
18:35He sat in the empty room, polishing the real knife, carved with LM and VR, once and again.
18:42The blade shone bright enough to reflect his sunken eyes.
18:46He didn't know I had seen the copy before I left.
18:49He didn't know the knife was never what cut me.
18:51It was that he assumed I would always stand in place, waiting for him.
18:57When he was drunk to the point of losing his mind, he repeated only one name.
19:01Valentina, come back.
19:04Valentina, I was wrong.
19:06But in the empty room, no one answered him.
19:09Mia couldn't wait to sit still.
19:11She had waited three months, but Luca never touched her once.
19:17She finally understood.
19:19As long as I was alive, Luca would never be hers.
19:23So she spread word.
19:25That someone had seen Nightshapes' body at the eastern border.
19:29Three days later, a wallet, warped by fire, was delivered to Villa Moretti.
19:34Inside were my old cards, and a photo burnt to half.
19:38That was a clue I had left on purpose.
19:42I needed everyone to believe Nightshapes had died in the east.
19:45But I never expected Mia to be the first to use the false death news.
19:49When Luca got the wallet, he looked like a man with his bones pulled out.
19:53He shut himself in his room for a full week.
19:56No food.
19:57No drink.
19:59He saw no one.
20:01The aide stood outside for seven days.
20:04Hearing only glass shatter now and then,
20:07Mia decided the time had come.
20:10That deep night, she carried in a bowl of hangover soup.
20:14In it was enough drug to black out a grown man for an entire night.
20:18Luca, have a little.
20:19It'll help.
20:20He lifted the bowl to his lips.
20:21He leaned on the headboard, eyes hollow, without even the strength to push it away.
20:26He drank it down, from her hand, with no defense.
20:30The drug rose fast.
20:32His mind blurred, bit by bit.
20:35The last thing he saw was Mia's face, leaning close, and the flash of triumph in her eyes.
20:41The next dawn, Luca woke to a splitting headache.
20:45Mia lay beside him, wrapped in the blanket, one shoulder bare, the sheets a mess.
20:49She had silenced the terminal on the table, but the screen still blicked a red life sign alert.
20:55The aide's urgent voice came through the door.
20:57Boss, are you in there?
21:00Your life signal went dark for three hours last night.
21:03The electronic lock was opened by emergency override.
21:06A few made men burst in, then froze in place.
21:09Don Saboteur stood at the door, too.
21:11The old man's eyes swept the messy bed and landed on Luca's pale face.
21:15The whole room went terribly quiet.
21:17Red Lily does not interfere in private affairs.
21:21The Dodd's voice was low, but everyone bowed their heads.
21:25But you touched a woman under your protection, so you'll give her a title.
21:29Luca opened his mouth.
21:31He wanted to explain, but he remembered nothing.
21:34He knew he had been set up.
21:37But in Red Lily, the scandal itself was evidence.
21:42Omada doesn't care about truth.
21:44It cares about the family's reputation.
21:48He had no proof he'd been drugged.
21:51He couldn't even explain what had happened the night before.
21:54The wedding was rushed and absurd.
21:57Villa Moretti's small chapel was dressed in new white roses, almost identical to the ones prepared for me.
22:03Luca stood before the priest in a black suit, like a man marched to the gallows.
22:07Luca Moretti, will you protect Villa Lurie until the end of your life?
22:10The priest asked.
22:12Luca looked at Mia, but his mind was full of my shadow.
22:15My back.
22:17The night I took the fall for him.
22:19The way I laughed at his shaking hands.
22:22Cold laugh I gave him when I opened my eyes underwater.
22:25His stomach turned.
22:26Under the wide skirt, Mia secretly pinched his hand.
22:29Everyone is watching.
22:31You don't want to disappoint the dawn, right?
22:33She lowered her voice.
22:34Luca closed his eyes.
22:36I do.
22:36He said those words like swallowing broken glass.
22:39After the banquet, he walked back to the new bedroom alone.
22:43Rounding the corner of the hall, he heard laughter inside.
22:47It was Mia and Lana.
22:48This time, I owe it all to you.
22:51Mia's voice was sweet to the point of clogging.
22:53If you hadn't helped me edit the cameras and shift the timeline,
22:56how would Luca never believe Valentina broke in at midnight to scare me?
23:00Lana laughed softly.
23:02Nightshade has skill, sure.
23:04But she's too proud.
23:06So she pulled me out of a pile of corpses.
23:08So what?
23:10Every time she looked at me, it was like she was pitying a trash.
23:14Mia scoffed.
23:15However good she is, she's just a dead woman now.
23:17A dead woman, her own man, sent to the operating plate.
23:21Outside the door, Luca's hand slid slowly off the wall.
23:24Fake.
23:25All of it fake.
23:26Mia's PTSD was fake.
23:28The night raid was fake.
23:29My death was fake too.
23:31But one thing was real.
23:32It was he who signed that discipline order.
23:34It was he who had pushed me, step by step, into the Phoenix Protocol.
23:38In that moment, Luca finally understood he hadn't lost a fiancé who threw a tantrum.
23:43He had killed, with his own hands, the only person in this world who ever truly loved him.
23:48Luca pushed the door open.
23:49The laughter in the room cut off at once.
23:51Mia's face turned white in an instant.
23:53The jewelry box in Lana's hands hit the floor with a clack.
23:56Gems scattered everywhere.
23:57Luca walked towards Mia, step by step.
24:00His pace was slow.
24:01But each step landed like it was crushing the heartbeats of two women.
24:05Say it again.
24:06Mia backed away.
24:07Her lower back hit the vanity.
24:10Luca, you misheard.
24:12We were just talking about the wedding.
24:13He gripped her throat and pinned her to the wall.
24:18The PTSD was fake.
24:21Mia's toes nearly left the floor.
24:23She clawed at his wrist, her voice breaking.
24:26It's just because I loved you too much.
24:28I've loved you since I was 15.
24:29Why does Valentin get everything and I get nothing?
24:32Valentina's death news.
24:34You did that too?
24:35Do you?
24:37She's done with you!
24:39Mia burst into tears.
24:41I'm the one who stayed.
24:43I'm the one who changes your bandages every day.
24:47I'm the one who's really good to you.
24:50Luca's hand tightened further.
24:52And the cameras?
24:53He turned to look at Lana, cowering in the corner.
24:55Lana's knees gave out.
24:57She dropped straight to the floor.
24:58I edited them.
25:00But I only helped Mia once.
25:02Luca, I really didn't mean to get her killed.
25:03I thought she'd only be locked up for a few days.
25:06Luca let go of Mia.
25:08She collapsed on the ground, coughing hard.
25:10He wiped his hand with a handkerchief, like he'd touched something filthy.
25:14Then he threw the handkerchief onto Mia's face.
25:16He keyed his terminal.
25:17His voice held no rise or fall.
25:19Discipline crew.
25:20Come to the bedroom.
25:21Hearing those words, Mia crawled to him like she'd gone mad.
25:24She wrapped around Luca's leg.
25:25Kill me if you want.
25:27Just don't cut me out of your life.
25:28For the three years I stayed with you, I'm begging you.
25:31Luca looked down at her, only cold disgust in his eyes.
25:34Killing you would be too easy.
25:35Several men in black arrived quickly.
25:37They hauled Mia up and dragged her toward the door.
25:39Mia went from begging to cursing.
25:41Her voice was as sharp as a knife scraping glass.
25:44Luca Moretti, you'll regret this.
25:46Valentina is never coming back.
25:47She's dead.
25:48You send her to die with your own hands.
25:50Because you'll never see her again in this life.
25:52Luca stood in place.
25:54He didn't turn around.
25:57He gave the aid his orders.
25:59Mia Bellini framed a maid family member.
26:02Faked a death.
26:03Broke Omarda.
26:04Take her to the Palerno Blacksite Cisball.
26:06For how long?
26:08Luca's voice held no warmth.
26:10Until she forgets she ever saw the light.
26:12The Palermo Blacksite Censor.
26:14That was Red Lily's oldest place of punishment.
26:17An underground water vault left from the family's smuggling years.
26:20The stone walls wept year-round.
26:22A chain nailed into the wall on one end.
26:25And locked to the prisoner's neck on the other.
26:27There was no light.
26:28No day or night.
26:30There was only the sound of water dripping into water.
26:32One drop, then another.
26:33The first night Mia was taken down,
26:35her crying carried through the vents for a long time.
26:38She screamed Luca's name over and over.
26:40And cursed me over and over.
26:42The aid asked if they should gag her.
26:45No need.
26:47Luca stood beside the well,
26:49watching the cold lamp reflected on the water.
26:53Let her hear how ugly she sounds.
26:56He turned to leave.
26:57Halfway out, he stopped.
26:59He pulled a brand new wedding ring from his pocket.
27:02The one he'd been forced to slide onto Mia's finger.
27:05He casually tossed it into the black water below.
27:09The ring sank.
27:10Without even an echo.
27:12That girl who had once played so pitifully.
27:15That girl who used one bowl of soup,
27:17one act, one fake death to ruin ten years of my life,
27:20was finally locked in a lightless citizen.
27:22They say three months later, when the guards brought food,
27:25she no longer screamed Luca's name.
27:29She just hugged her knees
27:31and laughed at the water stains on the wall
27:35over and over.
27:37But none of this had anything to do with me anymore.
27:41I didn't even know such a girl had ever existed.
27:44Lana was taken to the commission hearing.
27:46To light of her own crime, she handed over all the evidence.
27:49The camera edit logs,
27:51the ledger for the faked body,
27:52Mia's dark web orders for the drugs.
27:55Item by item, it all matched.
27:56Luca took the evidence to Don Salvatore.
27:59For the first time, he knelt in that study.
28:01His back bent like it had been broken.
28:03Tell me where Valentia went.
28:05The old Don looked down at him.
28:07She took what she was owed before she left.
28:09As for where she went, I have no right to ask.
28:11No.
28:12Luca raised his head, eyes red.
28:14I'm begging you, tell me.
28:15The old Don was silent for a long time.
28:18He slowly ground out his cigar in the tray.
28:20I only know one thing.
28:21What she begged for was not to escape Red Lila.
28:24What she begged for was to forget you.
28:26That line cut deeper than any bullet.
28:28Luca knelt there, unable to say another word.
28:30From that day on, Luca was a blade with no sheath.
28:33He began the reckoning.
28:34Everyone who had ever mocked me.
28:35Everyone who handed Mia a knife who spoke ill of me.
28:37One by one, they were dragged to the commission.
28:39Were sent to the most dangerous border front.
28:41None came back.
28:43The ones who jeered for me to apologize
28:45were stripped of every contract cut.
28:47Lana Ricci was stripped of her maid woman status
28:49and sent to a border counting house.
28:52Never to set foot in Villa Moretti again.
28:54The torturer who used the neural device on me in that room
28:56was dragged into the very same metal chair by Luca.
29:03Luca strapped him with the same restraints
29:05and taped on the same sensors.
29:09They said when that man came out,
29:11he couldn't speak one full sentence.
29:14Someone advised Luca to stop.
29:16The whole family had been purged into fear.
29:20But he only said one word.
29:24What she went through,
29:26every one of them should feel once.
29:29In the end,
29:29his reckoning even traced
29:31the black market clinic's transfer records.
29:33But the trail ended at an anonymous lock
29:35he could never open.
29:36He sat in the study for an entire night.
29:39The next day,
29:40he ordered every mirror in the family removed.
29:42The 80s didn't understand.
29:43Only he knew he couldn't stand the face in the glass.
29:46It was the face of a man who sent the one he loved into hell
29:49with his own hands.
29:50But late punishment meant nothing.
29:52He washed all of red lily in blood.
29:54He killed everyone who ever wronged me.
29:55But he still could not find the me he lost with his own hand.
29:58A blood deat can be collected one by one.
30:02But the person you lost,
30:04not one can be traded back.
30:06And I,
30:07at that time,
30:08was in Palermo at dawn,
30:11watering a pot of red spider lissies.
30:14Knowing nothing of all this.
30:16And feeling nothing of it either.
30:20Three years later,
30:22my life in Palermo was quiet,
30:24like an old book.
30:26My name now was Valentina Bellani.
30:29Every morning at seven,
30:31the smell of bread from the bakery downstairs
30:33reached my room before my alarm.
30:38I would brew a weak cup of coffee
30:41and sit by the window,
30:43writing the day's stock list.
30:46Then I would go downstairs
30:47and open the old wooden door of the shop
30:51and carry the pot of red spider lilies
30:54out into the sun.
30:57On quiet afternoons,
30:59I would recommend poetry to whoever wandered in.
31:02In the evening,
31:04Marco would come on his electric scooter
31:06to pick me up.
31:07He would take me to the little restaurant
31:09on the corner.
31:10I lived on the second floor of the shop.
31:13The room was small,
31:14but from the window,
31:16I could see a sliver of the sea.
31:18No encrypted channels,
31:20no mission countdowns.
31:23No one in my ear,
31:24ordering me to clean a target.
31:26A life this ordinary
31:27feels almost like luxury.
31:30Marco always says
31:31I'm like someone
31:31who just learned to be a person.
31:34I say that's not so bad.
31:37Being a person is better than being a blade.
31:40I don't know,
31:41I once held a gun.
31:42I don't know why my body
31:44tends to beat early
31:45at the sound of clashing metal.
31:50Once,
31:50the kitchen behind the restaurant
31:52dropped a whole stack of knives.
31:55I pulled Mari behind me,
31:57almost on instinct.
31:59Even I froze.
32:01Marco looked at me for a long time.
32:04You must have been hurt really badly
32:06somewhere in the past.
32:08I believed him.
32:11After all,
32:12I did have one faint old scar
32:14on the back of my neck.
32:15I didn't know where it came from,
32:17but it didn't hurt.
32:19That was enough.
32:21These three years,
32:23I had run the shop well.
32:24I remembered every regular's taste.
32:27The baker downstairs
32:28saved me the first corzone
32:30out of the Ivan every day.
32:32The old woman
32:33at the corner flower stalk
32:34gave me her leftover daisies.
32:37Marco taught me
32:38to ride that old scooter.
32:40My first time out,
32:42I knocked over three trash casses.
32:44He laughed at me
32:45for a whole week.
32:48At night,
32:48I would sit by the second floor window
32:50and watch that sliver of sea.
32:52No bodies on the water.
32:54No deals.
32:55No targets to clean.
32:57Only moonlight
32:58and the lamps
32:59of distant fishing boats.
33:01I started to believe
33:02a person really could start over.
33:04No need for a codename.
33:05No need for a gun.
33:06All you need
33:07is a creaking wooden door
33:09and a sun
33:09that rises on time every day.
33:12Until that dusk,
33:13Belondi Books
33:14had no customers.
33:16I was pushing a row
33:17of old books
33:18back onto the shelf.
33:19The bell over the door
33:21suddenly rang.
33:26Three men in black suits
33:27stepped out of the dusk.
33:29Their shoes were polished.
33:31Their eyes were cold.
33:33They carried an air
33:35that didn't belong
33:35on this quiet old street.
33:37The lead man
33:38peeled off his leather gloves.
33:42Nightshade.
33:43Why did you never answer
33:45the dawn's recall?
33:48I stopped what I was doing.
33:51I'm sorry.
33:53You have the wrong person.
33:55My name is Valentina Belendi.
33:57He took a step forward.
34:01Luca Morendi drowned
34:03the whole commission
34:04in blood for you.
34:06And you don't even
34:07give one explanation?
34:08The shop went so quiet
34:10I could hear a motorbike
34:11past the corner.
34:12I looked at him
34:13and my chest ached
34:15for no reason.
34:16The ache was faint
34:18like something deep
34:19in my body
34:19had bumped a door.
34:21Lightly.
34:21I tried to keep
34:22my voice polite.
34:24I had a memory
34:25override once.
34:26Who is this Luca Morecci
34:28you're talking about?
34:29All three men
34:30froze at once.
34:31I followed their eyes
34:32to the other side
34:33of the street.
34:33A man stood deep
34:34in the dusk.
34:35Black coat.
34:36Tall and lean.
34:38Like a shadow
34:39stepping out
34:40of an old nightmare.
34:41I didn't know him
34:42but the way he looked
34:43at me was like
34:43I had once killed him
34:45with my own hands.
34:46The man slowly
34:47walked into the shop.
34:48The bell rang again.
34:49I looked up at him
34:50and thought he was strange.
34:51He wore an expensive coat.
34:53He looked like a man
34:54who could decide
34:54many people's in death.
34:56Yet in front of me
34:57his face went white.
34:59You don't know me?
35:00His voice was badly horsed.
35:01He hadn't spoken days.
35:03If we knew each other
35:04before I'm sorry.
35:04I'm sorry about it.
35:05My memory stops at 18.
35:07The doctor said
35:08everything after that
35:09was cleared.
35:10Not a single thing.
35:12There was a tremble
35:13in his voice
35:13I couldn't read.
35:14You really don't
35:15remember me at all?
35:18No.
35:20I don't remember.
35:21I shook my head.
35:22I saw his hands
35:24shaking violently.
35:25And suddenly
35:26I couldn't bear it.
35:27You don't look well?
35:29Would you like
35:29to sit down for a moment?
35:31It was as if
35:32those words
35:32had struck him hard.
35:33His whole body swayed.
35:35I took a book
35:36from under the counter
35:37and handed it to him.
35:38It was an old
35:39poetry collection
35:40about making peace
35:41with the past.
35:42You carry a lot
35:43of violence with you.
35:44Maybe this book
35:45will help quiet you
35:46a little.
35:46He took the book.
35:47His fingertips
35:49trembled so much
35:50he could barely
35:50hold it.
35:52The next second
35:53a tear fell
35:54onto the cover
35:55of the book.
35:56I froze.
35:57I didn't know
35:58why this stranger
35:59was crying
36:00and I never knew
36:01that long,
36:02long ago
36:02I had seen him
36:03take a bullet.
36:04Seen him kill.
36:05Seen him grin
36:05in a pool of blood.
36:08But I'd never once
36:09seen him cry like this.
36:10The bell over the door
36:11rang a third time.
36:13Marco pushed
36:13the door open.
36:14He carried our
36:15packed dinner
36:15in his hand.
36:16Val,
36:16the restaurant
36:17said the seafood
36:17soup was almost
36:18sold out,
36:19but I got the
36:19last two servings.
36:20I smiled at once.
36:21That smile had
36:22grown on my face
36:22over these three years.
36:24Light,
36:24unburdened.
36:25Then let's close early.
36:26I turned to the
36:27crying man
36:27and apologized softly.
36:29Sir,
36:30we're closing now.
36:31He stood by the door,
36:33watching me turn
36:34off the lights,
36:35watching me lock
36:36the door,
36:37watching me naturally
36:38climb onto the
36:39back of Marco's
36:40scooter.
36:42My arms wrapped
36:43around another
36:44man's waist.
36:45Before Marco
36:46started the scooter,
36:47he looked back
36:48and asked me,
36:49Who was that man?
36:52I looked back
36:53for a glance.
36:55Under the street
36:56lamp,
36:56the man in black
36:57stood very straight.
36:59Yet it looked like
37:00the whole night
37:01had bent his back.
37:02I don't know,
37:04probably someone
37:05who got the wrong
37:05person.
37:06The scooter rolled
37:07through the narrow
37:07old street.
37:08I couldn't help
37:10but look back
37:10one last time.
37:12The man was still
37:13standing there,
37:14holding the book
37:15I had given him.
37:16The rain hadn't
37:17fallen yet,
37:17but his shoulders
37:18looked already
37:19soaked through.
37:20My chest felt
37:22tight for a moment.
37:23The feeling
37:24was unfamiliar,
37:25like a door
37:26deep inside me
37:27had been blown
37:28open a crack,
37:28then quickly
37:29shut again.
37:31I lowered my head
37:32and pressed my chest.
37:34Are you feeling
37:35unwell?
37:36No.
37:37I looked up
37:38at the glowing
37:39restaurant sign
37:39ahead.
37:40That warm yellow
37:41sign was the
37:42color of my life
37:43now.
37:43It's just that
37:44some people
37:45seem to live
37:45very hard lives.
37:46Marco smiled.
37:48Then stay away
37:49from people
37:49who live hard
37:50lives.
37:51I smiled too.
37:52Okay.
37:53What I didn't know
37:54was that after
37:54that night,
37:55Luca went to
37:56the Phoenix Clinic.
37:57That black market
37:58clinic was hidden
37:59under an old
38:00pharmacy by the
38:01port.
38:02No sign at the
38:03door.
38:03Only one green
38:04lamp,
38:05about to burn
38:06out.
38:06On.
38:07Off.
38:08The doctor saw
38:09the red lily
38:10crest under
38:11at Luca's
38:11coat.
38:12His face
38:13went white
38:13at once.
38:15Mr. Morady,
38:16the Phoenix
38:17Protocol contract
38:18is protected
38:19by anonymity.
38:20I cannot
38:21disclose
38:22client information.
38:23Luca set
38:24a gun
38:24on the table.
38:26The muzzle
38:27pointed at
38:27himself.
38:30I'm not
38:31asking where
38:32she is.
38:33The doctor's
38:34atoms-joeman
38:34moved.
38:35Then,
38:36what do you
38:37want to ask?
38:39Whether it
38:39can be
38:40restored?
38:41The doctor
38:42was silenced
38:42for a long
38:43time.
38:44Finally,
38:44he pulled up
38:45an encrypted
38:46file.
38:47Mr. Morady,
38:48you have to
38:49understand.
38:49The final
38:50overroute is
38:51not hypnosis,
38:52nor is it
38:52ordinary trauma
38:53sealing.
38:54What she
38:54asked to
38:55delete was
38:55the entire
38:56identity chain
38:56of her adult
38:57years,
38:57the emotional
38:58chain,
38:58and every
38:59trigger for
38:59danger
39:00responses.
39:00We kept
39:01her basic
39:01language,
39:02life skills,
39:03and bodily
39:03instincts,
39:04but everything
39:04related to
39:05red lily has
39:05been severed.
39:06Luca's
39:07knuckles
39:07tightened bit
39:08by bit.
39:08I asked if
39:09it can be
39:10restored.
39:10The doctor
39:11lowered his
39:12head.
39:12In theory,
39:13those fragments
39:13could be
39:13forcibly
39:14stimulated,
39:15but she
39:15would suffer
39:16a mental
39:16breakdown.
39:17More
39:17importantly,
39:18the doctor
39:18paused.
39:20Before the
39:20procedure,
39:21she signed a
39:22refusal of
39:22restoration clause.
39:24The doctor
39:24took a
39:24recording device
39:25from the
39:25drawer and
39:26pushed it
39:26across to
39:27Luca.
39:27This is the
39:28message she
39:28left.
39:29She said if
39:29you ever came
39:30looking,
39:30I should
39:30play it
39:31for you.
39:31He pressed
39:31play.
39:32In the
39:33recording,
39:33it was my
39:34voice.
39:35At that time,
39:36I had just
39:36come off the
39:37neural torture,
39:38so weak I
39:39could barely
39:39speak one
39:40full sentence,
39:41but the
39:41clarity in that
39:42voice was
39:43sharper than
39:43ever.
39:44If Luca
39:45Moretti finds
39:46this place,
39:47please don't
39:48let him see
39:48me.
39:49There was a
39:50long pause
39:50in the
39:50recording.
39:51I don't
39:51hate him.
39:52Hate would
39:53still mean
39:53remembering
39:54him,
39:55but I don't
39:56want to
39:56remember
39:56anymore.
39:57Another
39:57patch of
39:58static.
40:00Night's
40:00shea was
40:01Red Livy's
40:01blade.
40:04She loved
40:05Luca,
40:08and she
40:09was broken
40:10by Luca
40:11with his
40:12own hands.
40:15When the
40:16procedure
40:16ends,
40:17the person
40:18who survives
40:19owes him
40:19nothing,
40:20owes the
40:20family
40:21nothing,
40:21owes no
40:22vow,
40:23anything.
40:23Please,
40:24let her
40:25be free.
40:26The recording
40:27ended.
40:28Luca listened
40:28and said
40:29nothing for a
40:29long time.
40:30The whole
40:31clinic was
40:32quiet except
40:32for the hum
40:33of that
40:33green lamp.
40:34The doctor
40:35took out
40:35one more
40:36thing,
40:36a paper
40:37document.
40:38It was
40:39an ordinary
40:40pre-op
40:40consent form,
40:41a small
40:42patch of
40:42dark brown
40:43blood on
40:44the corner.
40:45From the
40:45day I
40:46signed it,
40:46when the
40:47back of
40:47my hand
40:47trembled
40:48from nerve
40:48pain,
40:49below the
40:49signature,
40:50I had
40:50written one
40:51extra line.
40:51The handwriting
40:52was slightly
40:52distorted from
40:53trembling.
40:54Nightshade
40:54died in
40:55the final
40:55Oberoad.
40:56Please
40:56don't
40:56not
40:56revive
40:57her.
40:57Luca
40:57stared
40:58at that
40:58line,
40:59for a
40:59very,
41:00very
41:00long
41:00time.
41:01Long
41:01enough
41:01that
41:02the
41:02doctor
41:02thought
41:03he
41:03would
41:03never
41:03speak
41:04again.
41:05In
41:05the
41:05end,
41:06he
41:06took
41:06from
41:06the
41:06inner
41:06pocket
41:07of his
41:07coat,
41:08the
41:08folding
41:08blade
41:08carved
41:09with
41:09LM
41:09and
41:09VR.
41:10That
41:11was
41:11the
41:11real
41:11one.
41:12Ten
41:12years
41:12ago,
41:13he
41:13had
41:13carved
41:14both
41:14their
41:14names
41:14into
41:15it
41:15himself.
41:16He
41:16said
41:17if
41:17he
41:17ever
41:17betrayed
41:17me,
41:18I
41:18could
41:18use
41:18it
41:18to
41:19stab
41:19through
41:19his
41:19heart.
41:20He
41:20set
41:20the
41:20knife
41:21down
41:21beside
41:21the
41:21consent
41:22form.
41:25Seal it
41:26into
41:26the
41:26file.
41:27The
41:27doctor
41:28froze.
41:29Mr.
41:30Moretti,
41:30this
41:30is
41:30yours.
41:31No.
41:32His
41:33voice
41:33was
41:33empty,
41:37wind.
41:38It
41:38belongs
41:39to
41:39the
41:39one
41:39who's
41:39already
41:40dead.
41:41With
41:42that,
41:42he
41:43turned
41:43and
41:43left,
41:44without
41:45looking
41:45back.
41:47That
41:48knife,
41:48which
41:49had
41:49witnessed
41:49ten
41:49years
41:50of
41:50life
41:50and
41:51death,
41:51was
41:52finally
41:52sealed,
41:53along
41:53with
41:53that
41:54form
41:54that
41:54reads
41:55please
41:55do
41:55not
41:56revive
41:56her,
41:57into
41:57a
41:57file
41:58no
41:58one
41:58will
41:59ever
41:59open
41:59again.
42:00Back
42:01at
42:01Villa
42:01Moretti,
42:02Luca
42:02called a
42:03commission
42:03meeting.
42:04He
42:04pushed
42:04through
42:05three
42:05new
42:05rules.
42:06First,
42:06Niteshep's
42:07file is
42:08permanently
42:08sealed,
42:09status
42:09changed
42:09to
42:10deceased.
42:11Second,
42:11Belandi
42:11books and
42:12the three
42:12streets
42:13around it,
42:13marked as
42:14a permanent
42:14red lion
42:15no entry
42:15zone.
42:16Third,
42:17no member
42:17may approach
42:18Valentina
42:18Belani,
42:19not in
42:20the name
42:20of
42:20protection,
42:21pursuit,
42:22recall,
42:22or revenge.
42:23An older
42:24capo spoke
42:25up,
42:25hesitantly.
42:26Boss,
42:28she knows
42:28too much
42:29of the
42:29family's
42:30old business
42:30after all.
42:31Even
42:32with the
42:32memory loss,
42:33she's a
42:33risk.
42:36Maybe we
42:37should cut
42:37the...
42:38Luca lifted
42:39his eyes
42:39and looked
42:39at him.
42:40That one
42:41look froze
42:41in the
42:41whole room.
42:42I am
42:43the risk.
42:44He said
42:44it,
42:44one word
42:45at a
42:45time.
42:45Whoever
42:46touches
42:46her,
42:47I will
42:48handle
42:48them
42:48personally.
42:49No one
42:50dared say
42:50another
42:51word.
42:51After
42:52the
42:52meeting,
42:53the
42:53aide
42:53handed
42:54him
42:54a
42:54black
42:54envelope.
42:55Boss,
42:56that
42:56bridal
42:57suite
42:57in Villa
42:57Morelli
42:58is still
42:58kept
42:58as it
42:59was.
43:00Inside
43:00are your
43:01old
43:01things
43:01and
43:02nightshades.
43:04and
43:04the
43:05dried
43:05white
43:05roses
43:06prepared
43:07for
43:07the
43:07wedding.
43:07How
43:08would
43:08you
43:08like
43:09them
43:09handled?
43:11Luca
43:12didn't
43:12take
43:12the
43:12envelope.
43:13Burn
43:13them.
43:13He
43:14only
43:14said
43:14two
43:14words.
43:15The
43:15aide
43:16hesitated.
43:17All
43:17of it?
43:17All
43:18of it.
43:19That
43:19room
43:20burned
43:20the
43:20whole
43:20night
43:21through.
43:21The
43:22wedding
43:22dress
43:22I
43:22never
43:23got
43:23to
43:23wear.
43:24The
43:24velvet
43:25box
43:25that
43:25held
43:25the
43:26ring.
43:26The
43:27old
43:27photos
43:27from
43:27missions
43:28we
43:28ran
43:28together.
43:29And
43:29the
43:29knife
43:30carved
43:30with
43:30the
43:31wrong
43:31name.
43:33All
43:33of it
43:34devoured
43:34by
43:34the
43:35fire.
43:35Into
43:36the
43:36fire
43:36he
43:37also
43:37threw
43:37one
43:37more
43:38thing.
43:38A
43:39photo
43:39of
43:39the
43:40two
43:40of
43:40us
43:40ten
43:41years
43:41ago.
43:42In
43:43the
43:43photo
43:43I
43:44leaned
43:44on
43:44his
43:44shoulder.
43:45Both
43:46of
43:46us
43:46smiling
43:46softly.
43:48It
43:48was
43:48the
43:48only
43:49photo
43:49where
43:49neither
43:50of
43:50us
43:50held
43:50a
43:50gun.
43:51He
43:52watched
43:52that
43:52face
43:53get
43:53licked
43:53black
43:54by
43:54the
43:54fire.
43:55Curl
43:56turned
43:57to
43:57ash.
43:58Luca
43:58stood
43:58in
43:58the
43:59courtyard
44:00watching
44:00the
44:00fire
44:01light
44:01re-read
44:01in
44:01the
44:01windows
44:02of
44:02Villa
44:02Moretti
44:03bit
44:03by
44:03bit.
44:04The
44:04aide
44:05beside
44:05him
44:05wanted
44:05to
44:05say
44:06something
44:06but
44:07in
44:07the
44:07end
44:07didn't
44:07dare.
44:09They
44:09say
44:09he
44:10didn't
44:10shed
44:10a
44:10single
44:10tear
44:11that
44:11night
44:11because
44:12the
44:12time
44:13when
44:13he
44:13could
44:13really
44:13cry
44:15he
44:15had
44:15already
44:16used
44:16it
44:16up
44:16in
44:16that
44:17tiny
44:17bookshop
44:18in
44:18Palamo.
44:19That
44:19night
44:19a
44:20fine
44:21rain
44:21fell
44:21over
44:21Palamo.
44:23I
44:23was
44:23in
44:23the
44:23shop
44:24with
44:24Marco
44:24sorting
44:25newly
44:26arrived
44:26old
44:26books.
44:28I
44:28looked
44:28up
44:29at
44:29the
44:29rain
44:29outside
44:29the
44:30window
44:30and
44:30suddenly
44:31thought
44:31of
44:31the
44:31pot
44:31of
44:32pot
44:32of
44:32red
44:32spider
44:33lallies
44:33at
44:33the
44:33door
44:34so I
44:35went
44:35over
44:35and
44:35carried
44:36it
44:36inside.
44:38Marco
44:38laughed
44:39at
44:39me.
44:40Val
44:40those
44:40flowers
44:41look
44:41a
44:41little
44:41unlucky
44:42they
44:42say
44:42they
44:43bloom
44:43on
44:44the
44:44road
44:44to
44:44the
44:44underworld.
44:45I
44:45lightly
44:46brushed
44:46the
44:46blood
44:46red
44:47petals
44:47with
44:47my
44:48fingertip.
44:49Is
44:49that
44:50so?
44:51I
44:51think
44:51they're
44:52more
44:52like
44:52a
44:52reminder.
44:53The
44:54roads
44:54you
44:54shouldn't
44:54go
44:55back
44:55on.
44:56Don't
44:57go
44:57back.
44:57In
44:58a
44:58car
44:58at
44:58the
44:58corner
44:59of
44:59the
44:59street
44:59someone
45:00watched
45:00me
45:01one
45:01last
45:01time
45:01through
45:02the
45:02rain.
45:02I
45:03didn't
45:03notice
45:03and
45:04that
45:05was
45:05good.
45:05From
45:06that
45:06night
45:06on
45:07the
45:07name
45:08Valentina
45:08Rinaldi
45:09was
45:09gone
45:09from
45:10Red
45:10Lime's
45:11Ledger's.
45:12Only
45:13a
45:13codename
45:14sealed
45:15away
45:15forever
45:16and
45:16I
45:17never
45:17saw
45:17the
45:17man
45:18called
45:18Luca
45:18Moretti
45:19again.
45:20The
45:20days
45:20after
45:20that
45:20remained
45:21ordinary.
45:22I
45:22opened
45:23the
45:23shop
45:23every
45:23morning,
45:24carried
45:25the
45:25red
45:25spider
45:25Lillians
45:26out
45:26into
45:26the
45:27sun.
45:27In
45:27the
45:27afternoon
45:28recommended
45:29stories
45:30that
45:30quiet
45:30the
45:30heart
45:31to
45:31strangers.
45:32In
45:32the
45:32evening
45:33locked
45:34the
45:34shop
45:34door
45:35and
45:35climbed
45:36onto
45:36Marco's
45:37scooter.
45:37Sometimes
45:38late
45:38at
45:38night
45:38I
45:38would
45:39touch
45:39that
45:39faint
45:39old
45:40scar
45:40on
45:40the
45:40back
45:40of
45:41my
45:41neck.
45:41I
45:41still
45:42didn't
45:42know
45:42where
45:42it
45:42came
45:42from.
45:43I
45:43only
45:43knew
45:44this.
45:44Every
45:44time
45:44the
45:45bell
45:45rings
45:45I
45:45would
45:46on
45:46instinct
45:46look
45:47up
45:47toward
45:47the
45:47door
45:47and
45:48then
45:48confirm
45:49there
45:49is
45:49no
45:49darkness
45:50there
45:50only
45:51the
45:51light
45:51of
45:51ordinary
45:52people.
45:52Later
45:53Marco
45:53asked
45:53me
45:54why
45:54I
46:09don't
46:09remember
46:10night
46:10shape
46:10I
46:11don't
46:11remember
46:11the
46:12man
46:12called
46:12Luca
46:13Moretti
46:14I
46:14don't
46:14know
46:15that
46:15someone
46:15washed
46:15a
46:16whole
46:16city
46:16in
46:16blood
46:17for
46:17me
46:17I
46:18don't
46:18know
46:18that
46:18someone
46:19burned
46:19all
46:19our
46:19past
46:20facing
46:20a
46:21fire
46:22none
46:23of
46:23it
46:23has
46:23anything
46:24to
46:24do
46:24with
46:24the
46:24me
46:24of
46:25now
46:25but
46:25I
46:25know
46:26this
46:26the
46:26me
46:26of
46:26now
46:27opens
46:27the
46:27door
46:28at
46:28dawn
46:28locks
46:29the
46:29shop
46:29at
46:29dusk
46:30greets
46:30every
46:30ordinary
46:31tomorrow
46:31to
46:31the
46:32sound
46:32of
46:32a
46:32bell
46:32this
46:33is
46:33not
46:33a
46:33new
46:33life
46:34granted
46:34to
46:34me
46:34by
46:34anyone
46:35nor
46:35is
46:35it
46:36redemption
46:36bought
46:36with
46:36the
46:36city's
46:37blood
46:37this
46:37is
46:38freedom
46:38freedom
46:39I
46:39took
46:39from
46:39the
46:39hands
46:39of
46:40my
46:40old
46:40self
46:40freedom
46:41I
46:41claimed
46:41for
46:42myself
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