~The lost one~

Chapter 44

Luca's POV:

As I headed to the meeting room earlier, I saw Simi. That was enough to make my day a little better. I was supposed to help set up the room, which is why I left early, but talking to Simi was more important.

Whenever I'm with her, all the stress and chaos in my life seem to disappear. It's like nothing else matters.

When I finally made it to the meeting, Father was already there, going over some paperwork. Great, I thought. I was late.

He barely looked up before asking, "Why are you late?"

"I ran into Simi in the storage room," I said. "She was looking at the old family photos."

Father paused for a moment. "Ah, and how was she?"

"A little shocked," I admitted, "but she's doing fine."

I knew the general idea of what this meeting was about, but the specifics were still a mystery to me. As we waited, one by one, my brothers started trickling in.

Giovanni was last, as expected. He was probably playing GTA or something—he's obsessed with those games. It's not the worst habit, but when he starts yelling at the screen... well, that's a whole other issue.

Dad stood up from his chair and walked over to the large TV screen at the front of the room. A PowerPoint?

That threw me off. Dad only breaks out PowerPoints when something is *really* important. Normally, he just hands out papers with everything laid out, so this had to be more than what we expected. I had a sinking feeling that we were in for something big.

He cleared his throat. "I've called you all here because I want to talk about something serious. After that, we'll get to the usual business. Understood?"We all nodded in silence, waiting for what was next.

"This is about Simi."

He connected his computer to the TV, and a picture of Simi flashed up on the screen.

She looked... different. She was smiling, a genuine smile, surrounded by three other girls. It hit me—I had never seen her smile like that before. My stomach tightened. What was this about?

"As you know," Dad continued, "Simi has been through a lot, though we still don't fully understand everything she's endured. We know she lived with Carolina and Nyx, both of whom struggled with addiction, which must have been incredibly hard on her. But beyond that, she's been living a completely different life from ours."

He clicked to the next slide: a breakdown of Simi's daily life.

"She attended a public school in New York, where she had a large social circle. These three," he gestured to the screen, "were her closest friends."

The slide showed three photos. First, there was **Anke Rewechgs**, a 14-year-old with blonde hair pulled back in a messy bun, her bright blue eyes standing out. She had an athletic look about her, maybe a soccer player.

Next was **Lena Neven**, also 14, her dark straight hair falling past her shoulders. She had a quiet, bookish vibe, with glasses perched on her nose and a shy smile.

The last girl was **Kimberly Byloos**, 14, with light brown skin and curly hair that she'd straightened for the picture. She had a confident look about her, and under her name were the words "her first one"—her closest friend, I assumed.

Dad gave us a little more information on each girl, then moved on to the next slide. "Simi worked part-time at a coffee shop. She was close with her coworkers, and they spent time together outside of work." He showed a picture of the shop—a cozy little place with warm, brown tones.

"She built a life there, a different life from ours. Just recently, she returned from a school trip to Italy."

The screen filled with photos of Simi and her friends at iconic spots: the Colosseum, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, a restaurant, the beach, and their hotel.

My mind began to whirl. Four girls... Italy... that hotel...

Suddenly, it hit me like a ton of bricks. *Wait.* Four girls. One with curly hair, one shorter, another taller... *No way. No way.*

Italy. Four girls. The hotel.

My heart skipped a beat, then raced. The girls we'd rescued. *She* was one of them. Simi was there. The girl I couldn't shake from my mind, the one I felt an inexplicable connection with—my own sister."Fuck," I cursed under my breath, my pulse pounding in my ears. How did I not recognize her? I had been face-to-face with her, seen her terrified, and I didn't even know.Dad kept talking, but I couldn't hear him. His voice became a distant hum as my mind spiraled.

Simi had been there, tied up, scared, and I hadn't realized it. How could I have missed something so huge? What kind of brother was I?

Dad's voice cut through my thoughts, pulling me back to the room. "Now that Simi is with us, we need to make sure she feels at home. I don't want her to feel out of place here. She's been through enough."

Fabio nodded, his eyes on the screen. "She's going to need time to adjust. She's never experienced this kind of life—this house, the security, all of it."

Giovann leaned back in his chair. "We should give her space. Let her settle in without overwhelming her. Maybe spend time with her when she's ready."

Antonio, ever the level-headed one, added, "We need to understand what she likes, what makes her comfortable. She's been working part-time, going to school. Her pace has been different from ours."

There were murmurs of agreement as my brothers discussed how to make her feel welcome. But I was miles away. All I could think about was the moment I saw her in that warehouse. How I'd failed to connect the dots.

After what felt like hours, Dad shifted the conversation to our usual business, but I didn't say a word. I couldn't. My mind was stuck on Simi, on the weight of my failure, and how much I'd already let her down without even knowing.