All Chapters of The promise he broke : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Tayla’s POVThe moment Luca left that evening, I locked the door.Then I checked it twice.Not because I thought he would come back.Because I no longer trusted my own instincts.For weeks, I had been caught between two versions of reality.The man Damian warned me about.And the man who kept showing up with groceries, helped Noah with homework, and sat beside me when I couldn't stop crying.The problem was that both versions belonged to Luca.And I didn't know which one was real.I walked into my bedroom and pulled the flash drives from the bottom drawer of my nightstand.For the tenth time that night, I stared at them.Small.Ordinary.Harmless looking.Yet somehow they had managed to terrify Damian enough to hide them.That thought alone kept me awake.Eventually, I opened my laptop.My fingers hovered above the keyboard.Then I inserted the first drive.The screen loaded slowly.A list of folders appeared.Company reports.Financial statements.Investment records.At first glance,

Tayla's POVThe moment Noah disappeared into his room, the apartment felt different.Too quiet.Too tense.The kind of silence that makes you aware of every sound.Every movement.Every breath.Luca stood near the balcony doors with his hands in his pockets.Calm.Collected.Patient.But there was something underneath that calmness.Something sharp.Something that reminded me of a predator pretending not to hunt.For weeks, I had told myself I was imagining things.That grief was making me suspicious.That Damian's warnings had gotten into my head.Now I wasn't so sure."Why are you looking at me like that?" Luca asked.I crossed my arms."Like what?""Like I'm a stranger."The answer almost escaped before I could stop it.Maybe because lately that was exactly how I felt.Like I was living with strangers wearing familiar faces.Instead, I forced a small smile."I'm tired."Luca studied me for a moment.Long enough to make me uncomfortable.Then he nodded slowly."You're lying."My sto

Damian's POVEight Years AgoI was twenty-eight years old when I met Victor Salazar.Back then, I still believed hard work could solve everything.I believed business was simple.Good people succeeded.Bad people failed.And if you stayed honest long enough, eventually life rewarded you.God, I was naïve.I laughed quietly as I leaned back in my office chair.The Russo Group was still young then.Not the empire it would eventually become.Just a growing company with potential.And ambition.A lot of ambition.The office door opened.Luca walked in carrying two glasses of whiskey."You're still working?"I looked up."Someone has to."Luca smirked."You need a life."I accepted the drink."And you need responsibility."His laugh filled the office.Back then things were easy between us.We argued.We competed.But he was still my little brother.The person I trusted more than anyone.The last person I thought would ever betray me.If only I knew.A week later, Luca introduced me to Vict

Luca's POVEight Years AgoDamian drove away.And for the first time in years...I felt afraid.The rain poured relentlessly over the empty road.My suit was soaked.Water dripped from my hair.But I barely noticed.Because all I could think about was the look on Damian's face.The disgust.The disappointment.The betrayal.I'd seen anger before.I'd seen hatred before.But never from him.Never from my brother.And somehow...That hurt more than Victor's death ever could.Luca slowly looked back toward the warehouse.Toward the body lying inside.Victor Salazar.The man who thought he controlled everyone.The man who believed money could buy loyalty.The man who had spent years treating people like tools.Now he was dead.And the world kept turning.Funny how that worked.One moment a man thought he was untouchable.The next he was a corpse.A second car pulled into the warehouse lot.Black.Unmarked.Expensive.The driver's door opened.A tall man stepped out.Marcus Bell.The same

Tayla's POVThe feeling started three days later.That uncomfortable sensation that someone was watching her.At first, Tayla dismissed it.Stress.Fear.Paranoia.After everything she'd learned about Damian, Luca, and Victor Salazar, it would be strange if she wasn't nervous.But the feeling refused to go away.Everywhere she went, it followed.At the grocery store.At Noah's school.Even during her morning walks.Someone was there.Always.Watching.Waiting.It started with small things.A black SUV parked across the street.A man reading a newspaper for nearly three hours.A silver sedan appearing behind her car multiple times.Tiny details.Things most people wouldn't notice.But Tayla noticed.Because lately, survival depended on noticing things.On Friday afternoon, she picked Noah up from school.The parking lot buzzed with parents and children.Normal.Safe.Ordinary.At least that's what she told herself.Noah climbed into the back seat.Talking excitedly about a science proj