Chapter 10 - the threshold of sixteen
Victor pulled out a small, heavy velvet box sealed with a wax stamp from the Vatican probate court in Rome.
Clara looked at the box, her brow furrowing in gentle curiosity. "Victor? What is that?"
"When the Vatican probate court finalized your father's estate records yesterday," Victor explained, breaking the red wax seal with his thumb, "they discovered an additional sealed document attached to your birth certificate."
Victor lifted the lid of the box, revealing a faded parchment scroll tied with a crimson silk ribbon, along with a small silver key stamped with the number 16.
Victor unrolled the scroll, scanning the ancient Italian script written across the top.
As his dark eyes read the first line, Victor’s body went completely rigid. His breathing stopped sharply in his chest, his rugged face turning unusually grave.
Clara stepped closer, placing her hand on his broad arm. "Victor? What does it say? What did my father leave?"
Victor slowly looked up from the parchment, his dark eyes burning with an intense, staggering new light.
"It wasn't written by your father, Clara," Victor whispered, his deep voice carrying an unbelievable weight. "It was written by my late grandfather thirty years ago. And it states that Rosie isn't the only child born of our two bloodlines..."
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Clara gasped, her hand flying to her mouth as her eyes locked onto the silver key stamped with the number 16.
Victor held the crimson ribbon in his hand, leaving the staggering secret of their bloodline hanging on the extraordinary threshold of a brand-new destiny...
