Chapter 25

TWENTY-FIVE

O live stared at her computer screen, her heart sinking as she refreshed the page for the hundredth time. The familiar layout of her website, filled with book reviews and vlogs, remained stubbornly absent. In its place, a stark white page with an error message glared back at her.

"This can't be happening," she muttered, running a hand through her strands. Her website, the cornerstone of her brand and livelihood, had vanished without a trace.

With trembling fingers, she dialed Chaos's number. He answered on the second ring, his deep voice instantly soothing her frayed nerves.

" Bella mia , what's wrong?"

Olive took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice steady. "My website's down. Completely gone. I don't know what happened or how to fix it."

There was a brief pause on the other end of the line. When Chaos spoke again, his tone was calm and reassuring. "Don't worry, I'm on it. I'll have my best guy look into it right away."

True to his word, within an hour, a wiry young man with bright blue hair and more piercings than Olive could count arrived at her apartment. He introduced himself as Ziggy, Chaos's go-to hacker.

As Ziggy worked his magic, fingers flying across his keyboard at superhuman speed, Olive paced the living room. Her mind raced with possibilities. A technical glitch? A server issue? Or something more sinister?

"Gotcha!" Ziggy's triumphant cry cut through Olive's spiraling thoughts. She rushed to his side, peering over his shoulder at the screen full of indecipherable code.

"What is it? Can you fix it?"

Ziggy's grin faded slightly. "I can definitely get your site back up. But... you might want to sit down for this, Ms. Russo."

With growing dread, Olive sank into the nearest chair. "Just tell me."

"Your site was deliberately taken down. And I traced the attack back to its source." Ziggy hesitated, glancing nervously at Olive. "It came from an IP address registered to Tia Amato."

The name hit Olive like a physical blow. Tia. Chaos's sister. The woman who had made it abundantly clear that she didn't approve of Olive's relationship with her brother.

"Are you sure?" Olive asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Ziggy nodded grimly. "One hundred percent. I've got the digital trail to prove it."

As the reality of the situation sank in, Olive's shock gave way to a simmering anger. How dare Tia attack her livelihood? This wasn't just petty jealousy anymore - this was sabotage.

For a moment, Olive considered calling Chaos immediately to tell him what his sister had done. But as she reached for her phone, a new thought struck her. The family dinner. Chaos's parents had invited her over that evening to officially meet her as Chaos's girlfriend. What better time to confront Tia than in front of the entire family?

Decision made, Olive turned back to Ziggy. "Can you get my site back up without letting Tia know we're onto her?"

Ziggy's eyes gleamed with mischief. "Oh, absolutely. She'll never know what hit her."

As Ziggy worked to restore her website, Olive's mind raced with plans. She'd bide her time, play nice at dinner, and then, when the moment was right, she'd reveal Tia's treachery to everyone.

Hours later, Olive stood before the full-length mirror in her bedroom, smoothing down the front of her red cocktail dress. She'd chosen the color deliberately - bold, vibrant, impossible to ignore. Just like her.

A soft knock at the door preceded Chaos's entrance. He paused in the doorway, his hazel eyes widening as he took in her appearance.

"You look stunning," he said, crossing the room to pull her into his arms.

Olive allowed herself a moment to melt into his embrace, drawing strength from his solid presence. Then she stepped back, meeting his gaze with determination.

"Ready to face the lion's den?" she asked, only half-joking.

Chaos chuckled, but his eyes were serious as he cupped her face in his hands. "They're going to love you, Olive. And if Tia tries anything..."

"Don't worry about Tia," Olive cut in, perhaps a bit too quickly. At Chaos's questioning look, she forced a smile. "I can handle your sister."

As they drove to the Amato family mansion, Olive's mind buzzed with anticipation. She'd faced down internet trolls and cutthroat business rivals, but somehow, the prospect of this dinner filled her with a unique blend of excitement and dread.

The Amato estate sprawled before them, a modern architectural marvel of glass and metal nestled among manicured gardens. As they pulled up to the entrance, Olive took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was to come.

Marco and Isabella Amato greeted them at the door, all warm smiles and European charm. Olive found herself immediately drawn to Isabella's kind green eyes and Marco's booming laugh.

"Benvenuta, Olive!" Isabella exclaimed, pulling her into a surprisingly strong hug. "We've heard so much about you."

Marco's handshake was firm and genuine. "Any woman who can make our Chaos smile like that is welcome in our home."

As they made their way to the dining room, Olive caught sight of Tia, hovering near the bar with a glass of wine in hand. Their eyes met, and Olive saw a flash of something - anger? Fear? - before Tia's face settled into a mask of polite indifference.

"Olive," Tia greeted coolly. "So glad you could join us."

Olive plastered on her best vlogger smile. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Throughout the appetizer course, Olive chatted easily with Marco and Isabella, sharing stories about her vlog and her work with the family foundation. She could feel Tia's eyes on her, watching for any misstep.

As the main course arrived - a mouthwatering osso buco that had Olive mentally taking notes for her next cooking vlog - Tia finally spoke up.

"So, Olive," she began, her tone deceptively light. "How's that little website of yours doing? Still reviewing trashy romance novels?"

Olive set down her fork, meeting Tia's gaze head-on. "Actually, I had a bit of trouble with my site earlier today. The strangest thing - it was taken down completely."

She noticed Tia's hand tighten around her wine glass. Got you .

"Oh no," Tia said, not quite managing to sound concerned. "How awful. I hope it wasn't... hacked or anything."

Olive smiled, all teeth. "Oh, it was definitely a deliberate attack. But don't worry, I have some very talented friends who managed to trace it back to the source."

The tension at the table ratcheted up several notches. Chaos looked between Olive and Tia, confusion etched on his features.

"Olive?" he asked quietly. "What's going on?"

This was it. The moment of truth. Olive took a deep breath, her heart pounding so loudly, she was sure everyone at the table could hear it. The weight of her phone in her hand felt like an anchor, grounding her as she prepared to unleash the storm.

"I think it's time we addressed the elephant in the room," Olive began, her voice steady despite the tremor in her hands. She locked eyes with Tia, who stared back with a mixture of defiance and poorly concealed panic.

"Earlier today, my website - my biggest passion outside of the foundation - was completely shut down." Olive's words cut through the sudden silence like a knife. She could see Marco and Isabella exchanging worried glances while Chaos sat unnaturally still beside her, tension radiating from every line of his body.

"At first, I thought it was a technical glitch. But thanks to the help of a very talented hacker" - here, Olive nodded gratefully at Chaos - "we discovered it was a deliberate attack."

The air in the room seemed to thicken, making it hard to breathe. Olive pressed on, her voice growing stronger with each word.

"The attack was traced back to an IP address registered to this house." She paused, letting the implications sink in. "More specifically, to Tia's personal computer."

The reaction was immediate and explosive. Marco's face darkened like a thundercloud, his knuckles whitening as he gripped his fork with unnecessary force. Isabella gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in shock, eyes wide with disbelief and disappointment.

Chaos, for his part, remained eerily calm, his eyes never leaving Olive's face. But she could see the storm brewing behind his hazel eyes, a tempest of anger and betrayal barely held in check.

Tia's reaction was the most dramatic. Her face cycled through a kaleidoscope of emotions - shock, fear, anger - before settling on righteous indignation.

"She's lying!" Tia shrieked, her chair scraping loudly against the floor as she jumped to her feet. The sudden movement sent her wine glass toppling, spilling deep red liquid across the pristine white tablecloth like a bloodstain. "This is ridiculous. I would never do something like that!"

Olive remained seated, her calm demeanor a stark contrast to Tia's hysteria. "I'm not lying, Tia. And I have proof."

With hands that shook only slightly, Olive unlocked her phone and pulled up the evidence Ziggy had provided. She slid the device across the table to Marco, who picked it up with a grave expression.

"These are messages between Tia and the hacker she hired," Olive explained, her voice steady. "There are timestamps, IP addresses, even a record of the payment made."

Marco's eyes widened as he scrolled through the information, his face growing darker with each swipe. Isabella leaned in to look, her hand covering her mouth in horror.

"Tia," Marco's voice was low and dangerous, a growl that made everyone at the table flinch. "Explain yourself. Now."

Tia's eyes darted around the room like a cornered animal, searching for an escape. "I... it's not... she must have faked it somehow!"

"That's enough!" Chaos's voice cracked like a whip, making everyone jump. He stood slowly, his eyes never leaving his sister. "Tia, how could you? Do you have any idea what you've done?"

Tia's desperation turned to anger, her face flushing an ugly red. "I did it for you, Chaos! For our family! She doesn't belong here. She's not one of us!"

The silence that followed was deafening. Olive felt as if she were watching the scene unfold from outside her body, the tension in the room so thick she could almost taste it.

Then, to everyone's surprise, Chaos laughed. It wasn't a happy sound - it was cold, bitter, almost frightening in its intensity.

"Not one of us?" he repeated, his voice dangerously soft. "Olive has shown more integrity, more strength, and more class in the past five minutes than you have in your entire life, Tia."

He turned to Olive, his eyes softening as they met hers. "I'm so sorry, bella . I had no idea..."

Olive reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. "It's not your fault, Chaos."

Marco cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. His face was a mask of barely controlled fury as he addressed his daughter.

"She's lyin-"

"Enough!" Marco's shout silenced the room. He fixed Tia with a steely glare. "You will apologize to Olive. Now. And then you will go to your room while your mother and I discuss your punishment."

Tia opened her mouth as if to argue, but one look at her father's face changed her mind. She turned to Olive, her words dripping with insincerity. "I'm sorry for any inconvenience I may have caused you."

Before anyone could respond, Tia stormed out of the room, leaving a wake of tension behind her.

As the echo of Tia's footsteps faded, the room seemed to collectively exhale. Olive felt Chaos's arm wrap around her waist, a silent promise of support and protection.

Isabella turned to Olive, her eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Olive, tesoro , I am so sorry. This behavior is unacceptable."

Marco nodded in agreement, his expression grave. "Tia will face serious consequences for her actions. And we will, of course, cover any damages or lost revenue from your website being down."

Olive managed a small smile, feeling the weight of the confrontation finally lifting from her shoulders. "Thank you. I appreciate that."

Chaos reached for Olive's hand under the table, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "I'm so sorry you had to go through this, bella mia . I had no idea Tia would stoop so low."

Olive managed a small smile. "It's not your fault, Chaos. I'm just glad the truth is out now."

As the conversation turned to lighter topics, the tension in the room slowly dissipated. But Olive couldn't shake the feeling that this was just the beginning. She had won this battle, but the war with Tia was far from over.

As the evening wound down, Olive found herself on the Amato's terrace, gazing out at the twinkling lights of the city below. She heard footsteps behind her and turned to see Chaos approaching.

He wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. "You okay?"

Olive leaned back into his embrace, letting out a long breath. "Yeah, I think so. It's been... a day."

Chaos chuckled softly. "That's an understatement. I'm proud of you, you know. The way you handled everything in there... you're incredible."

Olive turned in his arms, looking into his hazel eyes. "We're incredible. Together."

As Chaos's lips met hers in a tender kiss, Olive felt the last of her tension melt away. They had weathered this storm together, and she knew deep in her bones that they could face anything as long as they had each other.

Later that night, as Olive settled into bed, she pulled out her phone and opened her vlogging app. Her followers deserved to know the truth about what had happened.

"Hey, book lovers," she began, her voice soft but strong. "Have I got a story for you..."

As she recounted the events of the day, leaving out some of the more personal details, Olive felt a sense of catharsis. This was her truth, her story, and no one - not even Tia - could take that away from her.

When she finished recording, Olive scrolled through the comments already pouring in. Messages of support, outrage on her behalf, and excitement for what the future held flooded her screen.

With a smile, Olive set her phone aside and snuggled deeper into her pillows. Tomorrow would bring new challenges, but for now, she was content. She had faced her fears, stood up for herself, and come out stronger on the other side.

As sleep began to claim her, Olive's last thoughts were of Chaos - his unwavering support, his fierce protectiveness, and the love that shone in his eyes when he looked at her. Whatever came next, they would face it together.

And really, wasn't that what all the best love stories were about?