Chapter 7 - The Traitor Unmasked
The emergency generators kicked in with a low, vibrating hum, casting long, eerie shadows across the smoke-filled corridors. Smoke billowed from the west wing where the explosion had hit, carrying the acrid stench of burnt gunpowder and sulfur. Clutching a small duffel bag containing my textbooks, Micah's photo, and a few changes of clothes, I sprinted toward the private elevator leading down to the underground safe rooms.
As I rounded the corner near the master study, muffled voices caught my attention. I pressed my back against the mahogany-paneled wall, peering cautiously around the corner.
Standing near the smashed display cases was Viktor Kovac—Freddy’s nephew and the head of nighttime security—speaking in hushed, urgent tones into a burner phone.
"—the girl is in the east wing. Take her as leverage, and Raphael will hand over the docks by midnight," Viktor snarled into the phone.
The realization hit me like a physical blow. Viktor was the traitor. He had sold out the Orsini estate to the Moretti family, and now I was their primary target to break Raphael's unbreakable will.
Before I could back away, a heavy hand clamped over my mouth, cutting off my gasp, and an arm banded around my waist, yanking me backward into the shadows of an empty guest suite.
"Going somewhere, little bird?" a harsh voice hissed in my ear.
It wasn't Viktor. It was one of Moretti's enforcers, a scarred brute brandishing a suppressed pistol. He pressed the cold barrel against my temple, dragging me toward the balcony doors.
"Let her go," a voice echoed from the doorway, cold enough to freeze the blood in my veins.
I blinked through the smoke and saw Raphael standing at the entrance of the suite. His tailored suit was torn at the shoulder, blood smeared across his white shirt, and his right hand gripped a heavy Beretta with absolute, terrifying steadiness. His gray eyes burned with a murderous fury that made the armed enforcer freeze instantly.
"Drop the gun, Orsini, or the maid gets a bullet through her brain," the brute snarled, tightening his grip around my neck until spots danced in my vision.
Raphael didn't hesitate for a fraction of a second. He raised his pistol, his gaze locking entirely onto mine—not with fear, but with an intense, fierce devotion that defied every law of the underworld.
May you like
"You touch her," Raphael whispered, his voice dangerously soft, "and I won't just kill you. I will dismantle every living member of the Moretti bloodline before sunrise."
Before the enforcer could pull the trigger, a deafening crack echoed through the room. Raphael fired with impossible precision, striking the gunman clean through the shoulder. The man roared in pain, releasing me instantly. I stumbled forward, and Raphael caught me in his arms, pulling me hard against his chest as chaos erupted around us.
