Chapter 9 - Secrets, Lies, and a Dangerous Alliances
The grandfather clock in the hallway chimed midnight, its heavy hollow echo reverberating through the silent halls of the Moretti mansion. Luca had been gone for four hours—an eternity in the volatile world of the Chicago syndicate.
Teresa had finally fallen asleep upstairs under the care of the private physician, exhausted by the emotional toll of the past week. I, however, remained wide awake in the main kitchen, brewing a fresh pot of coffee to combat the exhaustion clawing at my mind.
Suddenly, the kitchen's security monitor flickered.
I paused, setting my mug down. On the small screen mounted by the pantry door, the exterior camera facing the eastern service entrance showed a flickering light. Someone was trying to bypass the electronic gate lock using an override code.
A code that only senior household staff or high-ranking security members possessed.
My heart skipped a beat. I remembered Luca’s warning: “Not every rat was caught.”
Quietly, I crept away from the kitchen counter, grabbing a heavy brass candlestick holder from the hallway table as an improvised weapon. I crept down the dimly lit corridor toward the service entrance, my breathing shallow and controlled.
As I peered around the corner of the hallway, I saw a dark figure slipping through the heavy service door. It was Marcus, one of Luca’s senior guards—a man who had stood beside the dining table on the night of the engagement dinner.
He was holding a portable radio transmitter, whispering into it quietly. “...perimeter is clear on the east wing. The old woman is isolated upstairs. Move in now before Moretti returns from the downtown meet.”
My blood ran cold. Marcus wasn't just a guard; he was Rossi’s inside man.
Before I could retreat to press my encrypted panic button, a heavy hand clamped over my mouth from behind, cutting off my gasp. Another arm wrapped around my waist like a steel band, lifting me off my feet and dragging me backward into the dark utility closet.
“Quiet, little bird,” a harsh voice hissed in my ear—not Marcus, but another unknown operative who had slipped in behind me. “Make a single sound, and this knife goes straight through your spine.”
Panic surged through my veins, but survival instinct took over. Remembering the self-defense lessons Luca’s chief of security had casually mentioned during the lockdown drills, I stomped my heel down with all my might onto the attacker’s bare foot.
The man grunted in agony, loosening his grip for a fraction of a second.
That was all the opening I needed. I slammed my elbow backward into his ribs, spun around, and cracked the heavy brass candlestick holder across his temple. He dropped to the floor like a stone, unconscious.
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Without wasting a second, I whipped out Luca’s encrypted panic device from my pocket and smashed the red button three times.
Sirens immediately began wailing across the entire estate, shattering the midnight silence. Red security lights flooded the corridors. But outside the utility closet door, heavy footsteps echoed rapidly as Marcus and his remaining conspirators realized their cover had been blown.
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