Chapter 2 - The Bitter Taste of Betrayal
The red emergency light began to pulse in the corner of the room,
casting long,
bloody shadows over Hunter’s pale face.
"The air,"
she whispered,
clutching Leo tighter,
"it's getting thinner."
I looked up at the ventilation grates,
realizing the bastard who locked us in had also cut the oxygen.
The nursery was airtight,
a feature meant to protect against gas attacks,
but now it was a silent executioner.
I grabbed the heavy bronze bust of my grandfather from the shelf,
swinging it with all my might against the reinforced glass of the observation window.
It didn't even scratch.
The glass was meant to stop a sniper's bullet,
and it wasn't going to break for a desperate man.
"Mr. Rossi,
please,"
Hunter cried,
sliding down the wall until she was sitting on the floor.
Leo let out a soft whimper,
his tiny body reacting to the sudden drop in pressure.
I dropped the bust,
my breath coming in short,
sharp gasps.
"The nurse,"
I said,
dropping to my knees beside the slumped woman.
"She must have the override key in her pocket."
I searched her uniform frantically,
my fingers trembling as I pulled out a set of keys and a small,
black remote.
I pressed the button,
praying to a God I hadn't spoken to in years.
A heavy thud vibrated through the floorboards,
and the door hissed as the seal broke.
I didn't wait.
I grabbed my gun and kicked the door open,
ready to kill anything that moved.
The hallway was empty,
the lights flickering with an eerie,
unsteady rhythm.
"Stay behind me,"
I ordered Hunter,
my eyes scanning every shadow.
She followed,
her bare feet silent on the plush carpet,
her eyes fixed on the back of my head.
We reached the grand staircase,
the marble cold and white like a tombstone.
Down in the foyer,
the front doors were standing wide open,
allowing the cold Manhattan rain to swirl into the house.
Standing in the center of the room was Dr. Julian Halloran.
He was holding a medical bag,
his face a mask of calm professionalism that turned my stomach.
"Lorenzo,"
he said,
his voice smooth and devoid of emotion.
"I didn't expect you to be awake."
"You poisoned my son,"
I growled,
leveling the pistol at his chest.
Halloran didn't flinch.
"I did what was necessary for the legacy,"
he replied,
adjusting his glasses.
"Leo is a weak heir,
born of a woman who didn't understand the Rossi name."
"Sophia died for a reason,
Lorenzo."
The mention of my wife’s name broke the last of my restraint.
I fired,
the bullet grazing his shoulder as he dove behind the marble statue of a lion.
"She didn't die in an accident,
did she?"
I roared,
my voice echoing through the mansion.
"The car explosion,"
Hunter whispered from behind me,
her voice full of horror.
"It was an inside job."
Halloran laughed,
a cold,
hollow sound.
"She was going to take the baby and leave you,
Lorenzo."
"She was going to ruin the family."
"So I fixed the problem."
I felt a wave of nausea,
the realization that I had trusted my wife’s murderer with my son’s life for two months.
But before I could fire again,
the shadows at the edges of the room began to move.
My own guards,
men I had paid to protect me,
stepped into the light.
May you like
They weren't looking at Halloran.
They were looking at me.
