Chapter 6 - The Midnight Visitor
I woke to a sound. A click at the door. I sat up in bed. I reached for the knife. It was under my pillow. The room was pitch black. The curtains were shut. I heard a soft breath. Someone was inside here. I moved to the floor. I stayed in the dark. I held the cold steel. The shadow moved closer. It was tall and thin. It carried a light. A small, focused beam. It swept the room. I stayed perfectly still. I was a predator too. The shadow reached the bed. It felt for a form. It touched the soft sheet. It realized it was empty. The shadow paused, confused. I moved from behind. I grabbed its arm. I pressed the blade close. To the throat of the man. He gasped in the dark. I pressed the edge hard. "Who are you?" I hissed. The man did not move. He smelled of cheap smoke. "I am just a scout." "A messenger," he choked. "For Vane?" I demanded. "For the one you fear." I felt a surge of rage. "Tell him I am ready." "Tell him I am waiting." I pushed him away. He scrambled to run. I kicked at his legs. He fell to the floor. I held him in place. "You are not leaving." "Not until I know." "Know what he wants." "He wants the estate." "He wants the power." "He wants you dead." I laughed at the thought. "Tell him he failed." "Tell him I am here." I let him get up. He stumbled to the door. He looked at me once. His eyes were full fear. I stood in the light. I looked like a ghost. He fled into the night. I locked the door fast. I breathed in the air. The adrenaline was high. I felt truly alive. I went to the study. Lorenzo was awake. He looked at the door. "You had a guest?" "A messenger," I said. "He came for a death." "And left with a threat." Lorenzo smirked hard. "You are learning, Anna." "I am surviving," I said. "That is the same thing." He poured out a drink. He handed it over. The glass was cold. I drank it in one. It burned in my throat. It steadied my nerves. "What happens now?" "Now we go on offense." "We find the ghost." "We strike at the heart." "We end the threat." He pushed a map out. It showed the city. The areas we ruled. The areas he owned. "We hunt on his ground." "We show him our strength." I looked at the marks. "When do we start?" "Tomorrow at noon." "Be ready, my wife." "I am always ready." I left him alone. I went back to bed. But I could not sleep. I looked at the stars. They were cold and bright. Like the eyes of the man. I was in a war. But I was the one. The one who would win. I held the knife tight. I was a Spedaro now. And I was a weapon. Ready for the dawn. Ready for the war. The night was my own. And I was awake. Waiting for the end. Of the silent ghost. The one who came. The one who would fall. I felt no remorse. Only a cold, sharp need. To win this cruel game.
