Chapter 12 - The Betrayal Within
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I stood paralyzed in the study, the entire foundation of my life crumbling beneath my feet. The man I had accused of treating me like hired help had actually been keeping me alive for fourteen months.
"You should have told me," I whispered, pulling my hand away from his chest.
"If I told you, you would have run," Victor stated, a raw, desperate honesty in his eyes. "You would have tried to disappear again, and Lorenzo’s men would have found you in a week. I couldn't risk it. Not after seeing how Finn looked at you. Not after..." He swallowed hard, the vulnerability cracking his hardened exterior. "Not after how I started to look at you."
Before I could process his confession, the heavy study doors burst open.
Marcus, Victor’s trusted head of security, stepped into the room. His face was a mask of cold, terrifying stone. He didn't look at Victor; his weapon was drawn and pointed directly at me.
"Marcus, what the hell are you doing?" Victor roared, instinctively stepping in front of me, shielding my body with his own.
"I'm sorry, Boss," Marcus said, his voice devoid of all emotion. "But Lorenzo Falcone made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Ten million dollars and my own territory in the South Side. All I have to do is deliver the accountant's daughter to him so he can finally close the books on her father's debt."
My blood ran completely ice-cold. The betrayal within the innermost circle of the Rossi estate was a catastrophic failure.
"You won't make it out of this house alive, Marcus," Victor growled, his hand inching slowly toward the concealed weapon at the small of his back.
"I already took care of the perimeter guards on the east wing," Marcus smirked, cocking his pistol. "The Falcone extraction team is pulling up to the back gates right now. Hand her over, Victor, and you live. Fight me, and I put a bullet in your head and take the girl anyway."
"You are not touching her," Victor vowed, his muscles coiled tight as a spring.
"I don't need to," Marcus countered smoothly. A dark, evil smile spread across the traitor's face. "Because if she doesn't come with me right now, my men upstairs are going to take a very permanent walk into Finn's nursery."
The world stopped. The breath physically left my lungs.
"No!" I screamed, stepping out from behind Victor. "Don't touch him!"
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"Harper, stay back," Victor ordered, panic finally breaking his composure.
"I'll go," I said, staring dead into Marcus's eyes, tears of absolute terror falling for the little boy sleeping upstairs. "Leave Finn alone. I'll go with you."
