Chapter 8 - The Safe Room
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"You silenced him," Gio growled, his gun still aimed squarely at his uncle’s chest.
"I saved your life," Silvio countered, his silver eyes cold and unblinking. "The boy was a fanatic. A hitman from a rival family. We must lock down the estate immediately."
Gio’s jaw clenched so hard Isadora thought his teeth would shatter. He knew Silvio was lying. Isadora knew he was lying. But without the black book, a public execution of his own underboss would trigger an immediate mafia civil war.
"Luca!" Gio barked, lowering his weapon slowly.
The massive bodyguard burst through the dining room doors, taking in the blood, the shattered glass, and the dead body.
"Secure the perimeter. No one enters or leaves. Throw this trash in the ocean," Gio ordered, gesturing to the dead assassin. He turned his burning gaze back to Isadora, who was still trembling on the floor, her green silk dress torn at the knee.
Gio crossed the room, holstering his weapon, and scooped her effortlessly into his arms.
"We are going to the safe room," Gio announced to the remaining men. "If I see a shadow move in these halls, I will shoot it myself."
He carried Isadora out of the ruined dining room, his heart hammering violently against her chest. He moved rapidly through the winding corridors of the estate, bypassing the main staircases and slipping behind a hidden bookshelf in his private study.
The safe room was a windowless, steel-reinforced bunker buried deep beneath the foundation. The heavy vault door clicked shut behind them with a definitive, inescapable thud, sealing them inside.
Gio gently set her down on a leather sofa in the center of the room.
The adrenaline crash hit Isadora instantly. She began to shake uncontrollably, her teeth chattering as the reality of the assassination attempt sank in.
Gio didn't speak. He walked over to a small cabinet, poured a glass of brandy, and returned to her. He knelt on the floor in front of the sofa, entirely ruining the knees of his expensive trousers, and pressed the glass into her trembling hands.
"Drink," he commanded softly.
She took a sip, coughing as the liquid burned down her throat.
Gio reached out, his calloused hands gently brushing a stray piece of glass from her hair. His touch was unexpectedly tender, a stark contrast to the violence she had just witnessed him inflict.
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"He tried to kill you," Isadora whispered, staring into his dark, storm-filled eyes.
"He tried to kill you," Gio corrected, his voice dropping into a rough, dangerous whisper. "Silvio knows you are the key to the ledger. He knows you can destroy him. He sent that boy to silence you before you could speak."
