Chapter 2 - The Locked Door
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“You have to leave,” Evelyn urged, her panic escalating as Dante closed the distance. She reached for Elena’s arm, desperate to pull her toward the exit. “Dante is a dead man. If you stay here, you will die with him! The elevators will shut down in twenty minutes!”
Before Evelyn’s fingers could even brush her daughter’s sleeve, Dante moved. He grabbed Evelyn by the wrist, his grip like a steel vice, and shoved her roughly away from his wife.
“Do not touch her,” Dante commanded, his voice echoing like thunder in the enclosed space.
Evelyn stumbled backward, crashing into a high-backed velvet chair. She looked up at him, genuine terror finally registering in her eyes. She reached into her leather handbag, a desperate move.
Dante didn’t hesitate. He kicked the handbag from her grasp, sending it sliding across the floor. A small, suppressed pistol spilled from the open zipper, skidding to a halt near the broken teacup.
“You came prepared for a widowing,” Dante noted coldly. He looked at the antique clock on the wall. It was 11:22 p.m. “But you severely underestimated the man you were trying to kill.”
Elena stepped forward, placing herself between Dante and her mother. “Dante, she’s right about the cameras. My father paid off the head of your night security. They are going to breach the service elevators at midnight.”
Dante finally looked at Elena. Truly looked at her. The icy facade she had maintained for a thousand days was completely gone. She was fiercely protective, standing her ground in the face of imminent death. The realization that she had loved him all this time hit him with a profound, agonizing force.
“Why didn't you tell me?” he whispered, ignoring the impending threat for a single, selfish second.
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“Because you would have gone to war,” Elena replied, her voice breaking. “You would have killed my father, and the commission would have executed you for breaking the peace treaty. I couldn't lose you.”
Dante reached out, his thumb gently wiping the tear from her cheek. “The peace treaty is already dead, Elena. And so is anyone who tries to walk through those doors tonight.”
