Chapter 6 - THE POISONED DAUGHTERBefore Sophia could process Alessandro's confession, a shrill scream echoed from the nursery down the hall.
"MAMA! IT HURTS!"
Sophia and Alessandro burst into the nursery. Emma was lying on the floor, gasping for air, her skin turning pale blue. Foam was bubbling at the corners of her mouth. On the small wooden table lay a half-eaten green apple.
"Emma!" Sophia shrieked, dropping to her knees and gathering her daughter into her arms. "Hold on, baby! Please, God, hold on!"
"Vincent! Get the medical team NOW!" Alessandro roared into his radio.
Within minutes, the estate’s private doctor rushed in, administering an emergency antidote and hooking Emma up to an oxygen mask.
"She was poisoned with ricin," the doctor declared gravely, wiping sweat from his forehead. "If we had been five minutes later, her heart would have stopped. Who had access to her food?"
Sophia looked up, her eyes burning with pure rage. "Matteo..."
"Matteo is under house arrest in the basement dungeons with broken knees," Alessandro said, his eyes narrowed. "He couldn't have done this himself. Someone inside this house gave her that apple."
Vincent, the old steward, stepped forward with a worried look. "Boss, I checked the security footage. One of the new kitchen staff was seen near the nursery twenty minutes ago. We found him trying to slip past the eastern gate."
"Bring him to the torture room," Alessandro ordered, his voice devoid of any human warmth.
Sophia stood up, wiping the tears from her face. She looked at Alessandro with an expression he had never seen before—not fear, but lethal determination.
"I'm coming with you," Sophia said coldly.
May you like
"Sophia, it's not a place for—"
"He tried to kill my daughter!" Sophia snapped, her voice shaking with rage. "Take me to him!"
