Chapter 7 - A Reckoning in the Rain
Mark collapsed onto the marble floor, clutching his chest as blood pooled beneath him. Cesare turned his gun toward Elena, his eyes wild with insane rage.
"If I go down, the Castiglione line ends TONIGHT!" Cesare shrieked.
He pulled the trigger—but no shot came. The chamber clicked empty.
Before Cesare could rack another round, Rosa charged forward like a mother lion, slamming the heavy wooden stock of her shotgun straight into Cesare's jaw. The mafia don crashed to the stone floor, unconscious, as Interpol officers swarmed over him, binding his wrists in steel cuffs.
The chapel was secured. Sirens blared outside, illuminating the wet night in pulsing red and blue.
Elena ran over to Mark, who was struggling to breathe, clutching his chest. Tears streamed down her face despite his betrayal.
"Mark... why?" she sobbed, holding his shaking hands. "How could you do this to us?"
Mark coughed, blood stain on his lips. He looked up at Elena, his eyes filled with immense pain.
"I... I had to make them believe I was on their side," Mark whispered, his breath hitching. "Elena... look in my jacket pocket..."
Elena reached with trembling fingers into his coat and pulled out a small black flash drive and a legal document stamped by an international court.
"I didn't sell you out..." Mark gasped, tears mixing with the blood on his cheek. "The text message... I knew they were tapping my phone. If I didn't play along, Cesare's hitmen would have killed you and the girls instantly at the villa. I... I wore a bulletproof vest, but Cesare's shot hit my shoulder..."
Elena looked closer. Mark wasn't dying—the bullet had hit his shoulder and armor. He was in shock, but he was alive.
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"The document..." Mark coughed, smiling weakly. "It’s a full transfer of all Moretti assets to you and the girls. I spent seven years gathering evidence to destroy my uncle from the inside. I did it all... to set you free, Sophia."
Elena fell onto his chest, weeping uncontrollably, holding him tight as paramedics rushed into the building.
