Chapter 6 - THE ROAD TO COMOThe black armored SUV roared out of the hidden hillside tunnel, its headlights cutting through the heavy rainstorm as we sped onto the winding road toward Lake Como.
Emma was fast asleep in the back seat, exhausted from the terror, wrapped in Alessandro's heavy wool coat. I sat in the front passenger seat, holding a wet cloth against the cut on Alessandro's forehead as he navigated the sharp turns at breakneck speeds.
"Where are we going?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper above the sound of rain hitting the bulletproof windshield.
"I have a safehouse near the Swiss border," Alessandro said, his hands tight on the steering wheel. "Once we cross into Switzerland, my private jet will take you and Emma to South America. You'll have new identities, unlimited money. You will finally be safe."
"What about you?" I looked at his sharp profile, lit by the green glow of the dashboard.
He went quiet for a long moment. "I have to go back and finish this. The syndicate cannot survive with two masters. Either I destroy the Russian network tonight, or they will hunt us down forever."
"No!" I blurted out before I could stop myself.
Alessandro glanced at me, surprised by the intensity in my voice.
"I lost Arthur," I said, tears filling my eyes again. "I spent two years believing I was alone in the world. I won't let you sacrifice yourself for a ghost, Alessandro!"
"It's not for a ghost, Sarah," he murmured, pulling the car onto a dark, secluded dirt road surrounded by tall pine trees. "It's for you. It has always been for you."
He pulled the car over and turned off the engine. The only sound was the heavy rain pounding on the roof.
Alessandro turned to face me in the dim light. "When Arthur was alive, I respected his marriage. I kept my distance. But the day he died, my world ended too. I built Villa Moretti into a fortress just to keep you near me where I could watch over you without placing a target on your back."
He reached out, his calloused fingers gently wiping a tear from my cheek. "If I die tonight, at least I die knowing I kept my promise to him—and to my heart."
Suddenly, the night sky lit up with a blinding flash of red light.
A massive explosion echoed from the direction of Milan, shaking the ground beneath our tires. A plume of dark smoke rose over the distant hills.
Alessandro’s phone vibrated violently on the console. He picked it up and hit speaker.
Don Ricci's breathless, panicked voice filled the car: "Alessandro! It's a trap! The Russians didn't come for the cipher! They just detonated Villa Moretti! The entire estate is gone!"
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"What?!" Alessandro shouted.
"And that's not all," Don Ricci gasped, coughing heavily. "The mole wasn't Marco... Marco was working for someone else. The person who ordered the hit on Arthur two years ago... she's still alive!"
