Chapter 7 - Shadows in the GardenThree months passed.
The Blackwood Estate had transformed. The heavy, oppressive silence that once haunted the corridors was now occasionally punctured by the sound of childish laughter echoing through the grand halls. Emma had taken to exploring the sprawling library, her favorite spot being the velvet window seat overlooking the rose gardens.
Lucas found himself returning home earlier and earlier. The man who once lived exclusively for business meetings and underworld turf wars now found himself checking his watch at 4:00 PM, wondering if Emma had finished her homework.
It was a dangerous weakness. In the underworld, affection was a target painted on your back. And someone was about to pick up a brush.
Late one Tuesday evening, Lucas sat in his second-floor study, reviewing shipping manifests. The house was dead quiet. Clara had tucked Emma into bed an hour ago.
Suddenly, the security monitor on his desk flickered.
A red alert flashed across the screen. Perimeter Breach: Sector 4 (Rose Garden).
Lucas didn't hesitate. He pulled the black Glock from his mahogany desk, flicked off the safety, and moved toward the French doors leading to the second-story balcony.
The night was pitch black, illuminated only by the pale moonlight filtering through the fog. Below, near the center of the labyrinthine rose garden, a single figure stood motionless, dressed in a tactical black wetsuit.
Lucas raised his pistol, sighting down the barrel. But before he could pull the trigger, the figure in the garden turned its face toward the moonlight, and Lucas lowered his weapon in sheer, unadulterated shock.
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It wasn't an assassin.
It was Elena—the woman Lucas thought was dead.
