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The silence inside the elevator stretched, heavy with a sudden, suffocating tension that had nothing to do with the proximity of their bodies and everything to do with the ghost that had just entered the space between them. / Chapter 4 / 6

Chapter 4 - THE TRAITOR’S trap

The revelation of a mole within the Moretti inner circle threw the estate into high alert. Dante’s demeanor hardened; the soft, protective warmth he had begun to show Ruby vanished behind a wall of cold, ruthless paranoia.

"We go tonight," Dante ordered his men. "No phones, no radios. We use analog coordinates."

But as they prepared to leave, the estate's security sirens began to wail. The power cut out, plunging the glass mansion into darkness.

"They're here," Viktor hissed over the internal intercom before static cut him off.

"Ruby, stay behind me," Dante commanded, his hand instantly finding hers in the dark. His grip was tight, possessive, and steadying.

The glass walls of the living room shattered as flashbang grenades blinded the room. Heavy footsteps echoed through the halls. Dante pulled Ruby into a hidden panic room behind the library bookcase, but before the heavy steel door could seal, a hand jammed a metal bar into the frame.

The door forced open. Standing there was not a Valenti soldier, but Viktor—Dante’s trusted head of security and lifelong friend.

"Viktor," Dante whispered, his voice dangerously calm. "My father's letter was about you."

"Your father was a fool, Dante," Viktor sneered, raising his weapon. "He died for a code of honor that doesn't exist anymore. The Valentis offered me fifty million for the ledger. All I need is the girl and the key."

Ruby didn't think. She grabbed a heavy bronze bust of Cicero from the library shelf and swung it with all her strength, striking Viktor hard across the temple.

The gun went off, the bullet grazing Dante’s shoulder, but Viktor collapsed to the floor, unconscious.

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The notification light on my phone blinked a furious, rhythmic amber. Twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six missed calls. Ryan’s texts were no longer polite; they were mutating into panicked, all-caps demands. “Mom is crying hysterically. The bank is threatening default. What kind of monster cuts off a widow? PICK UP THE PHONE.”

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Dante stared at Ruby, his eyes wide with a mixture of shock and profound admiration. "You... you just saved my life."

"I told you," Ruby gasped, wiping a stray lock of auburn hair from her sweaty forehead. "I'm done letting people make me feel small. Now let's get that ledger."

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