Chapter 7 - The Ghost of the Past
I stood alone in the empty hospital room, reading the lipstick message over and over.
The phrase "true heir to the Moretti throne" chilled me to the bone.
I only had one blood relative who had ever used that specific, arrogant title.
It was my older brother, Julian.
Julian was supposed to have drowned in a boating accident off the coast of Sicily ten years ago.
He had been exiled by our father for trying to sell out the family to a rival cartel.
I realized now that Daniel must have helped Julian fake his death just like he did with Elena.
Julian had been waiting in the shadows for a decade, slowly taking control of my private security.
My phone suddenly buzzed in my pocket with a blocked video call.
I answered it, and Julian's scarred, mocking face filled the screen.
He smiled, sitting in a dark, damp warehouse with heavy shipping containers behind him.
He turned the camera to show Elena, bound to a chair and looking pale but fiercely defiant.
Then he panned the camera down to show little Mia sitting on the floor, holding her mother's hand.
Julian told me that he wanted the port contracts, the bank accounts, and my public resignation.
He gave me exactly one hour to arrive at the naval shipyards alone.
I stared into my brother's eyes and promised him that I would give him exactly what he deserved.
Julian laughed and ended the transmission, leaving me in total silence.
I walked out of the clinic and opened the trunk of my ruined SUV.
May you like
I pulled out a heavy tactical vest and an assault rifle.
I was not going to negotiate for my family.
