Chapter 5 - The Judas Kiss
The cold, unforgiving barrel of Frank’s gun remained perfectly steady in the dim red light.
I stared at the man who had stood by my side during my violent rise to absolute power.
"Why are you doing this, Frank?" I asked, my voice cracking under the weight of his massive betrayal.
Frank let out a bitter, humorless laugh that echoed terribly through the empty mansion hallway.
"You went incredibly soft the very second that baby was born, Michael," he spat with pure disgust.
"You started negotiating with our rivals instead of crushing them, and it made us look weak on the streets."
Emily slowly shifted her weight, quietly positioning her body to shield Noah entirely from Frank's line of sight.
"The Russian syndicate offered me ten million dollars and complete control of your empire," Frank confessed proudly.
"All I had to do was unlock the front gates and make sure neither of you survived the night."
I felt a sickening surge of pure rage burning through my exhausted veins.
"You hired a maid to poison an innocent baby just to steal my money?" I growled, stepping forward.
Frank cocked the hammer of his gun, halting my dangerous advance instantly.
"I did not want to shoot a baby myself, so Margaret provided a much cleaner solution," he sneered.
"But since your super-maid ruined my quiet plan, I have to do this the messy way."
Frank adjusted his aim, moving the barrel away from my head and pointing it directly at Emily's chest.
"Say goodbye to the hero, Michael," Frank whispered with a cruel smile.
Before he could pull the trigger, Emily suddenly hurled a heavy object directly at his face.
It was the heavy, metal defibrillator battery she had secretly slipped into her apron from the medical cart.
The heavy battery smashed violently into Frank's nose, shattering the bone with a sickening crunch.
He screamed in agony, blindly firing a wild shot that shattered a beautiful crystal vase on the side table.
I lunged forward with everything I had, tackling my oldest friend brutally to the hard marble floor.
I pinned his gun arm beneath my knee and delivered a devastating punch directly to his jaw.
Frank's eyes rolled back into his head as he went completely unconscious beneath my fists.
I grabbed his dropped weapon and turned back to Emily, breathing heavily in the dark.
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"We need to move before his Russian friends get inside the house," Emily urged, grabbing my arm tightly.
Suddenly, the heavy sound of combat boots echoed loudly from the stairwell right behind us.
