Chapter 6 - The Steel Cage
I ran to the top of the staircase and shook the heavy iron bars violently.
The metal gate was completely immovable.
"Let him out, Victoria!" I screamed into the darkness of the empty house.
Her soft, mocking laughter floated through the hidden speakers in the ceiling.
"He is perfectly fine, Elena," Victoria purred through the intercom.
"He is currently playing with some very expensive gold bars."
Dante pulled a small flashlight from his belt and illuminated the heavy gate.
"It is a reinforced drop-gate," Dante said grimly.
"We cannot shoot through the locking mechanism without ricocheting bullets into ourselves."
I fell to my knees, pressing my face against the cold metal bars.
"Why are you doing this?" I begged my sister.
"Because Dante embarrassed me," Victoria replied, her voice turning sharp and vicious.
"For three years, he has treated me like a prisoner in my own marriage."
"He never touches me, he never looks at me, and he still whispers your name in his sleep."
I looked up at Dante in the dim light of the flashlight.
He did not deny a single word she said.
"The syndicate thinks I am a weak wife," Victoria continued.
"But when they find out I eliminated Dante's hidden mistress and secured his only heir, they will respect me."
"You are completely insane," Dante growled.
"I will tear this house down brick by brick to get to him."
"You have exactly forty minutes of oxygen left in that basement vault," Victoria noted casually.
"Sign the digital transfer documents giving me complete control of the Moretti finances, and I will open the gate."
Dante did not even hesitate.
He pulled his encrypted cell phone from his pocket and accessed the syndicate's master ledger.
"I am transferring everything to you right now," Dante said, typing rapidly.
"Just open the damn gate, Victoria."
The phone chimed, confirming the transfer of billions of dollars to my sister's private accounts.
"Thank you, darling," Victoria chirped happily.
"Now, enjoy the rest of your evening."
The intercom clicked off, leaving us in total silence.
May you like
The heavy iron gate did not move a single inch.
She had taken the money and left Leo to die anyway.
