Chapter 10 - The Secret in the Drawing
Paramedics swarmed the ruined ballroom within minutes of the ceasefire.
Santiago was stabilized on a stretcher, refusing to let go of Ruby’s hand as they loaded him into the ambulance.
The syndicate bosses agreed to a temporary truce with the Falcone family, unified by the revelation of Camilla’s betrayal.
The war that had plagued Chicago for seven years was officially over.
Three days later, Santiago was sitting up in a private, heavily guarded hospital suite.
Ruby sat in a chair beside his bed, gently feeding him ice chips.
Sophia sat cross-legged on the floor near the window, quietly humming to herself while sketching in a brand new notebook.
The nightmare was finally behind them.
Santiago looked at Ruby, realizing he had never felt this kind of peace in his entire life.
"When I get out of here, I want you to stay," Santiago said quietly, his voice full of genuine emotion.
"Not as a maid, and not as a therapist."
"I want you to stay as mine."
Ruby smiled warmly, a beautiful blush spreading across her cheeks.
"I would love nothing more, Santiago," she whispered, leaning in to kiss him softly.
They pulled away when Sophia happily tapped on the side of the hospital bed.
She proudly held up her notebook to show them her latest drawing.
Santiago smiled, expecting to see a picture of a house or a dog.
Instead, he looked at the incredibly detailed, hyper-realistic sketch and felt the blood freeze completely in his veins.
The drawing was a perfect recreation of the night his father was murdered.
It showed Aunt Camilla pouring the poison, just as Sophia had signed.
But the drawing also showed a third person hiding in the shadows of the room, watching the entire murder happen without trying to stop it.
The person in the shadows was holding a very specific, custom-engraved golden pocket watch.
Santiago knew exactly who owned that unique watch.
It belonged to the man sitting in the hospital chair right next to him.
He slowly turned his head and looked directly into Ruby’s terrified eyes.
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"Ruby," Santiago whispered, his voice trembling with a horrifying new realization.
"Why is your father standing in the shadows of my father's murder?"
