Chapter 5 - The Ultimate Betrayal
Seraphina's words hung in the cold, damp air of the warehouse.
She confessed that she had orchestrated the fire to remove herself from my shadow and align with Ivan.
She intended to have me assassinated tonight so she could legally claim my entire global enterprise.
"Where is Elara?" I demanded, refusing to lower my weapon despite being surrounded.
Seraphina's eyes turned incredibly cold and indifferent.
"Elara was a liability, Julian," she said casually.
She told me she had sold our daughter to an overseas syndicate to finance her new partnership with Ivan.
A blinding rage erupted in my chest, erasing any remaining love I had for this woman.
Before Seraphina could pull the trigger, Carlo cut the main power feed to the building.
The entire warehouse was instantly plunged into pitch-black darkness.
Gunfire erupted from every direction as my tactical team engaged the Volkov cartel in the dark.
I grabbed Grace by the hand and dragged her behind a stack of wooden shipping crates.
Bullets shredded the wood above our heads, raining splinters down onto our shoulders.
We managed to fight our way to the emergency exit, leaving dozens of Ivan's men dead on the concrete floor.
We sprinted back to the armored vehicles and sped away into the stormy night.
I was completely devastated by the horrific realization that my daughter was lost to a foreign syndicate.
When we finally returned to the safety of the underground bunker, I collapsed into a chair, utterly defeated.
Grace walked over to me, carrying two glasses of water, her hands trembling violently.
I looked over at the small cot in the corner of the room.
Amara was fast asleep, clutching a small stuffed bear to her chest.
As she shifted in her sleep, the collar of her nightgown slipped down her shoulder.
May you like
My eyes locked onto the base of her neck.
There was a distinct, circular laser scar on her skin, exactly where my daughter Elara used to have a bright red birthmark.
