Chapter 9 - The Final Betrayal
Camille pressed a sharp pocket knife tightly against Nina's throat.
Her beautiful face was twisted into a mask of pure desperation and madness.
"Nobody moves, or the brat bleeds out right here!" Camille shrieked at the top of her lungs.
Massimo aimed his gun at Camille, but his hands were beginning to shake from extreme physical exhaustion.
His legs buckled slightly, and he had to grab the wooden banister to keep from collapsing.
Carla ran down the stairs, falling to her knees and begging Camille to take her life instead.
"Shut up, you pathetic maid," Camille spat, dragging Nina slowly toward the heavy front doors.
The guards finally snapped out of their shock and raised their rifles toward Camille.
"Stand down," Massimo ordered his men weakly, knowing a crossfire would easily kill the child.
Dean was writhing on the marble floor, clutching his bleeding wrist and cursing loudly.
Camille reached the front doors and demanded someone throw her the keys to an armored SUV.
One of the guards tossed a set of keys across the slick marble floor.
Camille bent down to pick them up, lowering her knife for just one second.
Nina suddenly stomped her hard leather shoe directly onto Camille's bare toes.
Camille cried out in pain and loosened her grip on the child's hair.
Nina ducked under her arm and sprinted frantically toward her mother.
Massimo did not waste the opportunity.
He fired his second shot, the bullet grazing Camille's shoulder and sending her crashing to the ground.
The loyal guards immediately rushed forward, pinning Camille and Dean to the floor.
Carla pulled Nina into a desperate, crushing hug, sobbing uncontrollably into her daughter's hair.
May you like
Massimo finally let go of the banister, allowing his exhausted body to sit down on the stairs.
The nightmare was finally over, but a loud, slow clapping sound suddenly echoed from the entrance.
