Chapter 15 - The Viper's Kiss
The tension inside the estate the next evening was thick enough to choke on.
Luca had doubled the guard around the perimeter and locked down the nursery with three heavily armed men stationed outside Leo's door. He believed Dante was just a desperate extortionist looking for a payday. He had no idea the true threat was the glass vial currently burning a hole in the pocket of my evening gown.
We were sitting in the private library, a fire crackling fiercely in the massive stone hearth. Luca looked incredibly exhausted, the stress of running a mafia empire under siege carving deep lines into his handsome face.
“Pour me a drink, Avery,” Luca sighed, sinking heavily into his leather armchair and loosening his silk tie. “It has been a brutal day.”
My heart hammered a frantic rhythm against my ribs as I walked over to the crystal decanter on the antique bar cart.
My fingers brushed against the small, concealed vial in my pocket. Three drops. That was all it took to save Leo’s life from Dante’s hidden snipers. But it would mean murdering the man who had risked his own life to shield me from bullets in that forest.
I poured two fingers of amber whiskey into the heavy crystal glass. With my back turned to Luca, I slowly pulled the vial from my pocket.
My hands shook uncontrollably. The dark liquid in the vial looked entirely innocent, yet it held the power to alter the criminal underworld forever.
If I don't do this, Dante will kill the baby, my mind screamed in panic. If I do this, I become exactly the monster my parents tried to protect me from.
I uncorked the vial. One drop fell into the whiskey, dissolving instantly without a trace.
I closed my eyes, a single tear escaping and tracking down my cheek. I couldn't do it. I couldn't trade Luca’s life for anything in the world. There had to be another way to hunt Dante down before he could touch Leo.
I quickly re-corked the vial and shoved it back into my pocket, wiping my eyes before turning around with a bright, forced smile.
I walked over and handed Luca the un-poisoned glass.
“Thank you, mia bella,” he murmured, his dark eyes softening completely as he looked up at me. He raised the glass to his lips.
Suddenly, the heavy library doors burst open. Marco rushed into the room, his weapon drawn, his face pale with absolute shock.
“Boss, don't drink that!” Marco shouted, lunging forward.
Luca froze, the rim of the glass barely a millimeter from his mouth.
“We caught one of the maids trying to flee the grounds,” Marco panted, pointing a shaking finger directly at me. “She confessed under interrogation. She slipped a lethal nerve agent into Avery’s coat yesterday on Dante Romano's orders. He isn't asking for a ransom. He ordered the girl to assassinate you.”
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The temperature in the room plummeted to absolute zero.
Luca slowly lowered the glass, his eyes devoid of all warmth, locking onto my panicked face with the terrifying, predatory stillness of a king who just caught a traitor in his own court.
