Twenty surgeons, millions of dollars, and every antibiotic money could buy had failed to save Gabriel Falcone, the most feared mafia boss in New York. Then I noticed something buried inside his rotting shoulder that none of them had seen—and when Gabriel ordered, “Give her the scissors,” every armed man in that room watched a twenty-two-year-old maid decide whether their boss lived or died.

The armed guards formed a deadly semicircle around the library.

Gabriel stood in front of me, shielding my body with his own.

"What is the meaning of this?" Gabriel roared, his voice shaking the crystal chandelier above us.

A tall man in a tailored Italian suit stepped through the wall of armed men.

It was Julian, Gabriel's younger brother.

Julian offered a polite, hollow smile that did not reach his cold eyes.

"It means your time is over, brother," Julian said smoothly.

Carmine stepped away from Gabriel and walked over to stand beside Julian.

I realized with absolute horror that the underboss had been working with the brother all along.

"You poisoned me," Gabriel realized, his grip tightening on the stolen pistol.

Julian shook his head slightly.

"I merely paid Doctor Cole to use a special industrial thread," Julian corrected him.

"It was supposed to look like a tragic infection, completely natural."

Julian glared at me, his eyes filled with venomous hatred.

"Until this stupid maid decided to play hero and ruin months of planning."

Gabriel raised his gun, aiming it at his brother's heart.

"You think these men will follow you if you murder me in cold blood?" Gabriel challenged.

Julian laughed softly.

"They won't have to follow a murderer, Gabriel," Julian replied.

"They will follow the grieving brother who avenged your tragic assassination."

Julian pointed a finger directly at me.

"The story is that the maid was an undercover assassin hired by a rival family."

My blood ran completely cold as I realized I was going to take the fall for everything.

"Kill them both," Julian commanded, turning his back to walk out of the room.

The guards raised their rifles, clicking off the safeties in perfect unison.

Gabriel suddenly threw his heavy arm around my waist.

He fired a single shot into the massive crystal chandelier hanging directly above the guards.

The Clumsy Maid Bathed His Dog—Then The Mafia Boss Said She Wasn’t Leavi...

She found her husband with another woman and walked away so quietly that...

The Mafia Boss Asked a Disabled Widow If She Was Okay

The heavy fixture crashed down violently, plunging the room into total darkness and chaotic gunfire.

Gabriel yanked me backward as the floor beneath us suddenly gave way.

Chapter 4 - The Betrayal