Chapter 6 - The Vault
"You really thought I was just a simple restaurant manager, Mateo?" the man sneered, pressing the cold barrel of the gun harder into Mateo's tuxedo.
"I knew you were on Lorenzo's payroll the day you hired Tessa," Mateo replied with terrifying, icy calm.
Before the manager could even blink, Mateo twisted his body with blinding speed, grabbing the man's wrist and snapping it backward.
The bone cracked loudly over the sound of the classical music playing in the ballroom.
The manager gasped in agony, dropping the suppressed pistol directly into Mateo's waiting left hand.
Mateo shoved the whimpering man into a dark utility closet, locking the door firmly from the outside without drawing any attention from the dancing guests.
"Are you okay?" Mateo whispered, wrapping his strong arm securely around my trembling waist.
"I am fine, just get me to the vault so we can end this nightmare," I urged, desperate to finish my part of this dangerous game.
We slipped past the heavy golden doors and descended a long, spiraling marble staircase into the freezing depths of the bank.
The subterranean level was completely silent, lined with heavily armed private security guards who respectfully stepped aside when they saw Mateo's face.
We finally reached the end of the corridor, standing in front of a massive, solid titanium vault door covered in complex biometric scanners.
"The vault requires the Romano iron key and the blood of a direct heir," Mateo explained, pulling a small silver knife from his pocket.
I swallowed my fear and nodded, holding out my left hand toward him.
Mateo took my hand gently, his thumb rubbing soothingly across my knuckles before he made a small, quick cut across my palm.
I hissed in pain, but Mateo immediately brought my bleeding hand to his lips, kissing the unbroken skin right next to the cut.
My heart fluttered wildly at the shockingly tender gesture from such a brutal, dangerous man.
I pressed my bloody palm against the glowing glass scanner while simultaneously inserting my great-grandmother's iron key into the heavy lock.
The massive titanium bolts groaned loudly, echoing through the empty corridor as the heavy door slowly swung open.
I stepped into the vault, expecting to see towering stacks of cash, gold bars, or files filled with political blackmail.
Instead, the massive, state-of-the-art vault was completely and utterly empty.
There was nothing inside except a small metal folding chair sitting in the exact center of the room.
Resting on the chair was a modern, glowing laptop playing a live video feed.
I walked closer to the screen, my blood turning to pure ice in my veins as I recognized the background of the video.
It was my tiny, rundown apartment.
May you like
My best friend and roommate, Sarah, was tied securely to a wooden chair, gagged with a cloth, and crying hysterically.
Standing right behind her, holding a terrifyingly sharp hunting knife to her throat, was Lorenzo.
