Chapter 6 - The Traitor Unmasked
Dominic and the assault team swept through the shattered doorway, locking down the room and pinning the remaining mercenaries against the back wall.
Viktor stumbled back against the control console, holding the detonator high. “Back off, Moretti! One press of this button and she turns to ash!”
Aleandro stopped ten feet away. His gun remained leveled at Viktor’s forehead, his posture totally unbothered by the explosives six feet away.
“You’re not going to press it, Viktor,” Aleandro said smoothly. “Because you’re a businessman. And a dead hostage gives you zero leverage.”
Isabella lifted her head weakly, her voice trembling through the pain. “Aleandro... behind you...”
Aleandro didn't turn his head. He had already felt the cold metal of a gun barrel press directly against the base of his spine.
“Drop your weapon, Don Moretti,” a familiar voice commanded from behind him.
Aleandro’s jaw tightened. “Vance.”
His own head of security—the man who had guarded his father, the man who had sat at his family table for fifteen years—stood behind him, his weapon drawn.
“It was never personal, Aleandro,” Vance said, his voice laced with bitter regret. “Malikov offered me thirty percent of the port revenue. Your father kept us on a leash for decades, pretending we were 'family' while he sat on billions. I’m taking what I’m owed.”
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Isabella looked at Aleandro, tears cutting clean lines through the dirt on her pale cheeks. “I tried to warn you... Vance was the one who let them into my room... he made me put the wire in the clock...”
“I know, my love,” Aleandro said softly, his eyes locked on her face. “I know.”
