Chapter 5 - Tangled Threads of Deception
That afternoon, Aleandro used a hidden passageway behind the study's bookcase—a secret known only to the head of the house—to enter Sophia’s third-floor bedroom without alerting the guards Victor had posted outside.
Sophia was sitting on the window seat, staring out at the falling rain, her face drawn and hollow. When the secret panel clicked open, she jumped, letting out a faint gasp.
"Aleandro?"
He stepped out from the shadows. Without a word, he crossed the room and pulled her into his arms. For a moment, Sophia stiffened in shock, then melted into his chest, sobbing silently into his lapel.
"Why didn't you tell me about Maya?" he whispered against her hair.
Sophia gasped, pulling back in absolute horror. "How... how do you know that name? Who told you?!"
"It doesn't matter," Aleandro said softly, cupping her face with his large hands. "What matters is that you lied to me because you were trying to protect your sister—and me."
"You don't understand, Aleandro!" she panicked, clutching his wrists. "He has eyes everywhere! If he finds out you know, he’ll kill her! The man at the table... that was Julian. He's the enforcer for the Chicago group. He showed me a live video of Maya bound in a basement. He forced me to hold his hand under the table to deliver a microchip hidden in his palm—a chip containing your security codes!"
"Did you give it to him?" Aleandro asked gently.
"No!" Sophia cried, pulling a tiny silver chip from the lining of her sleeve. "I hid it! I pretended to hand it over, but I swapped it with a blank. I was going to figure out a way to save her myself..."
"You foolish, brave woman," Aleandro breathed, pressing his forehead against hers. "You don't have to carry the world on your shoulders anymore. Who is the insider, Sophia? Who gives Julian his orders?"
Sophia swallowed hard, her voice barely a whisper. "Victor. It has always been Victor. He’s been skimming from your family for five years, building an empire in Chicago. He orchestrated our meeting three years ago hoping to use me as leverage against you."
May you like
Aleandro’s blood ran cold. Victor Romano, the man who had held him as a child, who had stood by his father's coffin, was the snake in his garden.
"We have to play his game a little longer," Aleandro said, his tone turning into liquid steel. "He thinks he has us trapped. Tonight, we turn the tables."
