Chapter 5 - Venom in the Wine
Hector Torrio didn't gasp. He didn't drop his silver cane. He was too old a viper for such obvious tells.
Instead, his dark eyes narrowed to thin slits, locking onto Leah with an intensity that sent a chill straight down her spine. A slow, sickening smile spread across his thin lips.
“Mariana’s daughter?” Hector repeated smoothly, taking a slow step down the marble stairs. “Viktor, my dear nephew… what foolishness is this? Mariana died over two decades ago. Her child died in her womb. We buried them both.”
“We buried a box of ashes you provided, Hector,” Viktor said, his hand resting on the lapel of his coat—a subtle signal Leah recognized as a man ready to draw a weapon. “She wears Mariana’s ring. She has her face. And she was left at County General the night Mariana died.”
Hector stopped three steps above them, looking down at Leah with fake pity. “A girl with a silver ring? Viktor, the city is full of desperate street rats looking for an easy payday. Someone found out about your old tragic romance and planted this girl to pull at your heartstrings. You are letting grief cloud your judgment.”
Leah stepped out from behind Viktor, her eyes flashing with defiance. “I didn't ask to be brought here! I was working a shift at a diner when your nephew walked in! I didn't know who he was, and I didn't know who you were until five minutes ago!”
Hector raised an eyebrow, amused. “Spisty. A well-rehearsed act.”
“Enough, Hector,” Viktor growled. “She stays here. Under my personal protection. Tomorrow, we conduct a formal DNA test through my private physicians. If she is my daughter—and I know in my soul she is—she will be named the sole heir to the Torrio empire.”
Hector’s smile faltered for a fraction of a second, his eyes darkening with absolute malice before he masked it again. “Of course, Viktor. If she is indeed blood, then family is family. I will have the staff prepare the west wing for our… guest.”
Hector turned and walked back into the mansion, the tip of his cane clicking sharply against the stone.
Viktor turned to Leah, his face grim. “You must be careful in this house, Leah. Do not eat anything not prepared by my personal chef, Marco. Do not leave your room after midnight. And do not, under any circumstances, speak to Hector alone.”
“If it’s so dangerous, why bring me here?” Leah demanded.
“Because out there, Hector can make you vanish with a car crash or a fake mugging,” Viktor said coldly. “In here, if anything happens to you, I will personally rip his head from his shoulders, and he knows it.”
That night, Leah was led to a bedroom larger than her entire apartment building. The bed was covered in silk sheets; a fire roared in the stone fireplace. Yet, she could not sleep.
She sat on the edge of the bed, clutching her mother’s ring in the dark.
At 2:00 a.m., she heard a faint sound outside her door.
A soft, scraping noise. Like metal sliding against metal.
May you like
Leah froze, her heart leaping into her throat. She slid off the bed silently, grabbing a heavy brass candlestick from the nightstand. She crept toward the door.
The handle began to turn slowly.
