Chapter 4 - The Execution of Betrayal

The entire hall went dead silent.

Marco Rossi froze near the doorway. The color drained from his face as he realized his plan had collapsed. He reached toward his jacket shoulder holster—

CRACK.

A single, suppressed gunshot echoed through the hall.

Rossi gasped, clutching his shattered right hand as his gun fell to the polished marble floor. Behind him, Matteo stepped out from the shadows, a silenced pistol raised, his face emotionless.

Screams erupted from several women in the crowd. Guests scrambled back from Rossi, clearing a wide circle around him as if he carried a contagious plague.

"Hold your peace!" Aleandro’s command thundered through the room, cutting through the panic like a blade.

No one moved. Not a single bodyguard drew a weapon. The Moretti security team moved swiftly, surrounding the perimeter of the room, their suppressed submachine guns trained on the Camorra lieutenants.

Aleandro stepped out from behind the head table. He walked slowly down the marble steps toward Rossi, his leather shoes clicking loudly in the terrified silence.

"You brought a bomb to my engagement party, Marco," Aleandro said smoothly, stopping three feet from the bleeding man. "You used my fiancée. You threatened a boy. You dishonored my home."

"Aleandro... wait!" Rossi panicked, dropping to his knees, clutching his bloody wrist. "It wasn't my idea! The Camorra High Council—"

"I don't care who thought of it," Aleandro said softly.

He didn't pull a gun. He simply signaled to his men. Two heavy guards stepped forward, dragging Rossi to his feet and hauling him toward the side doors toward the basement.

Aleandro turned back to the crowd, placing his hands in his pockets, adjusting his cuffs with absolute composure.

May you like

I woke up missing a kidney. My father dropped a black garbage bag beside...

The first thing I remember after surgery was the smell of disinfectant and the pressure in my side, as if someone had sewn a stone...

When a billionaire monitored his paralyzed triplets through hidden camer...

My Husband Hurted Me for Taking Our 104°F Daughter to the ER Instead of...

The sting on my left cheek did not burn nearly as hot as the skin of the six-year-old child shivering against my collarbone."Mommy...

"My apologies for the interruption," Aleandro announced to his petrified guests, a smooth, terrifying smile returning to his lips. "It appears Mr. Rossi had an urgent appointment elsewhere. Please, enjoy the food. The music will resume."

He gestured to the string quartet. The terrified conductor frantically raised his baton, and the sweet, melodic sound of violins filled the hall once more, though no one touched their wine.