CHAPTER 6 — THE TRAP SPRINGS SHUT
CHAPTER 6 — THE TRAP SPRINGS SHUT
The next morning, Lucas Moretti canceled every meeting on his calendar.
The announcement spread through the mansion within minutes.
"The boss is still weak."
"The doctors ordered complete rest."
"He nearly died yesterday."
The rumors traveled exactly as Lucas hoped they would.
By noon, every captain in the organization believed their Don was vulnerable.
And by evening...
Victor Romano believed it too.
Lucas remained in his bedroom with the curtains drawn while Dr. Bennett came and went several times, making sure anyone watching would believe the medical emergency was real.
Only a handful of people knew the truth.
Lucas.
Marco.
Dr. Bennett.
And Emma Carter.
Emma stood quietly inside the room after the doctor left.
"You want me to keep Lily away from the main house?"
Lucas nodded.
"Just for today."
She understood immediately.
"You think whoever did this will try again."
"I think they already have."
Emma looked toward the window.
"You trust me with this?"
Lucas smiled faintly.
"Your daughter trusted me with her life before she knew my name."
"I owe your family more trust than I've given anyone in years."
Emma lowered her eyes, humbled by his words.
Meanwhile, Lily was less interested in danger than in the mansion's enormous library.
Arthur, the elderly gardener, had shown her a hidden reading nook behind a revolving bookshelf years ago, where Daniel used to hide with his favorite dinosaur books.
Lily sat cross-legged inside the tiny space reading a picture book.
As she turned a page, something caught her attention.
Voices.
Very faint.
Coming from the other side of the wall.
She recognized one immediately.
Victor.
"...tonight," he whispered.
Another unfamiliar voice answered.
"If Moretti survives again, we're finished."
"He won't."
"The oxygen line has already been replaced."
Lily frowned.
She didn't understand most of the conversation.
But one sentence made perfect sense.
"He won't wake up tomorrow."
Her little heart began pounding.
She quietly crawled backward, careful not to make a sound.
Neither man knew there was a hidden compartment behind the bookshelf.
Daniel had discovered it years ago.
Victor never had.
At the same time, Lucas sat in bed pretending to sleep.
The room remained dark except for a bedside lamp.
Marco entered quietly.
"Everything's ready."
Lucas opened his eyes.
"The recording equipment?"
"In place."
"The security team?"
"Hidden."
Lucas nodded.
"What about Victor?"
Marco checked his watch.
"He believes everyone changes shifts at midnight."
Lucas stood slowly.
"Good."
"If he's guilty..."
"This ends tonight."
Across the estate, Lily ran as fast as her little legs could carry her.
She burst into the guest cottage, gasping for breath.
"Mommy!"
Emma immediately knelt.
"What happened?"
"They're gonna hurt Mister Lucas!"
Emma's face turned pale.
"Who?"
"The smiling man!"
Emma froze.
"Victor?"
Lily nodded frantically.
"They said he won't wake up tomorrow!"
Emma didn't hesitate.
She grabbed Lily's hand and hurried toward the mansion.
11:47 p.m.
Victor Romano walked confidently through the silent hallway.
He wore black gloves.
In one hand was a small medical syringe.
In the other...
A duplicate security key.
Everything had been planned perfectly.
The oxygen tubing connected to Lucas's nighttime breathing machine had already been switched.
Instead of delivering oxygen, it would slowly fill with an odorless gas powerful enough to stop weakened lungs.
Doctors would blame respiratory failure.
No one would question it.
Victor unlocked the bedroom door.
Slowly.
Quietly.
He stepped inside.
Lucas lay motionless beneath the blankets.
Victor smiled.
"So close," he whispered.
"You almost ruined everything yesterday."
He approached the bed.
Raised the syringe.
And suddenly—
"Looking for me?"
Victor spun around.
Lucas stood behind him.
Wide awake.
Healthy.
Holding a pistol aimed directly at his chest.
The bedside lamps flashed on.
Hidden doors burst open.
Marco and six armed guards flooded into the room.
Victor didn't move.
Instead...
He laughed.
A slow, disappointed laugh.
"So..."
"You finally figured it out."
Lucas's voice remained calm.
"Drop the syringe."
Victor casually obeyed.
The glass vial shattered against the marble floor.
"You know," Victor said softly, "I wondered how long it would take."
Lucas took one step closer.
"My wife warned me."
Victor's expression changed for the first time.
"What?"
Lucas removed Isabella's letter from his jacket.
"She heard you."
For a brief second...
The mask slipped.
Regret.
Shock.
Then anger.
Victor's jaw tightened.
"She wasn't supposed to hear."
Marco's eyes widened.
Lucas said nothing.
Victor looked at the letter and sighed.
"I liked Isabella."
"She was kind."
"It's unfortunate."
Lucas's voice turned icy.
"You burned them alive."
Victor looked directly into his eyes.
"No."
"I only gave the order."
The room fell deathly silent.
One guard actually gasped.
Victor continued as though discussing business.
"The fire spread faster than expected."
"The boy..."
He shrugged.
"...was collateral damage."
Lucas's hands trembled with barely controlled rage.
Every instinct screamed for revenge.
But he remembered his promise to Isabella.
Find proof.
Not blood.
Marco quietly pressed a button hidden beneath his jacket.
Every word Victor spoke was being recorded.
Victor smiled again.
"You know the funny part?"
"I never wanted your family dead."
"I wanted you."
"You refused to become your father."
"You wanted hotels."
"Restaurants."
"A clean empire."
He laughed bitterly.
"Do you know how much money that would've cost us?"
Lucas stared at the man he had once called brother.
"So you murdered my son."
Victor didn't answer.
He didn't have to.
His silence said enough.
Just then—
The bedroom door burst open.
Emma rushed inside holding Lily.
"I'm sorry!" Emma cried.
"She heard them talking—"
She stopped.
Seeing the armed guards.
Seeing Victor surrounded.
Seeing Lucas standing unharmed.
Lily looked around in confusion.
"Mister Lucas?"
Lucas lowered his weapon immediately.
"I'm okay."
Lily smiled with overwhelming relief.
"I told Mommy we had to save you again."
Victor slowly turned toward the little girl.
Everything.
Every careful plan.
Every year of deception.
Destroyed...
By a six-year-old child.
Hatred flashed across his face.
In one explosive movement, he lunged toward Lily.
"NO!"
Lucas fired.
The bullet struck Victor in the shoulder, spinning him to the floor before he could reach the child.
Guards pinned him down instantly.
Victor screamed in pain as handcuffs locked around his wrists.
Lily buried her face against Emma's shoulder, trembling.
Lucas crossed the room in seconds.
He knelt before her.
"It's over."
She peeked at him with frightened eyes.
"Really?"
Lucas looked at the man in chains.
"For him..."
"Yes."
But deep inside...
Lucas wasn't certain.
Because Victor had confessed to giving the order.
Not planning it.
Not financing it.
Not acting alone.
As officers dragged Victor from the room, he looked back one final time.
Blood stained his shirt.
Yet he smiled.
"You still don't understand, Lucas."
"There was someone above me."
The hallway went silent.
Victor laughed weakly.
"You've only caught..."
"...the second most dangerous man."
Then he lost consciousness.
Lucas stood frozen.
Three years of searching had finally revealed the traitor.
Only to uncover a far darker truth.
May you like
The mastermind behind Isabella's and Daniel's murders...
Was still free.
