Chapter 5 - THE FOOTSTEPS IN THE HALL
I stared at the glowing screen of my phone on the carpet.
Unlock the guest room door.
Rachel looked up, her eyes red and swollen. "Emily? What's wrong?"
"Quiet," I whispered, holding up a shaking hand.
I pressed my ear against the heavy oak door.
At first, there was nothing but the distant hum of the estate's HVAC system. But then, I heard it.
The soft, slow creak of a floorboard in the hallway.
Someone was standing right outside the door.
I looked frantically around the luxurious guest room. There were no weapons. Just heavy lamps and silk pillows.
My brother's life was on the line. If I opened the door, whoever was out there would take Rachel, or me, or both of us. But if I didn't, Anthony's accomplice would make a phone call, and Leo would pay the price.
Another text came through. It buzzed loudly against the floor.
I snatched it up.
“Ten seconds, Emily. I know you're in there.”
I typed back frantically: Who are you? Don't touch my brother!
I hit send.
Three seconds later, the person on the other side of the door laughed.
It was a soft, cruel, female laugh.
"Open the door, Emily," Carmela's voice slithered through the wood. "Or I'll have the Russians visit Leo's dorm room."
My blood ran cold.
Carmela. She wasn't just Anthony's mistress. She was part of the theft.
"You set Anthony up," I whispered through the door.
"Anthony is a fool," Carmela replied softly. "He thought he was using my house to hide the money. But I was using him to launder it. Now open the door. Give me the list Luca handed you, and I'll let your brother live."
I looked at Rachel. She was terrified, clutching a bronze lamp from the nightstand.
"Don't do it, Emily," Rachel mouthed.
I looked at the piece of paper in my hand.
If I gave it to Carmela, she would destroy the proof that Anthony framed Leo. She would pin the entire theft on my brother to cover her tracks.
But if I didn't...
Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from the hallway, followed by a woman's scream.
"Get your hands off me!" Carmela shrieked.
"Drop the phone, Carmela," a deep, furious voice ordered.
Luca.
I unlocked the door and threw it open.
Luca was pinning his sister against the wall, effortlessly holding her wrists with one hand. In his other hand, he held her cell phone.
"You were texting the maid?" Luca asked, his voice dark with betrayal. "You were threatening a nineteen-year-old kid?"
Carmela spat at him. "You owe me, Luca! I spent my whole life standing in your shadow while you ran the family! I deserve that money!"
Luca looked at her with pure disgust.
"You stole from our own family. You tore apart Rachel's marriage. And you put a target on an innocent boy's back."
He threw her toward two waiting security guards. "Take her to the warehouse. Put her in a cell."
Carmela screamed, thrashing as the guards dragged her away. "You can't do this! I'm your sister!"
Luca didn't flinch.
He turned to me. His chest was heaving under his tailored suit.
"Is your brother safe?" Luca asked.
I checked my phone. "I don't know."
Luca pulled his own phone out. "Marcus. Send a team to Leo Carter's dorm. Bring him here. Now."
He hung up and looked at Rachel.
"We found the package," Luca said gently. "My men intercepted the envelope before it reached the feds. And..."
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, child's drawing.
Rachel gasped, dropping the bronze lamp.
"Mia's drawing," Rachel sobbed. "She keeps it in her wallet."
"My men found her at the bus station," Luca smiled. "She never got on the train. She's downstairs."
Rachel didn't wait. She ran past us, sprinting toward the grand staircase.
I leaned against the doorframe, my knees weak with relief.
Luca watched Rachel go, then turned his intense, dark eyes back to me.
"You didn't open the door," he noted softly.
"She was going to destroy the list," I said, my voice trembling.
Luca stepped closer. He reached out, his warm fingers brushing against my cheek, wiping away a tear I didn't know had fallen.
"You're a very brave woman, Emily Carter," he murmured.
May you like
My breath caught in my throat.
But before I could speak, a massive explosion rocked the foundation of the mansion.
