Chapter 18 - THE CONFRONTATION|
Down in the burning rose garden, rain mixed with smoke as the assault on the Hudson estate reached its bloody climax.
Silas's loyal guards had managed to corner the remaining Genovese hitmen near the fountain, wiping them out in a fierce ten-minute firefight.
Inside the grand foyer, Marcus walked down the stairs, his left arm wrapped in a blood-stained cloth, holding his tactical shotgun in his right hand. Behind him, Rosa walked carefully, holding a terrified Lily tightly against her shoulder.
At the center of the hall, near the broken front entrance, stood Dante.
He was alone, his face covered in gun smoke, his clothes soaked from the rain outside. He held a handgun, his eyes darting frantically between his father standing on the stairs and his brother holding the shotgun.
"Drop the gun, Dante," Marcus commanded, his voice cold and trembling with betrayal.
Dante let out a frantic, unhinged laugh, pointing his gun at Marcus, then shifting it toward Silas. "You ruined everything, Father! I was the one who kept this family running for six years! I was the one who built the shipping networks!"
"You sold us to the Genovese, Dante," Silas said, stepping down the stairs slowly, his eyes filled with a grief deeper than death. "The same family that murdered your brother Julian."
Dante flinched, his jaw trembling. "Julian was weak! And so are you! You were going to hand everything to a street maid's child!"
From behind Rosa’s shoulder, Lily peeked out. She looked at Dante—not with fear, but with that same quiet, steady gaze she had given Isabella six days ago on the fourth step of the staircase.
She reached into her small coat pocket.
May you like
She pulled out the heavy gold button stamped with the crown and lion—the button Silas had polished and given back to her as a keepsake.
"Bad man," Lily said softly, her small voice cutting through the smoky silence of the hall. "No lion for you."
