Chapter 12 - A Wife's First Betrayal|
Caterina disappeared before midnight.
Tomasso discovered her absence when he entered the guest suite and found the balcony door open, the curtains moving in the wind. Mateo was asleep on the bed, protected by two guards outside the room.
On the desk lay a note.
Don't follow me. I need to finish this before someone else pays for it.
Tomasso crushed the paper in his fist.
"Lock down the estate," he ordered. "No one leaves."
Marco appeared in the doorway.
"Where is she?"
"At the Moretti compound, if she's following the plan I think she's following."
"You think she went there alone?"
"I think she knows I would try to stop her."
Tomasso reached for his coat.
Marco blocked the door.
"Don, it could be a trap."
"It is a trap."
"Then let us prepare."
Tomasso's expression turned cold.
"Every minute we waste is another minute Lorenzo has to reach her."
He left with two vehicles.
Meanwhile, Caterina entered the Moretti estate through an underground delivery tunnel she had discovered as a child. She knew the guards would expect her to use the main entrance, where cameras covered every step. The tunnel opened behind the old wine cellar, less than twenty yards from the east wing.
The fire had damaged the upper floor, but the sealed room remained intact beneath it.
Caterina found Lorenzo waiting beside a table.
He wore no jacket. A glass of water sat untouched beside his hand.
"You've become very inconvenient," he said.
"You murdered my father."
Lorenzo sighed.
"That accusation again."
"You killed my mother."
"Your mother died because she couldn't accept reality."
Caterina stepped closer.
"What reality?"
"That Matteo was weak. That Vittorio was reckless. That both men were willing to destroy their families for a dream of peace."
"They wanted to end the war."
"They wanted to share power. There is a difference."
Lorenzo stood.
"Your father planned to give the Moretti empire to his son. Your mother helped him hide the boy. Vittorio supported them because he believed the two families could become legitimate business partners."
"And you killed them because you wanted control."
"I killed them because they left me no choice."
Caterina's hand slipped inside her coat.
Lorenzo noticed.
"Don't be foolish. You came here because you wanted the truth. Now you have it."
She pulled out a small recording device.
"I wanted you to say it."
For the first time, Lorenzo looked genuinely surprised.
Then he smiled.
"Your mother had the same idea."
A door opened behind Caterina.
Two men stepped into the room.
One held a pistol.
The other carried a folder.
Lorenzo opened it and removed a document bearing Caterina's signature.
"What is that?" she demanded.
"Your marriage agreement. You signed the supplementary papers before the ceremony, didn't you?"
Caterina stared at the signature.
She had signed dozens of documents that morning, many of them presented as routine legal requirements.
Lorenzo placed another sheet beside it.
"This one transfers your inheritance rights to your husband. This one grants him control of your assets. And this one allows your uncle to act as your legal representative if you are deemed mentally unfit."
Caterina felt the room tilt.
"You forged my consent."
"I arranged it. There is a difference."
He gestured to the men.
"Take her."
The pistol rose.
Before the guards could move, a shot rang through the corridor. The man holding the gun collapsed, and Tomasso appeared in the doorway with his weapon raised.
"Step away from my wife."
Lorenzo laughed.
"How touching. You came to save her."
Tomasso's eyes moved to the documents.
Then to Caterina.
"Did you really think I wouldn't follow you?"
"I told you not to."
"And I ignored you."
Caterina almost smiled despite herself.
Lorenzo's expression hardened.
"You've made your choice, Tomasso. You can leave with your bride, or you can die beside her."
Tomasso stepped into the room.
"Those were never the only options."
He threw the Barbieri ring onto the table.
It struck the forged documents and spun in a slow circle.
Then he said the words Lorenzo had never expected to hear.
"I renounce the family arrangement."
The room fell silent.
For a mafia heir, the declaration was more than a personal rebellion. It was an invitation for every ambitious rival to challenge his authority.
Lorenzo stared at him.
"You would sacrifice your empire for a woman?"
Tomasso looked at Caterina.
"No. I would sacrifice an empire built on a lie."
Then the lights went out.
May you like
When the emergency lamps came on, Lorenzo was gone.
And so was the folder containing the forged marriage papers.
