Chapter 5: The Breaking Point
The betrayal revealed itself sooner than expected.
Gunfire shattered the night.
Claraara hit the ground instinctively as alarms screamed through the estate.
Men shouted. Glass broke. Footsteps thundered.
Mateo burst into Lorenzo’s room, gun drawn.
“We have a breach.”
Lorenzo didn’t panic.
He pointed—to the door.
“Inside job.”
Mateo’s expression darkened.
Then one of his most trusted guards stepped into the doorway.
Gun raised.
Not at intruders.
At Mateo.
Time froze.
Claraara’s breath stopped.
“You should have let him stay silent,” the guard said coldly.
Mateo’s jaw clenched. “How long?”
“Long enough.”
The gun shifted—
Toward Claraara.
“She wasn’t part of the plan.”
Lorenzo moved.
Fast.
Too fast for a man like him.
He grabbed the IV stand and slammed it sideways. The distraction was enough—
Mateo fired.
The traitor dropped.
Silence rushed back in, broken only by Claraara’s heartbeat.
Mateo turned, shaken, staring at his father.
“You knew.”
Lorenzo’s voice was steady now.
“I suspected.”
Claraara looked between them.
“You used me.”
Lorenzo met her gaze without apology.
“Yes.”
A beat.
May you like
Then—
“But you survived.”
