Chapter 4 - The Poisoner’s Trap
By noon, the rain had ceased, leaving the estate wrapped in a thick, suffocating fog.
Inside the grand dining hall, Alessandro sat at the head of a massive mahogany table. A silver tray filled with roasted meats, fresh bread, and fine wine sat untouched before him.
Standing at his right elbow was Captain Victor Rossi.
Victor was a man in his late forty, broad-shouldered, with silver hair, sharp blue eyes, and a cruel mouth that rarely smiled. He wore a perfectly tailored dark suit, his gun holster resting comfortably under his arm.
"You called for me, Don Alessandro?" Victor asked smoothly, pouring a glass of sparkling water and setting it near Alessandro’s elbow.
"Yes, Victor," Alessandro said quietly, staring out the floor-to-ceiling windows at the foggy courtyard. "A minor nuisance in the servants' quarters."
Victor’s eyes flickered with a tiny, almost imperceptible spark of interest. "Oh? What kind of nuisance?"
"A maid," Alessandro said nonchalantly, cutting a small piece of meat with his knife. "A quiet woman named Maria. She died last night in room seven. Heart failure, according to Dr. Ricci."
Victor took a slow, deep breath. His shoulders relaxed by a fraction of an inch. A subtle, satisfied smirk touched the corner of his lips before he quickly masked it with a look of solemn sympathy.
"Ah. Regrettable," Victor sighed smoothly. "The winter dampness takes many of the weaker staff. Shall I have the body removed and buried in the town cemetery?"
"Ricci is handling it," Alessandro replied casually. "However... there is another small issue."
"What is that?"
"She had two children with her," Alessandro said, turning his head slowly to lock his dark, predatory gaze directly onto Victor’s eyes. "A seven-year-old girl named Emma. And a baby girl."
Victor’s hand twitched slightly against his side. "A baby?"
"Yes," Alessandro continued, leaning back in his leather chair. "Emma brought the infant to my study during the storm. The baby had a rather curious silver necklace around her neck. A custom piece I commissioned in Milan two years ago."
The air in the grand hall instantly became dead silent.
Victor’s expression hardened. His right hand drifted half an inch closer to his jacket lapel. "Is that so? And... where are the children now, Don Alessandro?"
"In the nursery," Alessandro lied, his tone remaining terrifyingly smooth. "Under heavy guard. Dr. Ricci is conducting a DNA test as we speak to confirm if the baby is connected to Isabella."
Victor swallowed hard. He lowered his eyes, his mind clearly racing at a thousand miles an hour.
"If the child is indeed Donna Isabella’s..." Victor said, his voice tightening, "it would mean Isabella herself was hiding here. As Maria."
"It would," Alessandro agreed. "And if someone were poisoning her tea to keep her quiet, that person would likely try to eliminate the infant before the DNA results arrive tomorrow morning."
Victor froze.
He realized in an instant that the room was far too quiet. The usual guards stationed at the dining hall doors were gone. The heavy mahogany doors behind him were locked from the outside.
Slowly, Victor raised his eyes to look at Alessandro.
Alessandro was not holding a fork anymore. In his right hand rested a heavy black Beretta pistol, pointed directly at Victor’s heart.
"You always were too ambitious, Victor," Alessandro said softly.
Victor’s face twisted into a mask of pure, bitter venom. He dropped all pretense of loyalty, his hands flying toward his weapon. "She was a distraction!" Victor screamed, drawing his gun. "You were soft because of her! The Moretti empire needed a strong leader, not a Don blinded by a civilian woman!"
BANG!
A single gunshot shattered the silence of the hall.
Victor gasped, his gun falling from his limp fingers as a heavy bullet tore through his shoulder. He collapsed onto his knees, clutching his bleeding wound, groaning in agony on the polished marble floor.
The side doors burst open. Antonio and four heavily armed loyalists rushed in, instantly pinning Victor to the floor and stripping him of his weapons.
Alessandro stood up, stepping over the pool of Victor’s blood. He looked down at his former captain with cold, absolute disgust.
"You thought you were smarter than me, Victor," Alessandro whispered, leaning down until his lips were inches from Victor’s ear. "You thought you could poison my wife, butcher my daughter, and steal my throne."
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"Kill me then!" Victor spat, blood dripping from his mouth. "Kill me and be done with it!"
"Death is a mercy you do not deserve," Alessandro growled. "Antonio, take him to the deep vaults beneath the estate. Keep him alive. He will answer for every drop of arsenic he put into my wife’s tea."
