Chapter 5 - The Snake's Venom
At midnight, the estate was bathed in darkness.
Adeline slipped through the silent corridors, wearing soft-soled shoes, heading toward the wine cellar beneath the eastern wing. Following a tip from the estate's head housekeeper—who had grown to loathe Camille's arrogant cruelty—Adeline was searching for the hidden stash of neurotoxins Camille had been using to poison Nico's tea.
The cellar was cold, smelling of old oak barrels, iron, and damp earth.
Using a small penlight, Adeline moved past rows of vintage Italian wines until she reached a wall of antique wooden crates at the rear of the vault. Behind a crate marked 1982 Sassicaia, she found a small, combination-locked steel box.
"Need a combination?" a voice purred from the dark doorway behind her.
Adeline spun around, raising her flashlight.
Reuben Alfieri stood in the doorway, holding a silenced pistol at his side. Beside him stood two heavy-set enforcers wearing dark raincoats.
"I must admit, Nurse Marsh," Reuben said, stepping into the dim light with a cold, amused smirk. "I underestimated you. I thought you were just a pretty little thing wiping brow sweat and collecting a paycheck. But Camille told me everything ten minutes ago."
Adeline backed up against the wine rack, keeping her light trained on his chest. "Camille is a snake, Reuben. She's been poisoning your cousin. If you're part of this—"
"Part of it?" Reuben laughed—a short, ugly sound. "Who do you think hired the toxicologist in Zurich to synthesize the compound, my dear? Camille provided the daily access, but I provided the vision. Nico was too soft. He wanted to legitimize the family. He wanted to pay taxes, invest in green energy, turn us into respectable businessmen."
Reuben spat on the stone floor.
"The Alfieri family built this city on blood and iron!" Reuben growled. "We don't pay taxes. We collect them. And Nico's physical weakness was the perfect excuse to put him down softly."
He gestured to the two enforcers.
"Grab her," Reuben ordered coldly. "We'll make it look like a tragic accident. The nurse, overwrought with guilt for stealing controlled substances, fell down the cellar stairs. A tragic neck break."
The two men stepped forward, their heavy boots thudding against the stone floor.
Adeline didn't panic. She reached behind her back, her fingers closing around the neck of a heavy glass 1978 Magnum wine bottle on the shelf.
As the first enforcer reached for her shoulder, Adeline swung the heavy glass bottle with all her strength.
CRASH!
The bottle shattered against the enforcer's jaw in a spray of dark wine and heavy glass. The man let out a gurgling roar and stumbled back, clutching his bleeding face.
The second enforcer lunged, grabbing Adeline by the arms and pinning her against the wooden racks. She kicked out violently, her boot heel slamming into his kneecap. He grunted in pain but maintained his grip, raising a thick fist to strike her.
BANG!
A gunshot echoed through the stone vault.
The enforcer pinning Adeline froze. A small, red hole appeared in the center of his forehead. He slumped sideways, collapsing heavily onto the floor.
Reuben spun around in absolute shock, raising his gun toward the entrance.
Nico sat in his wheelchair at the end of the aisle. In his hands was a massive, chrome-plated .45 caliber pistol. The barrel was smoking.
"Drop it, Reuben," Nico said, his voice cold enough to freeze fire.
Reuben stared at his cousin in disbelief. "Nico? How... how are you down here? You're supposed to be drugged! You're supposed to be dying!"
"I stopped taking your poison weeks ago," Nico said smoothly, rolling his chair forward into the light. "And your enforcer was sloppy. He left the security gate unlocked."
Reuben's eyes went wild with desperation. He raised his gun toward Nico's chest. "I'll kill you myself!"
Adeline didn't wait. She grabbed a second wine bottle from the shelf and hurled it with all her strength straight at Reuben's head.
The bottle struck Reuben square in the chest, knocking him off balance just as he pulled the trigger. His shot went wild, shattering a row of expensive champagne bottles on the top shelf.
Nico didn't miss.
He fired two rapid shots. The first round tore through Reuben's right shoulder, forcing him to drop his weapon. The second round shattered Reuben's right kneecap, sending him screaming to the floor in a heap of blood and shattered glass.
May you like
Nico rolled up to his kneeling, screaming cousin and pressed the warm barrel of his gun directly against Reuben's forehead.
"The council meeting is in three hours, Reuben," Nico whispered softly into his cousin's ear. "And you are going to be my guest of honor."
