Chapter 5 - The Snake at the Table
By midnight, the storm had grown into a raging tempest outside the cliffs.
Seraphina was seated in a plush velvet armchair in Elias’s private library, dressed in a warm silk robe provided by the house staff. Her torn dress was being analyzed in a private lab, while her shoulder had been treated with soothing cream by a loyal doctor.
Elias sat at his broad mahogany desk, pouring two glasses of dark scotch. He walked over and handed one to her.
"I don't drink," she said softly.
"Drink it," Elias said calmly, taking a seat opposite her. "It calms the nerves, and you will need steady nerves for what comes next."
Seraphina took a small sip, the amber liquid burning her throat but warming her cold insides. "What happens now?"
"Tomorrow morning, my father’s oldest lieutenant, Marco Vance, is arriving for our quarterly council meeting," Elias revealed, his gaze fixing on her. "Marco was the man who led the assault on your family's chalet in 2006."
Seraphina’s breath hitched in her throat, her grip on the crystal glass tightening until her knuckles turned white. "Marco..."
"He believes he owns this family because he cleared our path to power," Elias continued, his gray eyes flashing with dangerous intelligence. "He has been trying to replace me with a puppet for three years. If he sees you, he will recognize your mother’s eyes instantly."
"Then let me leave," Seraphina begged softly. "Give me my passport, let me take my sister and mother, and we will fly to South America. You will never see me again."
Elias stood up, leaning over her chair, his tall frame looming over her, shutting down all escape routes with his sheer presence.
"You cannot run from Marco Vance," Elias whispered, his face inches from hers. "He controls border security across six European ports. The moment your name hits a flight manifest, his men will pick you up at the airport."
"Then what choice do I have?" she cried, feeling trapped.
"You stay here," Elias said firmly, his thumb reaching out to gently wipe a rogue tear from her cheek. "You stay under my protection. I will tear Marco's network apart from the inside, but to do it, I need you to act as my key."
"Key?"
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"Your mother’s family owned the encrypted land registry for the Monaco shipping docks," Elias explained. "My father never found the access codes. If you have them, we can strip Marco of his financial power in a single night."
Seraphina looked into Elias's intense gray eyes, realizing that her quiet life as a nanny was gone forever. She was now standing at the very center of a blood war.
