Chapter 9 - The Price of Betrayal
Matteo coughed, a wet, bloody sound, and looked up at the man he had betrayed.
"Because you went soft, Lorenzo!" Matteo sneered, coughing up more blood.
"The moment you met Isabella, you stopped being a boss."
"You wanted to take the family legitimate."
"You wanted to stop the drugs, stop the rackets."
"The Moretti family offered me a fortune to take you out and open the ports to them."
Lorenzo stared down at him, feeling absolutely nothing.
No pity, no brotherhood, just the cold mechanics of justice.
"You killed the woman I loved," Lorenzo said quietly.
"You tried to kill my child."
Matteo let out a bitter, desperate laugh.
"It was just business, Enzo," Matteo pleaded, using his childhood nickname.
"We grew up together."
"You wouldn't kill your own brother."
Lorenzo’s eyes were like black ice.
"My brother died eight months ago," Lorenzo stated.
He pulled the trigger.
The sound echoed sharply down the quiet, rain-soaked street.
Matteo slumped sideways against the tire, lifeless.
Lorenzo didn't look at the body for more than a second.
He holstered his weapon and turned his back on the carnage.
His loyal men parted in silence, lowering their weapons out of deep respect.
Lorenzo walked back up the ruined steps of the safehouse.
He pushed open the door to the basement.
Sophia was huddled in the corner, holding Emma and shielding the baby.
Lorenzo walked down the wooden stairs, his bloody hands held out in surrender.
"It's over," Lorenzo whispered gently.
"You are safe now."
He knelt on the dirty concrete floor and carefully took Mia back into his arms.
The baby slept peacefully, entirely unaware of the war that had just been fought for her.
May you like
Emma walked over and hugged Lorenzo’s leg, just like she had at the funeral.
Lorenzo smiled, wiping the dirt from his face.
