A Terrified Woman Ran Into My Club Fleeing Her Boyfriend—Then an Old Photograph Revealed Her Mother Was My Missing Sister.

Marco didn't hesitate. He threw himself in front of Lena, but before Marcus could pull the trigger, Julian lunged at his own son, tackling Marcus's gun arm against the stone wall.

A muffled gunshot echoed in the tunnel.

Julian gasped, collapsing onto the damp earth with a wound to his shoulder. Marcus cursed, kicking his dying father aside with brutal indifference. "Useless old fool!"

Vincent Rossi grabbed Lena’s arm, wrenching the pendant from her neck. The silver chain snapped with a sharp ping. "Good girl. Now come quietly, and Adrien won't have to watch you die."

"Let her go, Vincent," a voice commanded from the shadows of the cellar staircase.

Vincent froze.

Adrien emerged from the smoke, his black shirt torn, his gun pointed straight at Vincent’s chest. His eyes burned with an icy, lethal fury.

"Adrien... wait," Vincent stammered, his facade crumbling as he raised his hands, dropping the pendant onto the dirt. "They forced my hand! Marcus has proof of my offshore embezzlement! He threatened my family!"

"You traded my niece for your ledgers?" Adrien asked in a voice that sent shivers down the stone walls.

Marcus didn't wait. He sprinted toward the secondary exit leading up to the gardens, slamming an iron fire door shut behind him.

Marco immediately secured Vincent, pinning him face-down in the mud.

Adrien picked up the serpent pendant, wiping the damp earth from the silver scales, and handed it back to Lena. Her hands were shaking, but she looked into Adrien’s eyes without a shred of doubt left.