Chapter 8 - The Price of Treason
Dominic nodded at Frank. Within seconds, four heavy guards seized Lucinda by her arms, pinning her emerald-clad frame in place. She struggled violently, her heels scraping against the floorboards, but the guards were unyielding.
"Get your hands off me! I am a Valenti!" she screamed, her aristocratic composure completely shattered. "Dominic! You can't do this! The board won't allow it!"
Dominic didn't answer her. He turned to his senior lieutenants standing in the crowd. "Clear the ballroom. The party is over."
Within two minutes, the terrified guests, politicians, and syndicate partners were escorted out of the estate by armed men. The heavy oak doors of the mansion were slammed shut and locked from the inside. Only Dominic, his core men, Julianna, Maisie, and the trapped Lucinda remained in the vast, echoing hall.
Dominic walked over to Maisie, who was sitting quietly on a couch next to her newly recovered aunt Julianna. He kneeled down in front of his little girl.
"Frank is going to take you and Aunt Julianna upstairs to the master suite," Dominic said softly, smoothing down Maisie’s hair. "There are movies, hot chocolate, and soft blankets. I need to finish some business down here."
Maisie looked at her father, then at Lucinda, who was sobbing hysterically near the floor pit. "Is Aunt Lucinda going away?"
"Yes, princess," Dominic replied with absolute certainty. "She is going away for a very long time. She will never hurt you again."
Maisie nodded, wrapped her arms around Dominic’s neck for a quick hug, and then took Julianna’s pale hand. Guided by Frank, the two were led up the marble staircase into the secure upper sanctuary of the mansion.
Once the heavy doors upstairs closed, Dominic turned back to Lucinda. The ambient warmth of the ballroom was gone. All that remained was the harsh, bright cinematic light reflecting off the crystal chandeliers onto the ruined floor.
"You brought dirt into my home," Dominic said, his voice echoing off the high ceilings. "You put my child in a dark hole. You kept my sister like an animal under the floor I walk on every day."
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Lucinda dropped to her knees, held up only by the guards' firm grip. "Dominic... please. I was desperate. Your brother left me with nothing... I just wanted what was mine..."
"You are not a Valenti," Dominic stated coldly. "You were a guest. And your time in this house is finished."
