Chapter 4 - Shadows in the East Wing
Within ten minutes, the lawyers and non-essential captains were forcefully removed from the grounds and ordered to remain silent under penalty of death. The Moretti estate went into immediate, total lockdown. Iron security gates slammed shut at the perimeter, and heavy steel shutters descended over the lower floor windows.
Lorenzo carried his son up the grand staircase to his private suite in the east wing—a heavily fortified section of the mansion equipped with bulletproof glass and dedicated surveillance monitors.
Elena Bennett, the head housekeeper, rushed into the room carrying warm towels and dry clothing. At thirty-one, Elena was gentle, hardworking, and intensely protective of her daughter, Sophia. She wore her crisp black-and-white maid uniform, her face pale with shock as she saw the living infant in her master's arms.
"Mr. Moretti," Elena breathed, taking the wet blanket away and expertly wrapping the baby in a warm, dry fleece. "Is he... is he really your boy?"
"He's my son, Elena," Lorenzo said, watching her fingers check the baby's pulse and clear his tiny air passages with practiced care. "Where is Sophia?"
"She's downstairs changing into dry clothes, sir," Elena replied, her voice filled with quiet emotion. "She was taking the recycling to the outdoor bins behind the kitchen when she heard the whimpering coming from a discarded laundry bag near the servant gate."
Lorenzo walked to the large window overlooking the rear gardens, where rain swept across the manicured lawns. "Someone brought him onto my property during the funeral service. They knew the perimeter guards would be distracted by the arrivals."
He walked over to his private desk and opened the security terminal, pulling up the live camera feeds from the estate's nursery—the room where the baby was supposed to have spent his first night three days ago.
As Lorenzo scrolled back through the recorded archives from the night of the child's birth, his dark eyes narrowed.
At 2:14 AM on the night of October 1st, the camera feed inside the private maternity room had glitched for exactly four minutes. When the signal restored itself, the crib was empty, and Dr. Adrian Cole, their private family physician, was seen walking out with a covered medical container.
May you like
Lorenzo pressed his intercom button. "Marco. Bring Dr. Cole to the east wing holding room now."
Marco’s voice came back through the speaker, tight and tense: "Boss... Dr. Cole isn't in his quarters. His vehicle just cleared the secondary gate two minutes before the lockdown initiated."
