Chapter 7 - The Gathering Storm
Lorenzo felt a cold spike of shock run through his chest. "Twin?"
"I was carrying twins," Valentina confessed, her voice breaking in a sob. "Two boys. But on the night of the delivery at the private clinic... Dr. Cole told me that the first baby, Baby A, suffered severe developmental complications and died in the delivery room three hours before Baby B was born."
Lorenzo gripped the edge of the mahogany desk, his knuckles turning white. "And you didn't tell me?"
"Cole told me you would blame me!" Valentina wept. "He said you needed a strong, perfect heir to secure your position against the rival families! He said if you knew one of the twins died, you would view my bloodline as weak and set me aside!"
Lorenzo stared at her, feeling a profound, sickening realization take root in his mind. The web of lies surrounding his household wasn't just a simple bid for power—it was a calculated, multi-layered conspiracy designed to manipulate every fear and insecurity in his family.
Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from the lower gardens outside the window.
A high-pitched scream rang out from the service wing—the unmistakable voice of Elena Bennett.
Lorenzo pulled his silver-plated pistol from his desk drawer, unlocked the study door, and sprinted down the hallway toward the east wing sitting room where he had left the baby.
He burst through the doors to find the room in total disarray.
A heavy glass window leading to the secondary balcony was shattered, raining shards across the hardwood floor. Elena lay on the ground near the sofa, holding her shoulder where a blunt blow had struck her, while little Sophia was huddled in the corner, clutching her rag doll, her face pale with terror.
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The fleece blanket on the sofa was empty.
Baby Moretti was gone.
