Chapter 6: The Betrayal Inside the House
The weapon in Mrs. Bellini’s hand felt heavier than the entire room.
Adeline stared at the woman who had warned her about silence.
The woman who had told her some doors were locked for a reason.
The woman who had looked at her with genuine fear.
Now she stood in front of them, holding a gun.
And somehow, that hurt more than the danger outside.
“Mrs. Bellini…”
Adeline’s voice barely escaped.
The older woman’s expression tightened.
“Don’t make this harder than it already is.””
Enzo moved slightly.
A small movement.
Almost invisible.
But Adeline noticed.
He was calculating.
Looking for an opening.
Looking for a way to stop this.
Mrs. Bellini noticed too.
“Don’t.””
Her eyes shifted to him.
“You taught everyone in this city to look for threats, Enzo. Don’t pretend you’re the only one who knows how.””
Enzo’s expression remained cold.
“You betrayed me.””
Mrs. Bellini looked away.
“No.””
The answer came softly.
“I betrayed myself a long time ago.””
The words confused Adeline.
But before she could ask, Daniel stepped forward.
“Helena.””
Adeline looked at him.
Helena?
Mrs. Bellini’s first name.
The housekeeper looked at Daniel.
And for a moment, the weapon lowered slightly.
“You shouldn’t have come back.””
Daniel’s voice was tired.
“I had to.””
“No.””
Her eyes filled with sadness.
“You had a chance to stay hidden.””
“I couldn’t leave my daughter in danger.””
Helena looked at Adeline.
Something painful crossed her face.
“That’s exactly what I was afraid of.””
Adeline felt anger rise.
“You knew.””
Everyone went still.
She looked at Helena.
“You knew my father was alive.””
Helena didn’t answer.
“You knew.””
“Yes.””
The honesty hurt.
Adeline swallowed.
“How long?””
“Since the accident.””
Her heart sank.
Since the accident.
The words felt impossible.
“You knew for five years?””
Helena closed her eyes.
“Yes.””
“And you said nothing?””
“I had no choice.””
“There is always a choice.””
Helena looked at her.
“You’re young.””
The sentence angered Adeline more.
“Don’t do that.””
“Do what?””
“Act like I don’t understand.””
Her voice shook.
“I lost him.””
A tear escaped before she could stop it.
“I buried him.””
Helena’s expression broke.
“I know.””
“No, you don’t.””
Adeline wiped her face.
“You knew he was alive.””
The silence was unbearable.
Then Daniel spoke quietly.
“She’s right.””
Everyone looked at him.
Daniel stepped closer.
“She has every right to hate us.””
Adeline looked at her father.
The fact that he agreed almost made it worse.
“You’re not defending yourself?””
“No.””
“Why?””
“Because she’s right.””
The answer left her empty.
For years, she had imagined this moment.
Finding him.
Hearing his explanation.
Forgiving him.
But she never imagined that the explanation would hurt more.
Outside, footsteps moved closer.
The attackers were surrounding the building.
Enzo looked toward the broken window.
“We’re out of time.””
Helena lowered the weapon.
Only slightly.
“Give me the notebook.””
Adeline instinctively held it tighter.
“No.””
Helena looked at her.
“Adeline.””
“No.””
The word came stronger.
“This is my father’s.””
“It’s not yours.””
The sentence hit her.
Helena immediately regretted it.
But it was too late.
Adeline’s expression hardened.
“You don’t get to tell me what belongs to me.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“Helena, please.””
The older woman looked at him.
“You think I want this?””
Her voice cracked.
“You think I wanted to spend five years lying to a child?””
Adeline froze.
Helena continued.
“Do you think I wanted to watch her visit your grave?””
Daniel looked devastated.
“Then why?””
“Because they would have killed her.””
Silence.
Helena’s hand trembled.
“I saw what they did to everyone who got close.””
She looked at Enzo.
“Your brother.””
Enzo’s face changed.
Helena continued.
“Your father.””
Then Daniel.
“His colleagues.””
Finally, Adeline.
“They were willing to erase an entire family.””
Adeline looked at the notebook.
“What is inside?””
Nobody answered.
That terrified her.
Because whatever was inside was powerful enough to destroy lives.
A loud crash came from downstairs.
Everyone turned.
“They’re inside,” Elliot said.
Enzo immediately moved toward the back hallway.
“There’s a service exit.””
Helena looked at him.
“You think they won’t know about that?””
“I know they don’t.””
“How?””
“Because I built this place.””
The answer was directed at her.
And for the first time, Adeline understood something.
The Marchetti estate.
The security.
The hidden passages.
The impossible control.
Enzo Marchetti had not survived because he was feared.
He survived because he prepared.
Helena looked at Adeline.
“You need to go with him.””
Adeline stared.
“What?””
“You heard me.””
“You’re still trying to control what happens to me?””
“No.””
Helena’s voice softened.
“I’m trying to make sure you live long enough to hate me properly.””
The words shocked her.
For a second, Adeline saw the woman beneath the betrayal.
A woman who had carried a secret too heavy for too long.
Then gunfire erupted outside.
Everyone moved.
The escape tunnel beneath the office was narrow and dark.
Adeline hated every second.
The walls felt like they were closing in.
Enzo walked ahead.
Daniel behind her.
Elliot followed.
And Helena stayed behind.
Adeline turned.
“She’s not coming?””
Nobody answered.
She stopped.
“She’s not coming?””
Daniel looked at her.
“She made her choice.””
Adeline looked back at the darkness.
She didn’t know why.
But she felt sadness.
Not forgiveness.
Not yet.
Just sadness.
“She protected me.””
Daniel looked surprised.
“What?””
“She protected me.””
Enzo glanced back.
“You believe that?””
Adeline shook her head.
“I don’t know what I believe anymore.””
And that was the truth.
They reached the end of the tunnel.
A hidden exit opened into an alley behind the building.
The cold night air hit Adeline’s face.
She breathed deeply.
For the first time in minutes, she felt like she could think.
Then Daniel spoke.
“There’s something else.””
She closed her eyes.
Of course there was.
There was always something else.
“What?””
Daniel looked at Enzo.
“I never told him everything.””
Enzo stopped.
“What are you talking about?””
Daniel reached into his coat.
He pulled out a second item.
Not a notebook.
A small metal key.
Adeline frowned.
“What is that?””
Daniel looked at her.
“The reason I disappeared.””
Enzo stepped closer.
“A key?””
Daniel nodded.
“To a safe deposit box.””
“Where?””
Daniel hesitated.
Then said:
“Geneva.””
Adeline stared.
“Switzerland?””
“Yes.””
“What’s inside?””
Daniel’s expression turned serious.
“The final evidence.””
Enzo’s eyes narrowed.
“Evidence against who?””
Daniel looked at him.
“The person who ordered the accident.””
The air became still.
“Who?””
Daniel’s fingers tightened around the key.
“Someone you trusted.””
Enzo’s face hardened.
“Name.””
Daniel looked toward the dark street.
Before he could answer—
A car engine roared.
Headlights flooded the alley.
Everyone turned.
A black vehicle stopped in front of them.
The door opened.
A man stepped out.
Adeline had never seen him before.
But Enzo had.
Because the moment the man appeared, every muscle in Enzo’s body went rigid.
“No.””
The man smiled.
“Hello, brother.””
Adeline looked at Enzo.
Then at the stranger.
Brother.
The impossible word echoed.
Because Enzo Marchetti’s missing brother was not dead.
He was standing ten feet away.
And he was smiling like he had been waiting years for this moment.
“I think,” the man said calmly, “we have a lot to discuss.””
May you like
His eyes moved to Adeline.
“Especially about the girl who was never supposed to survive.””
