Luca's hesitant voice echoed in the dimly lit room as Zephyr stared intently at the screen, his piercing gaze reflecting the glint of the computer's monitor. "Are you sure about this?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowed with concern.
Zephyr took a deep breath before responding, "He's been acting strange ever since mom was brought in. And then with Nila, he stopped her from telling me something. Something about Diego."
As Luca absorbed this information, Zephyr continued to fill him in on his suspicions. "I can have someone check things out if you really think he's involved. But he's been with us since Michael was in charge. Why would he betray us now?"
"There are only two reasons people betray the mafia," Zephyr answered grimly, "money and family."
"But he makes more than enough money working for us," Luca concluded, mirroring Zephyr's thoughts. Without hesitation, Zephyr picked up the phone and made a call to one of his trusted guards, ordering a wellness check on Dr. Rossi's family.
"If this pans out, it means that Nila knows something important about Diego. We need to find out what it is as soon as possible," Luca stated, his mind already racing with possibilities.
Meanwhile, Nila still slept peacefully in her room, unaware of the danger she may be in. But Zephyr had stationed a guard outside her door with strict orders to not let Dr. Rossi inside until they could confirm or deny their suspicions. The same went for Orillia who lay asleep in her own room, both women now under their protection until they could get to the bottom of this suspicion.
* * *
"I can't keep doing this. Please release my daughter," Fabio begged into the phone, his voice trembling with fear and desperation.
"Don't worry Dr. Rossi, it's all going to be over real soon," Diego's cryptic voice did little to reassure Fabio.
"But, please. My daughter, is she," the line cut rather abruptly and Fabio's lips trembled as he hadn't heard from his daughter since the first call. He needed to know she was alive. He couldn't face his wife as a failure for a father.
* * *
"Diego has his daughter. His wife told us everything. Just before Diego took Mom and Nila, he kidnapped Dr. Rossi's daughter and has been holding her captive since then," Luca filled Zephyr and Michael in on the news he had received from their guards, his tone laced with fury and disgust towards the traitorous doctor.
"That leech has been feeding information to the enemy for months now?" Michael seethed, his fists clenched in anger and ready to exact revenge on the man responsible for his wife's current state as she lay unconscious for weeks now.
"Padre, please don't. We must remain calm and strategic in our approach. Confronting him head-on could lead to defensiveness and escalate the situation. We need to gather all the information we can about his plans before confronting Dr. Rossi. He has been a loyal member of our family since the very beginning, and we cannot forget that. Plus, acting rashly could put his daughter in danger," Zephyr reasoned with a deep furrow between his brows. Despite his burning anger towards the man responsible for Nila's suffering, he knew he had to be level-headed.
Michael fell silent, his fists clenching in frustration as he struggled to contain his emotions. He knew Zephyr was right, but the thought of betrayal from someone they trusted twisted his stomach into knots. With a curt nod, he acknowledged Zephyr's point. "Fine, but this Diego will not survive crossing us," he grumbled through gritted teeth.
"I'm with you on that. I'll go check on Nila and see if she has any helpful information. In the meantime, stay close to Mom and Luca, and have our men search for wherever they're holding Dr. Rossi's daughter," Zephyr ordered before leaving the room.
In Nila's room, Zephyr found Nolan at her bedside, holding her hand tightly. She was still unconscious from the strong sedative given by Dr. Rossi, but Zephyr couldn't wait any longer to wake her.
"What are you doing?" Nolan asked as he watched Zephyr rummage through drawers, pulling out a syringe and a small bottle.
"Waking your sister up," Zephyr replied calmly as he withdrew clear liquid from the small bottle. He knew he couldn't give her a full dose, but just enough to bring her back to consciousness.
"Shouldn't we wait for the doctor to do that?" Nolan countered, but Zephyr ignored him, carefully squeezing out any air bubbles from the syringe. As he approached Nila, Nolan protested once again. "Wait, don't do it, you could hurt her," but his pleas fell on deaf ears as Zephyr injected her arm.
As they waited for Nila to wake up, Zephyr tuned out Nolan's scolding and focused on his sister's face. He noticed her eyelids fluttering before slowly opening, wincing at the brightness of the overhead lights. She turned her head and her gaze met Zephyr's, confusion clouding her features. "What... what happened?" she asked weakly, struggling to make sense of her surroundings.
"Nila, I need you to tell me everything you know about Diego," Zephyr said urgently, his usual calm demeanor replaced with anxiety.
Nila furrowed her brow, trying to make sense of his request. She glanced at her brother beside her, who wore a mixture of relief and concern on his face.
All of a sudden, her sleepy confusion transformed into a fearful realization. Her breath quickened as she grabbed Zephyr's arm. "We have to leave. He has a bomb," she urgently whispered.
"A bomb?" Zephyr repeated in disbelief.
"Yes, that's why I called you. I was trying to escape and I saw him with another man, building a bomb. They're planning to plant it here, inside the house. We need to get out now!" Nila exclaimed, sitting up abruptly.
"Nila, I have my men stationed all around the property. There's no way Diego could have planted a bomb without being caught. We're safe," Zephyr reassured her.
"No! We have to go now. He must have someone on the inside helping him. He wasn't worried about getting the bomb in, he just wanted to make sure it worked," Nila frantically explained, struggling against the lingering effects of the sedative.
Zephyr felt his heart racing with fear, but he kept his expression calm so as not to scare Nila further. He turned to Nolan, who looked just as panicked as he did.
"Nila," Zephyr said gently, gripping her arm firmly. "I need you to stay calm. We're going to evacuate everyone from the house."
He assisted Nila in sitting up and helped her plant her feet on the ground, but she was still unsteady. Zephyr then lifted her into his arms and motioned for Nolan to follow closely behind him as they made their way through the grand hallways of the mansion. As they moved, the ornate chandeliers above them shook, casting eerie shadows on the walls.
"Search every room, check the garage and all vehicles, search the basement. Everywhere!" Zephyr's voice echoed throughout the mansion as he instructed his guards to begin searching for any signs of a bomb. Nila clung tightly to Zephyr's shirt, her eyes wide with fear.
Zephyr knew he couldn't evacuate everyone until they found and confirmed that there was no bomb in the house. He couldn't risk getting into the wrong vehicle or triggering a bomb by mistake. The safety of his family depended on it.
.
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Remmy