Chapter 3 - The South Tunnel
Valeria was already moving when Tomas finished speaking.
The south tunnel ran beneath the old wine cellar to an abandoned chapel half a mile away.
Only four people knew the access code.
Valeria.
Tomas.
Luca.
And Gregory.
They reached the cellar as the steel hatch swung shut.
“Camera?” Valeria asked.
Tomas checked his tablet. “Offline.”
“Of course it is.”
He pulled a pistol from beneath his jacket.
“Stay behind me.”
Valeria gave him a look.
“I grew up in this house.”
“So did Luca.”
That silenced her.
They descended.
The tunnel smelled of damp stone. Halfway down, Tomas found a dropped cuff link.
Black enamel. Silver R.
Luca’s.
Valeria picked it up. “My brother never drops anything by accident.”
At the chapel exit, they found fresh tire tracks and a pool of oil, but no car.
Tomas knelt. “SUV. Heavy. Left fast.”
Valeria’s phone rang.
Unknown number.
She answered.
A man breathed on the other end.
Then Luca said, “Val, don’t go back inside the house.”
“Where are you?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Did you sign an incompetency petition against me?”
A long pause.
“Yes.”
Her stomach turned.
“Why?”
“Because Gregory said it was the only way to keep Noah alive.”
Valeria stopped walking.
“What did you just say?”
“I made a mistake. A big one. But Gregory is not working alone.”
“You were in his office.”
“I was trying to find out how far he’d gone.”
“Then come home and explain it.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Because the man behind Gregory is already in your ballroom.”
Valeria stared toward the distant lights of the estate.
“Who?”
Luca’s breath caught.
A muffled impact sounded through the phone.
Then another voice came on the line.
Soft. Male. Familiar.
“Midnight is still coming, Mrs. Romano.”
The call ended.
Valeria checked the time.
May you like
11:43.
Seventeen minutes left.
