The Truth Hurts: Part Two: The Twisted Betrayal Duet

Chapter 48

Ilean up against a tree, smothered by darkness and the brush that lines the forest. It gives me the perfect line of sight to D’Angelo’s Mansion, where his party is in full swing. Even though I’m on the other side of the property, I can hear the chattering voices in the distance and the gentle music swaying in the background. Apparently, the Governor didn’t think about perimeter security when he planned this Gala. All of his staff are stationed around the building itself, which has given me the perfect opportunity to navigate the woods on the outskirts and settle into position, ready for Levi’s signal.

Scouting out my surroundings, I take note of everything—from the pristine grass covered in sculptures that lead to a water fountain, to the edge of the forest where a small building sits hidden beyond the trees, barely visible. It’s probably the groundskeeper’s cabin or something.

Right now, I just have to stay here and wait. Though I’d much rather be in the thick of it, this mission calls for a more discreet method. We can’t exactly have the entire guest list of the Gala know what’s going on, which is why Luca and Giovanni will run any interference needed. We don’t want to draw the wrong kind of attention, so they have their own part to play.

I inhale my third cigarette in the past hour, my ass going numb from sitting on the ground for so long. The bandage on my hand itches, but I’m sure that’s more the burn itself. I guess I’m lucky that’s the only injury I came away from the Haze attack.

Rocco has his men stationed around the area, hiding further back in the forest, and I’m sure they’re getting bored waiting around. None of us want to stick around longer than we need to because the longer we’re here, the more attention we’ll draw to ourselves, and there’s only so long I can remain in my position without being noticed.

“Enzo,” Marco’s voice sounds through my earpiece as I use my scope to monitor my surroundings.

“Here.” I drop my cigarette butt to the floor, squashing it under my heel.

“We have the location,” he announces. “D’Angelo said there’s a small building at the edge of the forest.”

I frown, spinning around to view the small compound peeking through the trees. It’s tiny in comparison to the numbers we assumed the Verdis were trafficking, but after their last shipment failed, I suppose they’ve been struggling. That still doesn’t fit the information in my head, though. Using the manifests leaked to us from one of Nico’s contacts, we estimated at least thirty bodies—but the building sitting across from me could probably only house ten people.

“Are you sure?” I confirm, checking my scope again.

“Raf says it’s not far from your position—”

“I see it. But it doesn’t look very big. Want me to check it out?” I ask, pushing up to stand.

“No,” Marco confirms. “There’s an underground level, so Bianchi says to wait for us in case we get any uninvited guests.”

“Copy that,” I reply, crouching back in position. I use the edge of the tree line to conceal me, advancing towards the cabin.

“We’re on our way now.”

I continue weaving through the trees, stopping every so often when I hear the crunch of leaves or the snap of twigs. Silently, I curse the assholes around me because they should be remaining in position. We don’t need to get caught this soon, not when we’re minutes away from completing this task.

After a couple of minutes, I make it to the worn down building. The rusty fence that surrounds it tells me just how unused it is. It doesn’t exactly scream that this is where D’Angelo would hide precious cargo, and my brows furrow in confusion as I try to comprehend the situation. If this is where D’Angelo told Sera the girls were, why isn’t there security? Human Trafficking is a nefarious trade to begin with, but to have it so out in the open, not even attempting to cover yourself, just leaves the Governor exposed.

There’s no way he would risk his position as Governor for the sake of making money in the flesh trade. It’s too dangerous for a man like D’Angelo to just keep some kids on his property, risking his livelihood… for what?

I turn around to see the twins with Sera and Levi following closely behind. Using the shadows to conceal them, they skirt around the edge of the vast lawn, ducking behind the large sculptures and thick bushes. It takes them a couple of minutes to reach the edge of the forest, weaving in and out of the trees until they meet me at the building I previously thought was a groundskeeper’s cabin.

“Are you sure about this?” I repeat.

“This is where D’Angelo said she was,” Sera answers in a whisper.

“And it’s the only other building on the property,” Marco confirms.

I use my scope to track the surrounding areas of the building. It pays to stay alert, and right now, the nagging feeling in my gut is telling me not to ignore it. Something doesn’t feel right.

As I keep watch of the situation, the twins cut through the fence and carefully step towards the single steel door at the side. Sera and Levi go to follow, but I grab Sera’s arm to stop her. “Wait here.”

She yanks her arm away, brows furrowed with irritation. “Not a chance,” she hisses, lifting her gun. “I said I was doing this.”

“I just… I have a bad feeling about this. No guards, no security. It’s like someone knew we were coming.”

Sera blinks back at me, her eyes darting to where Levi has stepped through the fence and is waiting impatiently. “You think D’Angelo planned this?”

I shake my head. “He’s not this smart. I think there’s someone else involved. This could be a trap.”

Her throat bobs as she swallows, her shoulders tensing as she turns her head in thought. We all stand patiently awaiting our next orders. After all, Sera is the one in charge. If she tells me to run into fire, I’ll do it. But I wouldn’t be me without warning her of the weird sensation I’m feeling.

“You have to admit, Sera. This doesn’t make sense,” I add. “Why would the Governor be keeping anyone this close to his property? And without security?”

I can tell by the way she looks at me that she agrees, but I also see how torn she is. We can’t dismiss the idea altogether, but we have to think sensibly. We already knew how weak D’Angelo was as a person. Him giving up information was never going to be an issue for us, but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t lie.

“Have Nico confirm with D’Angelo before we go storming in there,” I plead.

Sera doesn’t need convincing though. With a nod, she looks over at Levi, who immediately pulls his phone out of his pocket. While he talks to Nico about getting more information out of the Governor, I step toward Sera.

“Thank you,” I whisper, cupping her cheek.

“You’re right,” she replies quietly. “D’Angelo isn’t this smart. I just want to get Gabriella back.”

“I know. We will, I promise you that.”

“Nico isn’t answering,” Levi interrupts, concern lacing his voice.

Sera snatches his phone through the fence and hits redial, putting it on loudspeaker. But the ring tone just continues, eventually cutting to voicemail.

That uneasy feeling returns tenfold. I don’t think for one minute Nico has turned on us. He doesn’t have any reason to, not now that Sera has made an agreement with him. But the look in Sera’s eyes tells me that little fact won’t hinder her one bit.

She pushes through the fence, glancing over her shoulder one last time. “It’s worth checking out.”

“Be careful,” I murmur, nodding to Levi at the same time.

As soon as they disappear through the steel door, my stomach twists nervously. This entire plan has gone so smoothly that I’m second-guessing myself. I know we’re all capable of following through on a mission, but this doesn’t feel right.

I pace back and forth, trying to calm my nerves, but the feeling doesn’t go away. I glance at my watch as almost five minutes pass. My pulse starts to quicken. It shouldn’t take this long to clear that tiny building.

Spinning around, I head towards the open gap in the fence, ducking down to step through when a snap of twigs has me shooting upright and aiming my gun into the darkness. But I don’t see a thing, only the shadows of the trees and the soft moonlight peeking through the canopy of leaves.

With a deep breath, I turn back around, clicking my earpiece off and back on. “Marco?” I whisper. “Levi?”

Nothing.

I stare at the gap in the fence, chewing my lip as I decide whether I should join them or keep watch like Sera told me to.

Another snap of twigs has me swinging sideways, my heartbeat pounding in my ears. But it was the wrong move to make.

In a split second, my body is slammed to the ground by another. Air is snatched from my lungs as I try to fight my attacker, kicking my hips up to push them off me, but the guy has the side of my rifle pressed to my throat, cutting off the oxygen and energy from my body.

We struggle against one another, fighting for the upperhand. My assailant throws a jab to my ribs, temporarily knocking the wind from me. I can hold my own on the worst of days, but nothing kicks your ass like the element of surprise.

Our strength is evenly matched as he presses his body weight onto me. My chest constricts and I can feel my face turning redder by the second. As much as I fight, though, it gets harder and harder to see. Spots dance in front of me, warning me that I’m about to pass out, but I refuse to go down without a fight.

I slip my hand out beneath me, letting the gun press harder against my windpipe. But only for a second, which is enough time to grab a handful of dirt and leaves and throw them into my attacker’s face.

One hand lifts to wipe his eyes as he groans, giving me enough room to maneuver out of his grip and land a fist into his ribs. He sways a little, but his weight is still pinning me to the ground, so I use my other hand to grab my rifle and swing my leg over the assailant”s neck and pull him backwards. In one swift move, I roll forward as he falls on his back, wheezing and spluttering as I pin him down, my knee digging into the man’s chest. Pointing the barrel of my rifle at his face, I watch the realization flash before his eyes. There’s no time for mercy in this game, though. You live or you die fighting, and this man just met his match.

With my finger on the trigger, I squeeze without remorse. The explosive bang rings through the forest, blood spraying outwards and upwards as the man’s skull shatters from the close proximity. I don’t recognize him—not that I could now, anyway. But that fact only confirms my suspicions of someone else pulling the strings in this operation.

I tap my earpiece once more, trying to call for Levi or one of the twins, but I get no response. Pushing up from the dead man, I kneel down to search his pockets. Anything that can identify who this asshole is will help us.

Only I don’t get very far.

My head takes the impact of what I can assume is the butt of a gun. My body hits the ground as I roll into a daze. My vision starts to cloud as my pulse pounds in my eardrums like a goddamn kick drum. The blur of a man standing over me steals my last breath, but it doesn’t last.

My face takes another smack before the darkness swallows me up.