The woman outside
Chapter 44: The Woman Outside
Victoria Moreau was standing in the rain.
For absolutely no reason.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Amara stared at the security monitor.
Then stared harder.
Because the woman wasn't hiding.
Wasn't sneaking around.
Wasn't avoiding cameras.
She was literally walking around the perimeter of the underground hospital carrying an umbrella.
The audacity.
The complete audacity.
Undefeated.
The security room had become crowded.
Immediately.
Engineers.
Security guards.
Captains.
Several people who definitely didn't belong there but were too curious to leave.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Lorenzo stood directly beside Amara.
Watching the monitor.
Silent.
Dangerous.
The king had returned.
A recurring problem.
A very recurring problem.
One captain pointed at the screen.
Nervously.
"What is she doing?"
Silence.
Immediate silence.
Nobody knew.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Victoria paused near one of the loading dock entrances.
Looked up directly into the camera.
Then waved.
The entire room froze.
Immediately.
The betrayal.
The waving-at-security-cameras betrayal.
Undefeated.
Amara blinked.
Once.
Slowly.
The woman was unbelievable.
Truly unbelievable.
"She's annoying."
The statement came automatically.
Without hesitation.
Without mercy.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Lorenzo almost smiled.
Almost.
Because somehow...
That felt like the worst insult Amara could give someone.
A surgeon's version of declaring war.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Then Victoria did something stranger.
She stopped walking.
Pulled out her phone.
And made a call.
Silence.
Immediate silence.
Every person in the room stared.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Amara's phone immediately rang.
Absolute silence.
The room stopped functioning.
Again.
The betrayal.
The dramatic-timing betrayal.
Undefeated.
Amara looked at the caller ID.
Unknown number.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Then she answered.
Because curiosity remained her greatest weakness.
Unfortunately.
"Hello?"
Victoria's voice arrived instantly.
Warm.
Elegant.
Dangerous.
"Good afternoon, Dr. Queen."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Amara looked at the monitor.
Victoria looked directly into the camera.
Smiling.
The complete psychopath.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
"What do you want?"
The answer came immediately.
"I'm trying to save your life."
Silence.
Nobody in the room moved.
Nobody breathed.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Amara narrowed her eyes.
Dangerously.
"Explain."
Victoria sighed.
Slowly.
The universal sound of a woman tired of dealing with idiots.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
"Romano's death didn't stop anything."
A pause.
"It accelerated everything."
Silence.
The room became colder.
Because that wasn't supposed to happen.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Victoria continued.
"The people beneath him are fighting."
Another pause.
"For money."
Another.
"For territory."
Another.
"For revenge."
Silence.
Lorenzo's expression darkened.
Immediately.
Because he already knew.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Power vacuums were messy.
Dangerous.
Deadly.
And Romano's empire had just collapsed.
The specialist looked up at the camera again.
Then said something that made Amara's stomach drop.
"Someone is coming."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The room froze.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Amara adjusted her glasses.
The movement small.
Controlled.
Dangerous.
"Who."
Victoria's smile disappeared.
Instantly.
For the first time since meeting her...
She looked serious.
Actually serious.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
"I don't know."
Silence.
Immediate silence.
That answer somehow felt worse.
Much worse.
Because Victoria Moreau always seemed to know everything.
The realization unsettled everyone.
Especially Lorenzo.
The king stepped forward.
Immediately.
Taking the phone from Amara's hand.
The audacity.
The complete audacity.
"How credible is this?"
His voice came out cold.
Sharp.
Dangerous.
Victoria didn't hesitate.
"Very."
Silence.
The answer landed heavily.
Because she sounded afraid.
Not scared.
Not panicked.
Concerned.
And somehow that was worse.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The specialist glanced over her shoulder.
Toward the street behind her.
Then frowned.
Immediately.
A dangerous sign.
Very dangerous.
Lorenzo noticed.
Of course he did.
"What."
Victoria remained silent for several seconds.
Long enough to become uncomfortable.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Then she said:
"I think they found me."
Absolute silence.
Amara's head snapped toward the monitor.
Immediately.
The security camera showed Victoria lowering her umbrella.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Dangerously.
Then a black SUV turned the corner.
Another followed behind it.
Then another.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The smile vanished from Victoria's face.
Completely.
For the first time...
The specialist looked like prey.
And somewhere deep inside her chest...
Amara realized she didn't like that feeling at all.
End Chapter 44