CHAPTER 4: BEATRICE'S LAST SECRET
CHAPTER 4: BEATRICE'S LAST SECRET
The mansion was no longer silent.
Doctors rushed through the marble hallways carrying medical equipment. Guards sealed every entrance. Staff members stood together in frightened whispers, afraid to look at one another.
Leo carried Lily upstairs himself.
She had fallen asleep against his shoulder, exhausted from the nightmare below.
A nurse gently took her into the guest bedroom.
"I'll stay with her," Mateo said.
Leo nodded.
"Don't let anyone near her."
"No one will."
Without another word, Leo walked toward the library, where the private medical team had turned the room into an emergency treatment area.
Beatrice lay on a leather sofa.
Bandages covered her head and shoulder.
An oxygen mask hid most of her face.
The chief physician stood as Leo entered.
"She has severe internal bleeding."
"Can you save her?"
The doctor hesitated.
"We're trying."
Leo understood.
That meant no.
As the doctor stepped aside, Beatrice slowly opened her eyes.
She recognized him immediately.
"You... found her?"
Leo nodded.
"Lily is safe."
A faint smile appeared on her face.
"Thank God..."
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Finally, Leo pulled a chair beside her.
"You knew."
Beatrice closed her eyes.
"Yes."
"How long?"
"Almost... three years."
Leo stared at her.
"Three years?"
"I found the room... by accident."
Her voice was weak, forcing her to pause after nearly every sentence.
"I heard Lily crying one night."
"I followed the sound."
"I saw Victoria..."
Another painful cough interrupted her.
"...locking the door."
Leo's jaw tightened.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Tears rolled down Beatrice's cheeks.
"I tried."
"What do you mean?"
"The next morning... Victoria told me..."
Her breathing became uneven.
"...that if I said anything..."
"...Lily would disappear forever."
Leo remained silent.
He had spent years building an empire that could destroy governments.
Yet inside his own home, fear had silenced the one person trying to protect his daughter.
Beatrice reached weakly toward the bedside table.
"Drawer..."
Leo opened it.
Inside lay a small envelope stained with blood.
"My insurance," she whispered.
"I kept copies."
Leo removed a flash drive from the envelope.
"No one knows about it."
"It has everything."
"What is everything?"
She looked directly into his eyes.
"The truth."
Before Leo could ask another question, the library doors burst open.
A guard hurried inside.
"Boss!"
"What?"
"We caught someone."
Leo stood immediately.
"Who?"
"A gardener."
"He was trying to escape through the east gate."
"We searched him."
The guard handed Leo a small black phone.
"It contains only one contact."
Leo looked at the screen.
The contact name read:
Architect
His eyes narrowed.
"Where is he?"
"In the security room."
Leo looked back at Beatrice.
"I'll return."
She weakly grabbed his sleeve.
"No..."
He stopped.
"Don't chase..."
"...the little fish."
Her breathing became increasingly shallow.
"Victoria..."
"...the gardener..."
"They're only..."
"...pieces."
"Then who is the player?"
Beatrice's lips trembled.
With the last of her strength, she whispered two words.
"Adrian Keller."
Leo froze.
The same name from the laboratory files.
"Who is he?"
Beatrice tried to answer.
No sound came out.
Her eyes slowly drifted toward the ceiling.
The heart monitor beside her began to beep faster.
Doctors rushed forward.
"Clear the room!"
Leo stepped back as they fought to save her.
Outside the library, he stood motionless.
Minutes passed.
Then the doors opened again.
The chief physician removed his gloves.
"I'm sorry."
Leo looked through the doorway one final time.
Beatrice Miller had died protecting a little girl who wasn't even her own.
For several seconds, the most feared crime boss in Europe said nothing.
Then he quietly turned to the captain of his guards.
"Find everyone who worked in this house during the last six years."
"Every servant."
"Every contractor."
"Every driver."
"Every security guard."
"No exceptions."
The captain nodded.
"And the gardener?"
Leo looked at the black phone in his hand.
"Bring him to the basement."
The captain hesitated.
"The old basement?"
Leo's face remained expressionless.
"No."
"The interrogation room."
As the guards hurried away, Leo glanced once more at the flash drive Beatrice had trusted him with.
Whatever was stored inside...
She had believed it was worth dying to protect.
And somewhere beyond the walls of Rossi Manor, a man named Dr. Adrian Keller was still out there.
Watching.
Waiting.
May you like
And perhaps already planning his next move.
End of Chapter 4
