Chapter 5 - The Woman Who Knew the TruthGunfire tore through the cemetery.
Leo fired first.
A man dropped behind a gravestone.
Marcus returned fire from the other side.
Natasha crouched beside a tree, hands over her head.
"Stay down!"
Leo's voice.
Then another gunshot.
Marcus shouted.
Natasha looked up.
Blood spread across Marcus's shoulder.
Leo dragged him behind a marble angel.
"He's hit."
"I know."
"What do we do?"
"Run."
Leo grabbed Natasha's hand.
They sprinted through the cemetery.
A bullet struck the gravestone beside her.
They reached an old maintenance shed.
Leo kicked the door open.
Inside was darkness.
He locked it.
Then turned toward Natasha.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
The papers were still inside her coat.
The impossible truth sat between them.
Leo broke the silence.
"The test."
Natasha nodded.
"Who ordered it?"
"I don't know."
"Carlo?"
"Maybe."
"Why?"
"To prove who my father was."
Leo looked at her stomach.
Then away.
"You never knew."
"No."
"Your mother never told you."
"No."
"Then why were they coming for you?"
Natasha pulled out the last document.
"There was a note."
She read it.
The Volkov daughter carries the last legitimate claim to the Chicago empire.
Leo stared.
"Legitimate claim?"
Natasha shook her head.
"I don't know."
He did.
She could see it in his face.
"What?"
"Viktor had a bloodline agreement."
"With whom?"
"My grandfather."
Leo's expression darkened.
"Before I was born, Viktor negotiated succession."
"Succession to what?"
"The organization."
Natasha looked at him.
"That's impossible."
"No."
He crouched.
"My father wasn't supposed to disappear."
He looked toward the dark window.
"He was supposed to inherit."
A shadow crossed the glass.
Leo raised his gun.
The window shattered.
A man fired.
Leo pushed Natasha down.
The shot struck his shoulder.
Natasha screamed.
He fell against the wall.
"Leo!"
"I'm fine."
Blood soaked his shirt.
He returned fire.
The attacker vanished.
Natasha stared at Leo's shoulder.
"You've been shot."
"I noticed."
"You need a doctor."
"Not one connected to my family."
"Why?"
"Because there's a traitor inside."
A car engine started outside.
Leo checked the door.
"We're leaving."
They escaped through a tunnel beneath the shed.
It led to an abandoned train platform.
Natasha followed, breathless.
"Where are we going?"
"Someone I trust."
Minutes later they entered a small apartment above a closed bakery.
An elderly woman opened the door.
She stared at Natasha.
Then at Leo.
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Elena."
Natasha stopped.
"My mother?"
The woman nodded.
"I knew her."
"Where is she?"
"Dead."
Natasha's knees nearly gave way.
"No."
"She died eleven years ago."
Leo looked at the woman.
"Who killed her?"
The woman stared at him.
"Your uncle Carlo."
Natasha's blood ran cold.
"Why?"
"Because Elena discovered the truth about Viktor."
"What truth?"
The woman looked at Leo.
"Viktor wasn't your father."
Leo's face went blank.
"What?"
The woman whispered.
"Your father was Carlo."
Silence.
Natasha felt the room tilt.
The woman continued.
"Viktor was only a cover."
Leo stepped toward her.
"You're lying."
"I wish I were."
"DNA?"
"I have records."
She pulled out a folder.
"Carlo had you tested as a child."
Leo opened it.
His hands trembled.
Natasha watched him read.
Then the woman said quietly:
"That isn't even the worst part."
Leo looked up.
"What?"
The woman looked at Natasha's stomach.
"Carlo knew about your child."
Natasha froze.
"He knew?"
"He knew before he died."
"How?"
The woman smiled sadly.
"Because he was the one who ordered the test."
Leo stared.
"Why would he care about her baby?"
The woman lowered her voice.
"Because that child is the legal heir Carlo spent thirty years trying to create."
Leo's expression became murderous.
"Who else knows?"
The woman answered.
"Everyone who is trying to kill you."
Then the lights went out.
A phone began ringing in the dark.
Natasha recognized the ringtone.
It was Leo's private line.
He answered.
May you like
A distorted voice whispered:
"Congratulations, cousin."
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