Chapter 7 - The Cornered Rat
It was a cold Tuesday evening in December when the peace shattered. I was sitting in the living room of the brownstone, sketching nursery designs in a leather-bound notebook, when the power cut out abruptly, plunging the three-story house into total darkness.
Downstairs, the sharp crack of a shattered patio door echoed through the hallway, followed immediately by the muffled thud of a silenced gunshot.
Panic seized me, sharp and paralyzing. My instinct screamed at me to run, but my body felt heavy with the early exhaustion of pregnancy. I dropped to my knees behind the heavy oak sofa, pulling my phone from my pocket with trembling fingers. Before I could dial Marco’s speed dial, footsteps bounded up the carpeted stairs—fast, erratic, and heavy.
A silhouette appeared in the doorway, illuminated by the streetlights filtering through the sheer curtains. The man was breathing heavily, his clothes disheveled, a heavy black pistol clutched in his right hand. When he stepped into the ambient glow, my breath hitched in my throat.
It was Graham.
He had escaped during a transport transfer between the metropolitan detention facility and the federal courthouse. His face was gaunt, bruised, and covered in stubble, his eyes wild with the manic fever of a man who knew his life was already over.
""I knew he would put you here,"" Graham rasped, his voice ragged as he raised the weapon, pointing it into the dark room. ""Come out, Nina! Come out right now, or I swear to God I'll burn this house to the ground with you inside it!""
I held my breath, pressing my back against the sofa, my hand shielding my stomach.
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""You took everything from me!"" he screamed, knocking over an antique floor lamp that shattered against the hardwood. ""My money, my firm, my freedom! Victoria rolled on me, the Morettis put a bounty on my head, and you're sitting in this palace playing the blushing mother! You think Bellini loves you? You think you're safe? You're nothing! You are a signature on a paper wall, and tonight I'm tearing the wall down!""
He rounded the corner of the sofa. His wild eyes locked onto mine. A sickening grin spread across his face as he leveled the barrel directly at my chest. ""Say goodbye, Nina.""
