Chapter 9 - Exposing the Traitors at Raven Hill
Ten minutes later, the East Wing study was locked from the inside.
The battered laptop sat on the mahogany desk, casting a blue glow across Ronan’s harsh, unblinking face as he watched Julian’s video message for the third time in total silence. His jaw was clenched so tightly I thought his teeth might fracture.
When the video finally ended and cut to black, Ronan didn't move for a long time. A single muscle ticked violently along his jawline.
"Uncle Victor," Ronan whispered, the name tasting like ash and venom on his tongue. "And June... she was his primary informant inside the household staff, leaking my mother's medical schedules and my security rotations."
"They thought they had won," I said softly, standing by the window. "They thought by keeping your mother locked in a drugged, paralyzed state and framing your brother, they could absorb the entire Cain shipping empire piece by piece."
Ronan slowly raised his head, looking at me with an expression I had never expected to see in those storm-gray eyes: profound, staggering respect, mingled with something dangerously warm.
"You carried this across state lines for four years," he said, his voice raw. "You lived in poverty, hiding in a one-room apartment with a six-year-old child, while people hunted for the ghost of Julian Callaway’s girlfriend."
"I protected what mattered most," I replied. "Just like you protect Poppy."
Ronan stood up slowly, walking over until he stood mere inches away from me. The intimidating aura of the mafia boss had vanished, replaced by the dangerous, focused intensity of a man about to wage total war.
"The war ends tonight," Ronan said quietly. "And you and Poppy are never hiding again."
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He pulled out his encrypted satellite phone and dialed a single number.
"Bring Victor and June to the main dining hall," Ronan ordered into the receiver, his voice dropping into the tone of an executioner. "And wake up the entire security detail. It’s time to clean house."
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