Page 129 of Fire and Silk
“Enough!” a voice snaps from behind them.
They freeze. The grip on me loosens, and the men part without another word.
Matteo steps through.
His shirt is open at the collar, gun still visible at his side, eyes unreadable. But he gives a single nod.
“She’s the third heir,” he says flatly. “Unhand her.”
They let go immediately.
I step forward, rage and heartbreak turning my vision to glass, and I slap him. Hard. My palm stings.
He doesn’t flinch. “I deserved that.”
“Where is he?” My voice is raw. My chest won’t stop heaving.
Matteo looks toward the house. “In the study. With them.”
“Take me.”
He bows slightly. “This way.”
He walks fast, but I walk faster. My boots echo against polished stone. The hallways are grand, dark-paneled and cold, filled with the quiet stink of old money and betrayal.
At the carved double doors, he lifts a hand to knock.
I don’t wait.
I raise my foot and kick the door open.
It slams into the wall with a bang.
Four heads turn.
Mina. Maksim. Two suited lawyers.
And him—Severo—seated at the head of the long table, pen in hand, poised above a set of papers. He looks up.
I walk.
Straight to him.
He doesn’t rise. Doesn’t speak. Just watches me like I’m something far away, like he’s already convinced himself I can’t be real.
I reach the table.
His hand twitches at the edge of the paper.
I grab the document—the contract, the betrayal—and tear it in half. The sound rips through the room like thunder.
Gasps behind me.
Then I lift my hand and slap him, hard, across the face.
His jaw shifts with the impact. His head turns. But he doesn’t retaliate. He just stares back at me. And breathing like I’ve just torn something inside him.
Chapter Twenty - One – Severo
