# CHAPTER 14 — TERESA’S WARNING
Teresa stood in Kiara’s bedroom with blood on her collar.
Her gray hair had been cut unevenly, and bruises circled one wrist.
Bruno aimed his weapon at her.
“Hands where I can see them.”
Teresa raised both hands.
“I did not poison him.”
“The camera shows you moving the glass,” Bruno said.
“They had Michael.”
“Who?”
“I never saw his face.”
“The man with the wolf cufflink?”
Teresa nodded.
“He came to me three weeks ago. He showed me videos of my son in a locked room.”
“Why didn’t you tell us?” Alejandro asked.
“Because the first video showed Michael beside Daniel Carter’s body.”
Mara covered Emma’s ears.
Teresa continued.
“The man said he knew where Mara lived. He knew Emma’s school. He knew which foods could stop her breathing.”
Mara’s face hardened.
“What did he make you put in the wine?”
“A sleeping medication.”
Dr. Reed stepped forward.
“Your vial contained concentrated allergen.”
“No. I checked it.”
“How?”
“I put one drop on my skin. I have the same nut allergy as Alejandro, though less severe. Nothing happened.”
Alejandro looked at Reed.
“Then someone switched the vial after Teresa tested it.”
Teresa nodded.
“I placed the harmless vial in the wine cabinet. When the man came to the study, he used another bottle.”
“Why did you move the glass?”
“He told me Michael would die if Alejandro did not drink before 4:40.”
“What happens at 4:40?”
Teresa looked toward Matteo.
“He knows.”
Matteo’s face became rigid.
“I know nothing.”
Teresa laughed bitterly.
“You signed the trust.”
Alejandro turned.
“What trust?”
Matteo remained silent.
Teresa reached inside her coat.
Bruno warned her not to move.
She slowly produced a folded document.
Before she could hand it to Alejandro, the bedroom window shattered.
Teresa fell backward.
Mara pulled Emma to the floor.
Bruno fired toward the trees outside.
The shooter disappeared behind the eastern wall.
Dr. Reed pressed both hands against Teresa’s shoulder.
The bullet had passed through, but she was bleeding heavily.
Alejandro crouched beside her.
“What trust?”
Teresa struggled to speak.
“Your father created it.”
“For Kiara?”
“For whoever legally controls Kiara.”
“What happens at 4:40?”
“If you die…”
Teresa coughed.
“…your voting power transfers automatically.”
“To whom?”
Her eyes moved toward someone standing behind Alejandro.
Fear spread across her face.
“You.”
The lights went out.
A second gunshot sounded inside the room.
When the emergency lights returned, Teresa was unconscious.
May you like
Matteo was gone.
On the floor where he had stood was a Moretti crest ring covered in blood.
