The Dead Man’s Secret
1236 Words
The room fell into a suffocating silence.
“The man who hired the girl… was just found dead.”
The words echoed like a gunshot.
For a moment, no one moved.
Then every pair of eyes slowly turned toward me.
My chest tightened painfully.
“I didn’t kill anyone,” I said quickly, my voice barely steady.
No one laughed.
No one reassured me.
Instead, the tension in the room grew even thicker.
At the center of it all stood Lorenzo De Santis, his dark gaze fixed on the guard who had delivered the news.
“Explain,” Lorenzo said calmly.
The guard swallowed.
“He was found in his apartment fifteen minutes ago. Shot once in the head.”
A murmur spread through the men at the table.
Execution-style.
Lorenzo’s expression didn’t change.
“Name?”
“Marco Bellini.”
My stomach dropped.
The name meant nothing to me.
But judging by the reaction around the room, it meant something to them.
One of the men slammed his hand on the table.
“Bellini worked with Romano’s crew!”
Romano.
The name I had mentioned earlier.
The name that had nearly gotten me killed.
My head began spinning.
“I don’t know any Marco Bellini,” I said desperately.
But the words sounded weak even to my own ears.
Because suddenly, the situation looked very bad for me.
Someone had hired me.
Someone connected to Lorenzo’s enemies.
And now that man was dead.
Which meant one terrifying thing.
I was the only link left.
Lorenzo’s gaze shifted back to me.
Slow.
Assessing.
Dangerous.
“You see the problem, cara?” he said quietly.
My throat tightened.
“Yes.”
“And?”
“And it looks like I was set up.”
His lips curved slightly.
“Good.”
I blinked.
Good?
“You’re starting to understand.”
One of the men stepped forward.
“Boss, we can’t keep her here. She could be bait.”
“Or a spy,” another added.
“Or both.”
The room erupted into overlapping arguments.
“Enough.”
Lorenzo didn’t raise his voice.
But the single word instantly silenced everyone.
His eyes remained on me.
“You said you were hired,” he said.
“Yes.”
“By who?”
“I don’t know.”
His eyebrow lifted.
“You took a job from a stranger?”
“Yes.”
The disbelief around the room was obvious.
“I needed the money,” I admitted quietly.
That part, at least, was the truth.
“How much were you paid?”
“Five thousand.”
Several men whistled softly.
“For delivering an envelope?” someone muttered.
“That’s exactly what I said!” I snapped.
Lorenzo watched me carefully.
Then he took a slow step closer.
My heart began racing again.
Every time he got near me, the air seemed to change.
Thicker.
Hotter.
Dangerous.
“You’re either incredibly unlucky,” he said softly…
“Or incredibly important.”
“I’m neither.”
His gaze dropped briefly to the diamond ring still on my finger.
The sight made my stomach twist.
“That remains to be seen.”
Before I could respond, the guard spoke again.
“There’s something else.”
Lorenzo glanced at him.
“What?”
“We searched Bellini’s apartment.”
“And?”
The guard hesitated.
“Your name was written on the wall.”
My blood ran cold.
“What?”
The room exploded again.
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Was he sending a message?”
“Or setting a trap?”
But Lorenzo didn’t speak.
He simply stared at me.
Hard.
Unblinking.
“I swear I didn’t do anything!” I said quickly.
“Then why,” Lorenzo asked quietly, “would a dead man leave my name behind?”
“I don’t know!”
Silence stretched between us.
Long.
Heavy.
Then Lorenzo suddenly grabbed my wrist.
My breath caught.
He pulled me toward the table where the photograph still lay.
The same picture that had come out of the envelope earlier.
The surveillance image of me standing outside the subway station.
Lorenzo picked it up and held it beside my face.
“Tell me something, Alina.”
My heart hammered.
“Yes?”
“Why would someone take a picture of you… before sending you to me?”
“I don’t know!”
“Think carefully.”
Panic surged through my chest.
“I’ve never even heard of you before tonight!”
His eyes narrowed slightly.
“Another lie.”
“I’m not lying!”
But even as I said it, doubt crept into my mind.
Because the truth was…
Something about tonight felt wrong.
Too many coincidences.
Too many strange details.
Then suddenly
A memory surfaced.
Small.
Almost insignificant.
But now it felt terrifying.
“There was a man,” I said slowly.
Lorenzo’s attention sharpened instantly.
“What man?”
“The one who gave me the job.”
“You said you didn’t know him.”
“I didn’t.”
“Then?”
“He… he said something.”
“What?”
My pulse pounded louder.
“He told me if anyone asked who hired me…”
The room seemed to hold its breath.
“…I should say Romano.”
Several men cursed.
Lorenzo’s jaw tightened.
“Why?”
“I don’t know!”
His eyes searched my face.
For lies.
For fear.
For anything that might reveal the truth.
Then suddenly
His phone buzzed.
The sound cut through the room like a blade.
One of his men answered it quickly.
A few seconds passed.
Then the color drained from his face.
“Boss…”
Lorenzo’s expression darkened.
“What now?”
The man lowered the phone slowly.
“You’re not going to like this.”
“Try me.”
The man swallowed.
“The police just released Bellini’s security footage.”
“And?”
My heart began racing again.
The man turned the phone around.
The screen faced Lorenzo.
But from where I stood…
I could see it too.
The image showed the hallway outside Bellini’s apartment.
A timestamp from earlier tonight.
The door opened.
Someone stepped inside.
My breath caught.
Because the person entering the apartment…
Looked exactly like me.
Same hair.
Same clothes.
Same face.
My knees nearly gave out.
“That’s not me,” I whispered.
But the evidence was right there.
Clear.
Undeniable.
The woman in the video walked into the apartment.
Two minutes later…
A gunshot echoed in the recording.
Then the woman walked back out.
Calm.
Unhurried.
And the camera caught her face clearly.
My face.
The room went deathly quiet.
Lorenzo slowly turned toward me.
His dark eyes colder than I had ever seen them.
“You’re right about one thing, cara.”
My stomach twisted painfully.
“What?”
“You were set up.”
Relief flickered
Until he added quietly:
“But the question is…”
He stepped closer.
Close enough that I could feel the heat of his body again.
“…why would someone go through so much trouble…”
His fingers lifted my chin again.
“…to frame my wife for murder?”
My breath stopped.
Because suddenly…
I realized something even worse than being framed.
Someone out there looked exactly like me.
And they had just started a war between me and the most dangerous man in the city.
- Writer
