Chapter 166 – Contingency Plan

Chapter 166 – Contingency Plan
 Fiorella’s POV

I ran. Barefoot, breath cutting through the quiet halls like broken glass.

The map was clutched tight against my chest, wrapped in a sheet I’d ripped from the bed to keep it from smearing with blood. Katarina’s blood.

Her eyes had gone wide right before I hit her.

I didn’t plan it. It just happened.

One second she was shouting my name, the next the statue was in my hand.

The sound still rang in my ears—that dull crack of bone.

For a second, she just stood there, stunned, and then dropped like a puppet with no strings.

I told myself it was her fault. She shouldn’t have followed me.

But every step I took after that, I could smell the blood on my hands.

“Think, Fiorella. Think.”

The corridors stretched forever. My mind spun faster than my feet. If the guards saw me now, it was over. I could already feel the burn of suspicion in every shadow. I turned a corner and almost slipped, steadying myself against the wall.

My room. I had to get back before anyone realized what I’d done. Before Katarina woke up.

I slammed the door behind me and locked it, pressing my back to the wood. My hands were shaking so bad the key nearly fell.

“Okay,” I whispered. “Okay, okay.”

I crossed to the dresser, knelt, and pulled the bottom drawer all the way out. Behind it was a hollow gap I’d found the first week I moved in. I shoved the rolled-up canvas inside, covered it with clothes, and slid the drawer back in place.

“There,” I breathed. “Leverage.”

Every sound made me jump. The old clock in the hall ticked too loud, like a hammer.

I thought I heard footsteps outside and froze, staring at the door.

Nothing. Just my own pulse.

Even the curtains moved weird, like someone was behind them.

I almost laughed. The whole house was starting to feel alive—watching me.

My heart pounded so loud it hurt. If they caught me, at least I wouldn’t go down empty-handed.

“Mama?”

I spun around so fast the lamp almost fell. Suzy stood in the doorway, holding her bear, her eyes wide and sleepy.

“What are you doing up?” I snapped.

“I heard you running,” Suzy said softly. “You look scared.”

I grabbed her shoulders. “Listen to me. I need you to help Mama, okay?”

“Okay,” she said, blinking fast.

“I want you to find Vittorio and Valentino,” I said. “Go sit with them. Talk to them. Smile. Be sweet. Make them like you.”

Suzy frowned. “Why?”

“Because I said so. Do it now.”

“Mama—”

“Now, Suzy!” I hissed. “Go!”

The little girl jumped and ran out, clutching her bear.

I swallowed hard. The guilt hit for half a second—then I buried it. I didn’t have time for softness.

I had minutes. Maybe less.

The men who sent me here had warned me this might happen. If you’re ever compromised, they said, use the contingency.

The supply room.

I rushed down the hallway again, forcing my breathing to stay steady, acting like I belonged. The house was half-awake now—the first signs of dawn stretching through the windows. A guard walked past, nodding at me.

I forced a smile. “Morning.”

He nodded back, bored.

I turned the next corner, heart hammering.

The supply room was small, stacked with mops, buckets, and the sharp scent of bleach. I shut the door behind me and went straight for the bottom shelf—the one with disinfectants.

“There,” I whispered, pushing the bottles aside until I found the one with the mark—a faint “X” scratched near the base.

I lifted it, revealing a loose plank underneath. My hands trembled as I pried it up.

Underneath: a small metal box.

My breath hitched. “Still here.”

I opened it, revealing paper, a small code pen, and a transmitter with a red button.

My instructions came back like ghosts in my head. Hide your information. Write the message. Leave it under the plank. A spy checks daily. Once they read it, we move to extract.

I grabbed the pen and scribbled fast.

CODE 73: COVER BLOWN. MAP SECURED. NEED EXTRACTION. PRIORITY LEVEL ONE.

I folded the note, slipped it inside, and put everything back—exactly as it was.

Then I pressed the plank down, replaced the disinfectant, and stood up, wiping sweat off my forehead.

“Done,” I breathed. “They’ll come for me.”

I took one step toward the door—

And froze.

Voices.

Low, sharp, coming closer.

“Check that room,” someone said.

I held my breath.

The doorknob rattled. I froze, eyes darting to the window.

It was too small to climb through.

The mop bucket. The shelves. Nothing I could use.

Maybe if I ran fast enough—no, I’d never make it.

The handle twisted again.

I backed up slowly, searching for a weapon. My hand brushed a broom handle—useless, but I grabbed it anyway.

I stepped back, gripping the broom like a knife.

My heart was so loud I thought they could hear it from outside.

Then the door opened, slow, like death walking in.

The door swung open.

Vittorio stood there. Eyes cold. Face unreadable.

Beside him, Valentino. Silent.

And between them—Suzy.

My little girl’s cheeks were red from crying, her tiny hand clutched in Vittorio’s grip.

“Mama,” Suzy whimpered. “They asked where you were. I told them you were cleaning…”

My throat went dry.

Behind them, Katarina stood. Blood dried at her temple, her eyes hard and steady.

I didn’t move.

I knew that look.

It was over.

Vittorio’s voice came low, calm, but dangerous. “You want to explain what the hell you were doing in my war room, Fiorella?”

Valentino tilted his head, eyes dark and almost amused. “Or should we call you something else?”

My grip on the broom handle tightened.

My pulse pounded.

I thought of the map hidden in my drawer. The message buried under bleach. The promise of extraction.

Help was coming.

But not fast enough.

Not this time.

And as Katarina’s bloodied face glared back at me—I finally knew I was trapped.