Chapter 147

• Lucia's POV
• Gun barrel dug deep into Victor’s temple. Skin dented cold under metal. Auction hall froze solid.. bidders masked, breaths held tight. Sofia’s sob cut sharp through the silence, her face all tears and pleas. Don’t orphan me. Ryan crawled slow across marble, blood smearing a red trail behind him, his hand reaching shaky for my ankle. Victor’s pulse thumped steady against my finger on the trigger. Calm. Mocking. Like he knew.
• My hand shook bad. Sweat slicked the grip. Eight years old again.. dusty range behind the old house. Victor’s laugh warm in my ear as cans pinged off the fence. “That’s my girl.. blood aims true.” His big hands steadying the rifle on my small shoulder. Praise hit like sunlight, bright and golden. I’d beamed up at him, pigtails whipping in the wind. Dad. Hero.