Silence fell over the room like a blade.
No one moved.
No one breathed.
Adrian's words still hung in the air.
"I was invited to join them."
Every pair of eyes shifted between him and Marco.
Marco's grip on my hand tightened slightly, but his face remained calm, really too calm. The kind of calm that meant something dangerous was coming.
The silver-haired man at the table frowned deeply.
"Adrian," he said slowly, "this is not the time for jokes."
Adrian leaned back comfortably in his chair.
"Who said I was joking?"
A cold tension filled the room.
Marco finally spoke.
"Explain."
Adrian smiled faintly.
"A group of your enemies approached me a few weeks ago," he said. "They believe your time at the top is coming to an end."
A murmur spread across the table.
Marco didn't react.
"And what did you tell them?" he asked.
Adrian's eyes glinted.
"I told them I'd think about it."
The silver-haired man slammed his hand against the table.
"You were approached to betray this council and you didn't report it?"
Adrian shrugged.
"I was curious."
"That's not curiosity," the woman at the table said sharply. "That's treason."
Adrian's smile faded slightly.
"Careful with that word."
Marco stepped forward slowly.
The room seemed to shrink as he moved.
"And yet," Marco said calmly, "you're telling us this now."
"Yes."
"Why?"
Adrian's gaze flicked toward me.
"Because the situation changed."
My stomach tightened at his words because the situation has really changed.
Marco noticed the look immediately.
"What does she have to do with this?"
Adrian folded his hands together.
"Everything."
The room grew tense again.
Adrian continued.
"The people who contacted me mentioned something very specific," he said. "A woman who was digging into their operations."
My heart skipped.
Marco's grip tightened again.
Adrian smiled faintly.
"Imagine my surprise when that same woman suddenly appears here… as your fiancée."
The realization spread across the room like wildfire.
They knew about me.
Or at least… they knew of me.
Marco's voice dropped to a dangerous whisper.
"You're saying my enemies were already watching her."
"Yes."
"And you didn't warn me."
Adrian shrugged again.
"I didn't think she'd survive long enough for it to matter."
Marco moved so fast I barely saw it.
His hand slammed against the table inches from Adrian's face.
The sound echoed through the room.
Every guard in the building probably heard it.
Adrian didn't flinch.
But the tension between them felt like a loaded gun.
"You're playing a dangerous game," Marco said quietly.
Adrian's smile returned, thinner now.
"I always do."
Before Marco could respond, a loud crack exploded somewhere above us.
Gunfire.
Everyone froze.
Then chaos erupted.
Another shot shattered one of the tall windows behind the council table.
Glass rained across the floor.
"Sniper!" someone shouted.
Marco instantly pulled me down behind the table.
More shots fired.
The guards rushed toward the windows, weapons drawn.
"Everyone down!" Enzo's voice roared from the doorway.
He had already pulled out his gun.
The room exploded into movement.
The council members ducked for cover while the guards scanned the surrounding buildings.
My heart pounded wildly.
"They found us," I whispered.
Marco shook his head.
"No."
Another bullet shattered the wall behind us.
"This wasn't random."
Enzo rushed over.
"Shooter on the rooftop across the street," he said quickly. "My men are moving in."
Marco's eyes darkened.
"They attacked during the council meeting."
"Yes."
Which meant something terrifying.
Someone had leaked the meeting location.
The sniper fired again.
This time the bullet struck the table inches from Adrian's hand.
He stared at the mark silently.
Marco noticed.
"Interesting," Marco said.
Adrian slowly looked up.
"You think they're targeting me?"
Marco's voice was ice.
"I think someone here invited them."
The room went silent again.
The implication was clear, the traitor might not just be working with Marco's enemies.
They might have helped plan this attack.
Another voice spoke quietly.
Mine.
"The shooter isn't aiming at any of you."
Everyone looked at me.
I pointed toward the bullet holes.
"They're not shooting randomly," I said. "They're trying to scare you."
Enzo frowned.
"Why would they do that?"
I looked at Marco.
"To send a message."
Marco's expression slowly darkened.
"They're testing our defenses."
Another shot fired.
This one struck the wall behind Marco.
But something about the angle caught my attention.
The bullet hole was slightly lower than the others.
Too low for a rooftop shot.
My stomach dropped.
"Marco," I whispered urgently.
"What?"
"The sniper isn't on the rooftop."
He frowned.
"What do you mean?"
I pointed toward the broken window.
"The angle is wrong."
Enzo's eyes widened.
"Then where—"
Before he finished the sentence—
A gunshot exploded from inside the room.
One of the guards collapsed instantly.
Blood spread across the marble floor.
Screams erupted around the table.
Someone inside the council chamber had just opened fire.
And suddenly…
The enemy wasn't outside the building anymore.
They were already in the room.