Chapter 2 The traitor

Kevin Harrison Giordano had the menacing bearing of a man born to command. At twenty-five, he took over his family's business with an iron fist.

The powerful CEO, who secretly ruled the criminal underworld, was married to a young French woman with whom he had fallen madly in love.

The first time he saw Justine Delacroix was at a fashion event, where he accompanied his friend Beatrice to the Dior ready-to-wear, haute couture, and Cruise show.

Instead of supporting his friend, who was walking the runway, Kevin's attention was drawn to a pair of golden eyes. The upturned nose and beautiful smile complemented the delicate features of the fashion design intern, who, at the time, was assisting in the creation and marketing of the brand's clothing and accessories.

That night, Justine wore a red silk dress that fit her body perfectly. The V-neckline showed off her firm breasts, and the slit on the right side of her leg revealed part of her thigh.

Weeks after that event, she was already dating the Italian, who was about 6'3" tall.

One day, Justine feigned surprise when Kevin gave her a sparkling diamond ring during a romantic dinner on the yacht. It wasn't long before she asked him to marry her.

Despite the overwhelming passion that surrounded them, Justine was already showing signs of having a lover after a few months of marriage.

Suspicious, Kevin gave his wife a new cell phone, but before giving her the gift, he installed spyware on the device. Since then, he has been monitoring her every move.

That day, Kevin was filled with rage because he discovered that his wife had taken about seventy thousand euros from their bank account, and after analyzing the images from the cameras in the bedroom where they slept, he saw his wife taking most of the jewelry that was in the safe.

Furious, he left his desk and paced around the office like a caged animal. He ran his long fingers across his forehead as his mind pondered the latest events.

The night before, he had celebrated his first wedding anniversary with his wife at a luxury restaurant in the fashion capital and presented her with a beautiful diamond necklace. When they returned to the mansion, he took her to the garage to show her the red Ferrari 250 GTO with a large white ribbon bow.

"Whose car is this, dear?" Justine asked.

"It's yours, mio amore," the husky, sensual voice replied.

"It's beautiful!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide.

Kevin's muscular arms wrapped around his wife in a warm embrace as he captured her lips and kissed her eagerly.

Instinctively, his mind took him back to the moment when they both reached the second floor of the mansion. Through the wide hallway, he carried his wife in his strong arms until they reached the master suite.

Soon, clothes were scattered on the floor as they made love eagerly.

"Oh, mon Dieu!" The female voice moaned as she felt his large erection sliding into her wetness and thrusting deeper.

Absorbed in his memories, he could still hear Justine's moans echoing in his mind. Kevin remained seated in his office chair when a soft groan escaped his lips. He held the erection that was growing in his black linen pants, but soon after, he shook his head to get rid of the memories that had aroused him.

The CEO's blue eyes refocused on the picture frame with the photo of his wife with long blonde highlights.

Suddenly, the ringing of his cell phone brought him back to the office. He pressed the button, accepting the call.

"Damn, what is it?" Kevin asked.

"We've got your wife," Alessandro said on the other end of the line. "An informant said she was with Andrew Turner in Quarto Oggiaro."

"The detective already told me, damn it." This time, Kevin spoke louder and slammed his clenched fist on the table.

Andrew Turner had done everything he could to destroy his clan's business after his father's death. The Harrison Giordano family empire would soon fall if Kevin didn't have a knack for business.

"Take Justine to the abandoned apartment in Giambellino-Lorenteggio." Kevin gave the order angrily and hung up the phone abruptly.

His long fingers were still smoothing his furrowed brow when he straightened his posture in the tufted back of his armchair.

"That bitch is cheating on me!" He slammed the table again, then picked up the picture frame with his wife's photo.

He took one last look at Justine's photograph before throwing it forcefully on the floor.

Suddenly, the door opened. The tall, slender woman tossed her black locks behind her shoulders as she entered. Beatrice glided gracefully over to the enormous table.

"Need some company, dear?" the sly voice asked.

"I don't want to talk right now, Bia," he grumbled to his friend.

Although the model was beautiful, Beatrice did not attract him the way she wanted her to.

"Calm down, dear," Beatrice said as she positioned herself behind the armchair and rested her hands on Mr. Harrison's broad shoulders. "Relax!"

Beatrice's slender fingers began to massage his tense muscles. A slight smile appeared at the corner of her lips the moment her eyes fell on the cracked glass of the picture frame lying on the floor.

"I always told you your wife was unfaithful," the female voice said.

"That's enough, Bea!" He shouted as he pushed her hands away and stood up abruptly.

Kevin grabbed his black overcoat and put it on. He quickly left the office.

"I hope you teach that traitor a good lesson," Beatrice added as she followed Kevin into the hallway. "Do you want me to go with you, dear?"

"No," Mr. Harrison replied vehemently in a guttural tone.

In the elevator, Kevin pressed the button, and the doors closed.

He ran his hands through his short, straight hair just before stepping out into the parking lot and heading straight for the silver Lamborghini, where the driver was waiting.

As the car pulled out onto the streets of Milan, Kevin ran his hand over the goatee that framed his tense jaw. He couldn't wait to confront his wife and find out what she was doing in his rival's territory.

❛ ━━━━･❪ ❁ ❫ ･━━━❜

Half an hour later, one of the men put a hood over Justine's head, preventing her from seeing where they were taking her.

"Get your hands off me!" Justine struggled to free herself from the men who were holding her.

When they arrived at their destination, she was placed in a chair where her hands and legs were tied with duct tape.

"I'm suffocating!" Her voice came out muffled. "Take this off me..."

With an abrupt movement, someone pulled off the hood. The place was dimly lit, and the few pieces of furniture around were worn out.

Suddenly, the man with the intimidating gaze opened the double doors as soon as he heard the screams.

"Here's the traitor, sir!" Kevin's assistant pointed to the woman tied to the chair.

Justine's red face was bathed in tears.

"Honey, ask this idiot to let me go..." she begged through her tears.

With a simple glance, Kevin made the men in black suits move away from Justine.

"How could you betray me?" Mr. Harrison's inquisitive eyes assessed her.

"No!" Desperate, she began to shake her head. "I never betrayed you, my love."

Her mind and heart were troubled. Her amber eyes focused on the stern face of her ruthless husband.

"Enough!" Kevin's teeth were bared as he shouted. "Don't you dare lie to me again."