Moonbound: Caught Between Mafia and Mate

Chapter 12: The Face of Betrayal

The air in the hallway seemed to freeze.

Luna's heart thundered in her chest as the figure stepped into the dim light, the soft rustle of their footsteps echoing ominously. Every nerve in her body screamed with disbelief, and her breath caught in her throat as the traitor came into full view.

"Enzo..." Luna whispered, her voice barely audible.

Lorenzo's eyes went wide with shock as he stepped out from his hiding spot, his gun lowering slightly. "Enzo, what the hell are you doing?"

Enzo stood frozen, his hand still outstretched toward the door of the hidden room. For a long moment, no one moved. The betrayal hung thick in the air, a silent accusation that couldn't be taken back.

Luna's mind raced. How could it be Enzo? He had been one of Lorenzo's most trusted men. Loyal. Devoted to the pack. She couldn't reconcile the man she had known with the traitor standing before her.

But the truth was undeniable.

Enzo's face twisted with a mixture of guilt and defiance, his eyes flicking between Luna and Lorenzo. His hand dropped to his side, and the air crackled with the tension of what was about to unfold.

"I had no choice," Enzo finally said, his voice strained. "Matteo... he found out things. About my family. About me. He threatened to destroy everything if I didn't help him."

"You're a coward," Lorenzo spat, his voice cold with fury. "You betrayed your family—your pack—for him?"

Enzo's eyes darkened, and for the first time, Luna saw the desperation in them. "You don't understand, Lorenzo. He had my sister. My niece. I didn't have a choice!"

Luna's heart wrenched at the raw pain in Enzo's voice, but the betrayal still stung deeply. "You could have told us," she said quietly. "We would have helped you."

Enzo shook his head, his eyes full of regret. "I wanted to. But Matteo... he knew everything. Every move I made, he was watching. If I tried to warn you, he would have killed them. I couldn't risk it."

Lorenzo's jaw tightened, his fury barely contained. "So instead, you fed him information about us. You put all of us in danger."

Enzo flinched at the accusation, but he didn't deny it. "I never wanted it to go this far," he said, his voice hoarse. "But once it started... I couldn't stop. I thought I could control it, keep you safe while giving Matteo just enough to keep him from attacking."

"You thought wrong," Lorenzo growled. His gun was raised again, his finger hovering over the trigger. "You should have come to me, Enzo. You were like a brother to me. And now you've ruined everything."

Luna stepped forward, her voice trembling with emotion. "Is this why Matteo wants me? What did you tell him about me, Enzo?"

Enzo's face paled, and he averted his eyes. "I didn't know, Luna. I swear. Matteo was after you before I ever got involved. He's been planning this for years. I didn't understand why, but I swear I never gave him any details about you."

Luna's fists clenched at her sides, anger and sorrow swirling within her. She had trusted Enzo. They all had. And now, everything had been shattered by his betrayal.

"Is your family safe?" she asked quietly, her voice laced with bitterness.

Enzo looked at her, his expression conflicted. "They were. Matteo promised to release them once I gave him what he wanted. But now... I don't know. I haven't heard from him since the last attack."

Lorenzo's hand tightened around his gun, his rage boiling over. "And you thought betraying us would protect them? Matteo doesn't honor his deals, Enzo. He uses people until they're no longer useful, then he discards them."

"I know that now," Enzo said, his voice breaking. "But it's too late."

For a moment, silence fell over the room, heavy with the weight of everything that had been lost. The trust, the loyalty, the bond between pack members—it had all been shattered in the blink of an eye.

Luna's eyes softened with a mixture of pity and frustration. "We have to stop him, Enzo. Whatever Matteo promised you, it's over now. But if you help us, maybe we can still save your family."

Enzo looked up at her, his face etched with guilt. "How? How can I fix this?"

Lorenzo's voice was like ice. "By telling us everything."

A New Plan

They gathered around the table in the war room, the tension still palpable as Enzo began to explain. His voice was steady, but the shame in his eyes was clear.

"Matteo had men watching me," Enzo said, his gaze fixed on the map in front of him. "Every time I met with you, every time we planned something, they were there. I didn't know at first, but they had eyes everywhere."

"How long has this been going on?" Lorenzo asked, his voice low.

"Months," Enzo replied. "It started small. Matteo would ask for information—minor details, nothing that seemed important. But then it escalated. He wanted to know more. Where the weak points were in the estate. How many men we had. He wanted a full picture of everything."

Lorenzo's hands clenched into fists, but he remained silent, letting Enzo continue.

"After a while, I realized I couldn't hide anything from him. He had people on the inside—spies I didn't even know about. I tried to keep things vague, to give him just enough to keep him off our backs, but it wasn't enough."

Luna felt a chill run down her spine. Matteo had been watching them for months, orchestrating everything from the shadows. It made her feel exposed, vulnerable.

"Do you know his next move?" Lorenzo asked, his voice tight with tension.

Enzo hesitated, then nodded. "He's planning another attack. Soon. But this time, it won't be just a raid. He's going to come for you directly, Luna. He's convinced that you're the key to something—something powerful."

Luna's heart raced. The power inside her had been growing stronger, but she still didn't understand what Matteo wanted from her. Why was she so important to him?

"What does he want with me?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Enzo shook his head. "I don't know exactly. He just kept saying that you're special—that your bloodline is tied to something ancient, something that could give him the power he needs to control the entire underworld."

Lorenzo's eyes darkened. "So that's what this is about. He's not just after you, Luna—he's after your power."

Luna's stomach twisted with dread. She had known that Matteo was dangerous, but now it was clear that his ambitions went far beyond simple revenge. He wanted to control her, to use her power for his own twisted purposes.

"We need to stop him," she said, her voice firm. "Whatever he's planning, we can't let him get to me."

Lorenzo nodded, his jaw set with determination. "We will. But we need a plan—a real plan, not just reacting to whatever Matteo throws at us."

Enzo looked up, his eyes filled with guilt and desperation. "I'll help you. I owe you that much."

Luna hesitated for a moment, but then nodded. "We'll need all the help we can get."

Later That Night

The mansion was quiet, the tension from the day's revelations still hanging in the air. Luna sat alone in her room, staring out the window at the dark forest beyond the estate. The moon was just a sliver in the sky, but she could feel its pull, the power inside her still humming beneath her skin.

She had never felt more alone.

The betrayal, the danger, the uncertainty of what was to come—it all weighed heavily on her. But there was something else too. A growing sense of purpose. A strength she hadn't fully understood until now.

She wasn't just a victim in Matteo's game. She was a player—a force to be reckoned with.

And she was ready to fight back.