Page 39 of Auctioned Innocence (Bonds of Betrayal #3)

“He’s lying,” I whisper, the betrayal wrapping around my throat like a noose. “He’s been feeding them our positions while misdirecting us about theirs. James knows every detail of our security protocols, every weakness in our defenses.”

Understanding dawns in Marco’s eyes—the same sick realization I'm having. James Burton, his head of security for five years, the man he trusted with family safety, with my protection, with the most sensitive operational details—he’s been working with Lorenzo this entire time.

“How long?” Marco asks quietly, but rage crackles underneath.

I dig through the logs, my fingers flying as I trace James’s access patterns over the past months. What I find makes my heart sputter.

“Since before the auction,” I report, the scope of the betrayal becoming clear. “He’s been logging our movements, documenting our capabilities, reporting our plans. Every security meeting, every tactical decision, every protective detail—Lorenzo’s known about all of it.”

“Son of a bitch,” Dante growls, already moving to secure additional weapons.

Before any of us can react, the first explosion rocks the building above us. The reinforced ceiling shudders, dust raining down as Lorenzo’s forces begin their coordinated assault on our home.

“North gate breach!” There’s unmistakable glee in James’s voice, the pretense finally dropped. “Multiple hostiles, requesting immediate backup!”

“That’s not the north gate,” Dante says sharply, already reading the displays that show the real point of attack. “They’re hitting us from three sides simultaneously. Using our own communication system to coordinate while feeding us false intelligence about their positions.”

More explosions, closer now. The hidden command center’s defenses are holding, but I can hear the methodical destruction happening above us as Lorenzo’s forces implement the attack plan James helped them develop.

“Move!” Marco shoves me toward the emergency exit as the sound of automatic weapons fire echoes through the reinforced walls. “Get her out?—”

“No!” I break free, grabbing my laptop and the portable drive containing all our intelligence. “I can shut down their access completely. Cut off James’s ability to coordinate with them, blind their intelligence gathering, turn their own tactics against them. I just need two minutes.”

“Sofia—” Both men start to protest, their protective instincts overriding their senses.

“Trust me!” I meet their eyes, seeing fear and love and respect warring in their expressions. “This is what I do. This is what I’m good at. Let me use it.”

A silent understanding passes between them, old loyalty overriding new conflicts. Then, as one, they move to defensive positions that will cover me while I work, their differences forgotten in the face of immediate danger.

I dive back into the system, my fingers flying across the keyboard as I build the most sophisticated cyberattack of my life.

Not just defensive measures now, but an active counter strike.

I’m going to turn Lorenzo’s own network against him, use James’s access to feed them false information, and create chaos in their coordinated assault.

The work requires every technique I know, every trick I learned during sleepless nights in college and running cons in hostile territories. I’m not just hacking systems—I’m conducting digital warfare.

I’m almost through Lorenzo’s primary firewall when the distinctive crack of a sniper round echoes through the command center. The sound is impossibly loud in the enclosed space, followed immediately by the spider-web fracturing of reinforced glass.

“Get down!”

Dante slams into me as the bulletproof window explodes inward, safety glass raining down like deadly confetti. We hit the ground hard, my laptop skittering across the floor as I struggle to breathe with Dante’s weight pressing me into the concrete.

When I look up, Marco is staggering backward, blood blooming across his shoulder like a crimson flower. His face is white with shock and pain, but he’s still returning fire with his good arm, using his body to shield us from the sniper’s position.

“Marco!” I scream, terror and rage coursing through me in equal measure. This is my brother, my protector, the man who’s always stood between me and danger.

“I’m fine!” he shouts back, though he struggles to aim and apply pressure to his bleeding wound at the same time. “Keep working! We need those systems back under our control!”

The sight of my brother’s blood sends something cold and deadly flowing through my veins. Not panic this time, not fear, but crystalline focus. These bastards hurt my family. They violated our home. They think they can break us with violence and betrayal.

They’re about to learn exactly how wrong they are.

I grab my laptop, ignoring the cuts on my hands from the broken glass, and plug back into the system with renewed determination. My fingers blur over the keys.

“No more running,” I mutter to myself. “No more hiding. No more letting them hurt the people I love.”

The security system comes back under our control in a cascade of green lights and restored feeds. But I don’t stop there. I keep pushing, infiltrating Lorenzo’s communication networks, James’s personal systems, even the coordination protocols Viktor’s men are using.

Within minutes, I can see everything—their real positions, their actual numbers, their true strategy, their escape routes, their backup plans. And more importantly, I can start feeding them false information, creating confusion in their ranks, turning their coordination into chaos.

“What now?” Marco asks through gritted teeth, applying field dressings to his wound while maintaining his position. Despite the blood loss, his eyes are clear and focused, the sharp mind that’s kept our family alive for years already planning our counterattack.

I meet Dante’s eyes across the command center, seeing my own resolve reflected in those slate-gray depths. See the love and fierce protectiveness that’s driven him to risk everything for me. See the absolute trust that tells me he’ll follow me into hell if that’s what it takes.

“Now?” I smile without humor. “Now we show them exactly what happens when they hurt my family. When they violate our home. When they think they can destroy us.”

I turn back to my keyboard, fingers dancing across the keys as I prepare to unleash everything I’ve learned about digital warfare.

“Lorenzo thinks he knows me. Thinks he understands what I’m capable of.

James thinks his betrayal gives them an insurmountable advantage.

” My voice carries absolute certainty as I watch our enemies’ coordination begin to crumble under my digital assault.

“They’re both about to discover something really fucking important. ”

“What rose from those ashes,” I continue, my smile turning gleeful as I take complete control of their communication systems, “is something they’re not prepared for.”

I look at my wounded brother, at the man I love, and at the command center that represents everything our family has built over generations.

Lorenzo wants war?

Let’s give him war.

But this time, we’re fighting it on my terms.