Page 108 of The Last Hope

A few moments later, he waved us forward. The hallway was empty—no guards.

We quickly reached room 627, and we all froze. We didn’t have a key card. How were we supposed to—

Suddenly, the red light on the door lock turned green, and we heard it unlock.

We glanced at each other before Sienna quietly pushed the door open and slipped inside, followed by Sena and then me, while Sasha and Velma remained outside.

The room was dark. We stepped into a small sitting area. Sienna turned on her phone’s flashlight, keeping her knife at the ready, and moved toward the two doors leading to the bedrooms.

A fifty-fifty chance.

She looked at me questioningly, and without thinking, I pointed to the right door. She pushed it open gently and lowered her head, checking inside.

I followed closely as she entered.

The room was still dark.

My baby was afraid of the dark. How could they leave him alone like this ?

I approached the bed but frowned when I saw it was empty. Then, I noticed the light shining from under the bathroom door.

Oh, my angel…

I rushed toward the door, ignoring Sienna’s attempt to stop me and pushed it open—and my heart shattered.

My baby was there, curled up in the bathtub, still wearing the clothes we picked out that morning, a pillow tucked under his head.

I knelt beside the tub and gently ran my fingers through his dark hair, “Angelo mio,” I whispered.

He frowned and buried his face deeper into the pillow, making me smile, “wake up, Rafael,” I murmured again, leaning over to press a kiss to his forehead.

Finally, he blinked awake, his green eyes—so much like mine—meeting mine.

“Mama !” he exclaimed, throwing himself into my arms.

I clutched him tightly, tears spilling down my cheeks despite myself, “I’m here,Angelomio. Just like I promised—I came to get you,” I whispered, kissing him as he nuzzled his nose against my neck.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“Oh, Rafael, I love you too,” I breathed, hugging him even tighter.

“Are you okay,Pulcinomio?” my sister asked, kneeling to ruffle his hair. He nodded and hugged her, and I saw her eyes widen in shock.

She wasn’t used to being shown affection so openly.

“We have three minutes left,” Sena reminded us from the doorway. She was right—time was running out.

I stood and lifted my son into my arms, heading toward the exit with my sister and Sena following.

But just as we passed the doors leading to the bedrooms, the other door swung open—and Alia stepped out in a silk nightgown.

She froze. Her gaze jumped between the four of us, and I saw it click in her brain.

She opened her mouth—probably to scream for her dear cousin— But Sienna pounced on her, knife against her throat.

“Make a single sound, and it’ll be your last, you filthy bitch,” she hissed, her voice dripping with hatred.

Alia’s face filled with horror, and she slowly nodded. “Turn around. Face the wall. We’re leaving.Capisce?”

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