Chapter 301: The Trap

A memory surfaced in Artemio’s mind.

Years ago, deep inside a forest, he found Arnold Garces hiding in a cave.

And he found Lara there too. She was just a toddler back then.

The moment Artemio saw her, something inside him had jolted.

For one fleeting second, he had thought he was looking at Madeline.

The resemblance was startling—the delicate features, the shape of her eyes. But Lara was painfully thin, her face gaunt from hunger, her clothes soiled from days of living like a fugitive. Dirt streaked her skin, and tangled strands of hair clung to her face.

She looked nothing like her mother, the sweet and charming woman Artemio remembered.

But there had been something about her eyes. Something that had made him look twice.

At the time, however, his attention had been consumed by the man standing between them.

Arnold Garces.

The bastard responsible for the deaths of his wife and eldest son.

Artemio attacked him without hesitation.

The two men fought violently inside the cramped cave, their bodies crashing against the rough stone walls as their grunts and furious shouts echoed through the darkness.

Arnold fought desperately, but he was already at the end of his strength. He had been running for days with barely any food or rest. His movements were sluggish, his breathing ragged, and every blow from Artemio seemed to drain what little strength remained in him.

In a corner of the cave, little Lara sat huddled against the cold stone wall.

She was too young to understand what was happening.

All she knew was that the loud noises frightened her.

Her small face was streaked with tears as she whimpered from hunger, her little hands rubbing at her eyes. Every time the men slammed against the wall, she was startled and began crying harder, her tiny body trembling with each deafening crash.

She had been hungry for so long that even crying seemed to exhaust her.

Then Artemio seized his opening.

He slammed Arnold against the cave wall with enough force to make the stones tremble. Before Arnold could recover, Artemio wrapped an arm around his throat and tightened his grip.

Arnold’s eyes widened as the air was squeezed from his lungs.

From the corner, Lara’s frightened sobs continued to echo through the cave.

Arnold clawed at his forearm, struggling for air.

"Kill me," he rasped through gritted teeth, "and the secret of your involvement with our organization will be exposed."

Artemio’s eyes narrowed.

Arnold continued, a crooked smile appearing despite the arm crushing his throat.

"I know you’ve been tracking me for days. So before I disappeared, I uploaded your name, your position, and your role in the organization."

Artemio’s grip tightened.

"I couldn’t log in every two days, so I arranged for the information to be published automatically. If I don’t stop it, everything will be released on major social media platforms."

Artemio froze.

This damn bastard.

Even half-dead, Arnold had managed to think several moves ahead.

No wonder he had aced their reconnaissance examination in the military academy.

He had always been cunning.

And that was precisely what made him so dangerous.

"The deaths of your wife and child were an accident," Arnold choked out. "They weren’t the target."

Artemio’s expression darkened.

"The target was the other woman."

His blood ran cold.

He was talking about Madeline.

Arnold was trying to kill Madeline. It wasn’t simply threatening her.

Artemio’s fingers tightened around his throat until Arnold’s face began turning red.

How dare he?

Between his wife and Madeline, there was never even a choice.

He would have chosen his Maddie. Every single time.

Arnold tried to speak, but only a strained, high-pitched wheeze escaped his crushed throat.

His hands weakened. His knees buckled.

Artemio could have ended his life then.

Part of him wanted to. But just before Arnold lost consciousness, Artemio abruptly released him.

Arnold collapsed to the ground, coughing violently as he dragged air into his lungs.

For several moments, he could do nothing but gasp.

Then Artemio spoke.

"I have an offer for you."

Arnold slowly lifted his head.

He was still coughing, one hand pressed against his throat as he stared warily at the man standing over him.

"What offer?" Arnold asked in a strained voice.

"Work for me."

Arnold’s eyes narrowed.

"I can give you a new identity," Artemio continued. His voice was calm, almost indifferent.

"A clean life. You won’t have to spend the rest of your days hiding in forests and caves like a hunted animal."

Arnold’s jaw tightened at the insult.

Like a rat.

He hated the comparison. But what choice did he have? He couldn’t return to his family.

He had already brought disgrace upon them. If he went back, the people hunting him would only endanger them further.

So Arnold accepted.

Artemio arranged everything.

A new identity. A new face.

Plastic surgery erased the features by which he had once been recognized, and when Arnold finally emerged from his recovery, the man staring back at him in the mirror was almost a stranger.

For a while, he believed he had been given a second chance.

He was wrong.

Years later, Arnold would realize that accepting Artemio’s offer had been the greatest mistake of his life.

He watched from the shadows as Anton Trillo and the other officers who had rebelled against Artemio rose from the ashes.

They became successful. Rich. Powerful.

They built lives for themselves while Arnold remained trapped beneath the identity Artemio had given him.

Just how many adored Anton Trillo?

He even won a seat in congress when ran for the first time. And when his term ended, he ran for senator and won an overwhelming victory.

And then Arnold discovered just how carefully Artemio had planned his future.

While Arnold was recovering from surgery, Artemio had assigned his cousin to look after him.

She was young, beautiful, warm, and attentive.

She made sure he never felt alone.

She listened to his frustrations. She cared for him when he was weak. She slowly became the one person he trusted.

And eventually, Arnold fell in love with her.

Artemio seemed delighted.

When Arnold asked for permission to marry her, Artemio readily gave his blessing.

It seemed like a gift. A family...

A woman who loved him. A chance to finally belong somewhere.

It was too late when Arnold realized it had been a trap.

Because Arnold’s new wife wasn’t merely Artemio’s cousin.

She was utterly loyal to him.

Every word Arnold spoke to her, every doubt he confessed, every secret he revealed during intimate moments in the privacy of their home...

Eventually found its way back to Artemio.

Arnold had believed he escaped the organization and was given a new lease at life.

In truth, he had never escaped at all.

Artemio had simply changed the shape of his prison.