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I call out, “Eddie?” My voice sounds foreign in this place of desolation. No answer.
I smell the blood before I see him.
Eddie, lying motionless in a pool of his own blood, his lifeless eyes staring at nothing. A cold fury settles over me, mingling with a piercing grief.
“Damn it,” I curse under my breath, my voice breaking the haunting silence. This was a setup, a message meant for me, and I walked right into it. There’s a knife pinning a note straight into his chest.
I pull out the blade, unfolding the note and reading it quickly.
You think I don’t know who turns rat in my organization? Where’s your wife, Alessandro? Tick tock.
The realization hits me like a physical blow, a gut punch that leaves me reeling. My need to control has blinded me, led me straight into this trap. Leaving Jess alone, vulnerable, is a mistake I can’t forgive myself for.
I turn on my heel, every second precious, and race back to the car. The drive back is a blur, my mind a tumult of fear and self-recrimination. I should have seen this coming, should have anticipated their moves.
My obsession with keeping Jess safe, with keeping her mine, has left her in the crosshairs of my enemies.
The streets fly past, but it’s not fast enough. Jess is in danger. My hands grip the steering wheel tighter, knuckles white, as I push the car faster, desperate to make up for lost time.
As I near the mansion, the pit in my stomach grows. I’ve left her alone, and now Eddie’s death is a stark reminder of the cost of my mistakes.
I’ve always prided myself on being in control, on being a step ahead, but this feels like I’m teetering on the edge, and Jess is the one who might pay the price.
I park the car with a screech, barely waiting for it to stop before I’m out the door. Every second is a countdown, every heartbeat a drum of war in my chest.
I’ve made mistakes, but I swear, on everything I hold dear, I will not let Jess be another one. The door looms ahead, and as I burst through, bracing for what I might find, one thought overrides all others: I have to save her.
“Where is she?” I scream, grabbing the nearest man. “Where’s my wife?”
They stutter in response. “Upstairs, locked in her room.”
“Jess?” My voice echoes through the empty space, a call met with silence that chills me to the bone. I call her and I hear her cellphone ringing. I find it near the front door. Why would she leave that behind?
I go to the bedroom, kicking the door in. Window open. She sneaked out. Son of a bitch.
I slam my fist into the wall, a raw, physical outburst of the turmoil inside. “Dammit, Alessandro, you idiot!” I berate myself, my voice a mixture of fury and self-loathing. My own possessiveness, my need to control, to keep her under my watchful eye, has left her vulnerable.
“Find her,” I scream at the guards. “Find her or you’re all dead.”
My enemies, those shadows that lurk just beyond our light, have used my predictable need to control against me, turning my strength into my greatest weakness.
Panic sets in, a tight, choking sensation that grips my throat. My mind races, trying to piece together where they could have taken her, how I can outmaneuver those who seek to harm us.
She’s still got my credit card. Has she used it?
I’m on the phone a moment later, my voice tight with urgency. “I need to know if there’s been any activity on this credit card,” I insist, pacing the length of the room.
The voice on the other end is calm, efficient. “Of course, Mr. Moretti, there have been just two transactions today. One at a clothing store and another at an electronics store, both located on Twelfth Street.”
My heart skips a beat. “When? What did she buy?”
“The transactions were made within the last two hours. The first was for clothing. The second was a prepaid phone.”
I end the call abruptly, my mind racing. Clothing and a burner phone. Jess is preparing, but for what? I grab my keys and head out, the need to understand her actions driving me.
She’s doing what I taught her. Has she got a lead on Emma? If so, why not tell me?
As I enter the electronics store, the artificial light glares down, casting everything in stark relief. I approach the counter, the employee looking up. “Help you?”
