Chapter 3 - The Threat
Alessandro walked down the marble steps with the cold, lethal grace of a hunting predator.
His heavy presence instantly silenced the two aggressive Falcone thugs threatening Sophia.
Sophia backed away from them, instinctively pulling Emma tightly behind her legs to protect her.
“Is there a problem here, gentlemen?” Alessandro asked, his voice dangerously soft and calm.
The taller thug sneered, entirely unaware of exactly whose property he was currently standing on.
“Mind your own business, rich boy,” the thug spat. “This lady owes our boss a lot of money.”
Alessandro did not even blink at the blatant, foolish disrespect.
He casually raised his right hand and snapped his fingers once.
Within three seconds, six heavily armed Moretti guards stepped out from the shadows of the estate.
They raised their automatic weapons and aimed the red laser sights directly at the thugs' chests.
The color completely drained from the faces of the two Falcone men as they realized their fatal mistake.
“You are currently standing on my private property,” Alessandro stated coldly.
“And you are threatening a woman under my direct protection. I strongly suggest you leave.”
The thugs slowly raised their hands in surrender and backed away toward their rusted vehicle.
“Don Falcone is not going to like this, Moretti,” the taller man warned nervously.
“Tell your boss if he ever comes near this woman again, I will burn his entire empire to the ground,” Alessandro replied.
The men scrambled into their car and sped recklessly out of the iron gates.
Alessandro turned to Sophia, who was trembling violently in the cold morning air.
“Why does the Falcone syndicate believe you owe them money, Sophia?” he asked gently.
Sophia looked down at the gravel driveway, tears rapidly welling up in her exhausted eyes.
She confessed that Daniel had borrowed heavily from a loan shark to pay for Emma’s medical bills when she was a baby.
After Daniel died, the ruthless loan shark had sold the massive debt directly to the Falcone family.
They had been aggressively harassing her for two years, threatening to take Emma away if she didn't pay.
Alessandro felt a familiar, burning rage completely ignite deep within his chest.
His syndicate had murdered her husband, and now his worst enemies were torturing her for money.
He looked down at Emma, who was staring at him with absolute, innocent awe.
“You are a real superhero, mister,” Emma whispered loudly.
Alessandro’s heart painfully cracked open just a little bit more.
He firmly ordered Victor to completely clear Sophia’s schedule and move all her belongings into the guest house.
He declared that Sophia and Emma would live on the estate permanently, completely safe from any outside threats.
Sophia cried tears of overwhelming gratitude, hugging Emma tightly against her chest.
Later that evening, Alessandro sat alone in his dark study, reviewing the Falcone syndicate's financial ledgers.
He was actively planning a massive, brutal strike to wipe out their loan-sharking operations completely.
His secure phone suddenly rang with a highly encrypted video call.
He answered it to see the smug, arrogant face of Don Falcone staring back at him.
“Good evening, Alessandro,” Falcone smiled wickedly. “I hear you are currently playing playing house with the Carter widow.”
Alessandro remained completely silent, waiting for the rival boss to reveal his hand.
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“It is a real shame about your wife and daughter’s tragic accident three years ago,” Falcone continued smoothly.
“But did you ever wonder why the police never found the second vehicle involved in the crash?”
