Chapter 3 - The Ransom
The silence in Alessandro’s office was more terrifying than the gunfire.
He stood by the window, staring out at the snow-covered estate that had just been violated.
Down in the medical wing, Dr. Hale was desperately working to save Bruno’s life.
Emma was curled up on Alessandro’s leather sofa, wrapped in a blanket, refusing to speak to anyone but him.
Marco stood by the desk, his face pale with failure.
“We lost the van in the city traffic, Boss,” Marco admitted quietly.
Alessandro didn’t yell, which made it infinitely worse.
“Tear Chicago apart,” Alessandro said, his voice cold enough to freeze the room.
“Check every warehouse, every shipping yard, and every safe house tied to the Russian syndicates.”
Before Marco could move, a cheap burner phone on the desk buzzed to life.
It had been dropped by one of the attackers during the struggle.
Alessandro picked it up and pressed it to his ear without saying a word.
“Mr. Moretti,” a heavily distorted voice crackled through the speaker.
“You have something that belongs to us.”
Alessandro’s knuckles turned white.
“If you touch her, I will burn your entire bloodline to ashes,” he replied evenly.
The man on the phone chuckled darkly.
“We don’t care about the maid, Moretti.”
“We want the shipping port on the east side.”
“Sign the deeds over to us by midnight, or we send the mother back in pieces.”
Alessandro hung up the phone and crushed it in his hand.
Surrendering the port meant giving the Russian mob a permanent foothold in his territory, effectively destroying his empire.
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Then, Emma pulled the blanket down from her face.
“Mommy said the bad men smelled like fish,” the toddler whispered.
