A Photograph Worth Fifty Thousand Dollars

“We have to call the police,” I said, panic rising in my throat.

Luca grabbed a small, relatively clean blanket from the floor and wrapped it around Leo’s narrow shoulders.

“No police,” Luca said firmly. He scooped the little boy up into his arms. Leo didn’t resist; he immediately buried his face in Luca’s neck.

“Luca, she kidnapped your aunt!”

“Vanessa is desperate,” Luca said, carrying Leo out of the apartment. “If she sees police cruisers, she will kill Teresa. She has nothing left to lose.”

We hurried down the dark stairs and burst into the cool night air. Luca gently placed Leo in the backseat of the Range Rover and buckled him in.

I slid into the passenger seat, my mind racing.

“How did she get Teresa?” I asked as Luca sped away from the curb. “You left Marcus at the house to protect her.”

“Marcus is the best security chief on the East Coast,” Luca said, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. “Nobody gets past him.”

“Unless it was an inside job,” I whispered.

Luca shot me a dark look, but he didn’t argue.

I turned around in my seat. Leo was already falling asleep, exhausted from fear, the rhythm of the car soothing him.

“She wants the watch,” I said, looking at the gold timepiece resting in the cup holder. “Why? Because it’s valuable?”

“Because it proves she’s connected to my father’s murder,” Luca said grimly.

“But your father died thirty years ago! Vanessa is barely thirty-two.”

“Vanessa isn’t,” Luca said. “But her father might have been.”

I stared at him. The web of lies was so deep it was suffocating.

“My father’s murder was never solved,” Luca explained, his voice hollow. “The police said it was a rival family. But the men who actually pulled the trigger… we never found them. If your father bought this watch from the killer, and hid the truth inside it… maybe Vanessa’s family was involved. Maybe that’s why she targeted me in the first place.”

It made terrifying sense. A long con. Infiltrate the family, marry the heir, and secure the fortune—all while hiding the sins of the past.

“Where would she take Teresa?” I asked.

Luca pulled out his phone and hit a button.

“Marcus, status,” Luca commanded.

Static hissed through the speaker.

“Marcus, report!” Luca yelled.

A voice answered. But it wasn’t Marcus.

It was Vanessa.

“Hello, darling,” she purred. In the background, I could hear the muffled sound of a woman crying. Teresa.

“If you touch one hair on her head, Vanessa—”

“I don’t want to hurt the old bat, Luca,” Vanessa interrupted. “I just want what belongs to me. The gold watch.”

“It’s not yours.”

“It belonged to my father!” she screamed, dropping the sweet facade. “He killed your precious old man for it! And he died in prison because of it! I deserve your fortune, Luca. I earned it.”

“Where are you?” Luca demanded.

“You have thirty minutes,” Vanessa said. “Bring the watch to the old warehouse on Pier 41. Come alone. If you bring the cops, or if you bring that little maid… I’ll put a bullet in Teresa’s head.”

The line went dead.

Luca threw the phone onto the dashboard.

“Pier 41,” I breathed.

“I know it,” Luca said, pressing the gas pedal.

“Luca, you can’t go alone.”

“I have to, Emma. I need you to stay in the car with Leo. Keep him safe. Lock the doors and do not get out, no matter what you hear.”

“That warehouse used to belong to my father,” I said quickly. “Before the jewelry store, he owned a shipping company there. I used to play in it when I was a kid. There’s a basement tunnel that leads directly under the main floor. I know how to get inside without being seen.”

Luca looked at me.

“It’s too dangerous, Emma.”

“She has your aunt. And she destroyed my father’s life. I’m going.”

Luca stared at me for a long second, seeing the absolute determination in my eyes. He nodded once.

We arrived at Pier 41 in less than twenty minutes. The warehouse was massive, rusted, and sat right on the edge of the dark water.

Luca parked the car three blocks away in an alley.

I turned to Leo, who was rubbing his eyes.

“Leo, sweetie,” I whispered. “We need you to play a game of hide-and-seek. Lie down on the seat and put the blanket over you. Don’t make a sound until I come back. Can you do that?”

Leo nodded bravely and slid under the blanket.

Luca checked the loaded pistol he pulled from the glove compartment.

“Lead the way, Emma.”

We moved through the shadows, creeping along the side of the rusted building. I found the old storm drain cover hidden behind overgrown weeds. It was heavy, but together, Luca and I managed to lift it.

We crawled through the dark, damp tunnel until we reached a metal grate that looked up into the center of the warehouse.

I peered through the slots.

The warehouse was lit by a single overhead bulb.

Teresa was tied to a wooden chair in the center of the room. She looked exhausted, but her eyes were defiant.

Standing next to her was Vanessa, holding a silver handgun.

And standing next to Vanessa, arms crossed, looking completely relaxed, was a man.

I gasped, clapping my hand over my mouth.

Luca’s entire body went rigid beside me.

It was Marcus.

Luca’s trusted head of security.

“He’s in on it,” I whispered in horror.

“He’s not just in on it,” Luca said, his voice vibrating with pure, murderous rage. “He’s the one pulling the strings.”

Above us, Marcus checked his watch.

“He’s late,” Marcus said, his voice echoing in the empty space.

“He’ll come,” Vanessa said nervously. “He loves this old hag.”

Marcus sneered. He walked over to Teresa and grabbed her by the hair.

“Listen to me carefully, Vanessa,” Marcus said coldly. “When he walks through that door, you shoot him. Don’t hesitate. I’ll take the watch, we stage it to look like a robbery gone wrong, and we disappear.”

Vanessa’s hand trembled. “You said I wouldn’t have to pull the trigger, Marcus! You said you’d do it!”

“Change of plans, darling,” Marcus said, pulling his own gun and pointing it directly at Vanessa’s head. “Shoot him, or I shoot you.”

Under the grate, Luca looked at me.

He handed me the gold pocket watch.

“Emma,” he whispered. “Stay here. When I make my move, you slide the grate open and grab Teresa.”