Chapter 7 - THE FATHER'S DEBT
"Roberto, what are you doing?" Paulie snarled, pressing his gun harder against little Leo's temple.
"Put the gun down, Paulie," Roberto said, his voice surprisingly strong for a man in a wheelchair. "It's over."
"We built this together!" Paulie shouted. "You agreed! We take the boy, we force Vincent to hand over the territory, and we rule from the shadows!"
Vincent lowered his weapon just a fraction, staring at his father in disbelief. "You orchestrated all of this. You let me mourn you for ten years. You kidnapped my brother."
"I did what I had to do to survive," Roberto said coldly. "But I never agreed to kill my own grandson."
He looked at the small key I still held in my trembling hand.
"Do you know what that key opens, Vincent?" Roberto asked.
Vincent shook his head, his eyes darting between his son and the guns.
"It opens a safety deposit box," Roberto said. "Inside is a ledger. The only proof that Paulie has been embezzling from the cartel for twenty years. If the cartel sees it, Paulie is a dead man."
Paulie's face went white. "You told me you destroyed that ledger."
"I gave it to Rose," Roberto said softly. "I told her to hold it as insurance. I never thought she'd actually keep it. I thought she hated me."
Thomas stepped forward. "She didn't hate you. She hated what you became."
"Let the boy go, Paulie," Roberto repeated. "Or I give them the key, and the cartel hunts you to the ends of the earth."
Paulie’s hand shook. He looked at the guns trained on him. He looked at the terrified seven-year-old.
With a scream of frustration, Paulie shoved Leo away and bolted toward the side door.
"Leo!" Vincent dropped his gun and sprinted forward, catching his son in his arms.
Leo buried his face in his father's neck, sobbing hysterically. "Daddy! Daddy!"
"I've got you, buddy. I've got you," Vincent cried, kissing the boy's hair.
Thomas aimed his gun at the fleeing Paulie, but Roberto raised a hand.
"Let him go," Roberto coughed. "He won't survive the night. His own men will turn on him when they realize he failed."
The warehouse fell quiet, save for Leo's soft crying.
I slowly walked over and handed the key to Vincent.
Vincent looked down at his father in the wheelchair. "Why did you fake your death? Why put us through all this?"
"Because the cartel wanted my head," Roberto said, refusing to look Vincent in the eye. "And I was a coward."
He finally looked at Thomas. "Nico. I am... I am so sorry."
Thomas stood perfectly still. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the St. Christopher medal.
He tossed it onto the concrete floor at Roberto's feet.
"I'm not Nico anymore," Thomas said. "Nico died the day his father sold him to pay a debt."
Thomas turned and walked out of the warehouse into the freezing night.
Vincent watched him go, then looked at his father.
"Don't ever come near my family again," Vincent said.
He scooped Leo up in his arms and looked at me. "Come on, Emily. We're going home."
But as we walked toward the exit, my phone vibrated in my pocket.
May you like
It was a text from an unknown number.
Check Bianca's coat pocket before you celebrate.
