Chapter 11 - THE MIDNIGHT DEADLINE
Panic set in.
“We have to move her,” Richard said immediately, rushing back toward the room. “We have to get Sarah out of this hospital.”
“Stop,” Luca grabbed Richard’s arm, holding him back in the hallway. “Moving a woman who just had a heart transplant will kill her faster than Elias Vance ever could.”
“Then I’ll pay it!” Richard shouted. “I’m a billionaire! Two million is nothing.”
“Your accounts are frozen, Richard,” Luca reminded him quietly. “Your lawyers froze everything to trap Lorraine, remember? It takes 48 hours to unfreeze them. We have until midnight tomorrow.”
Richard slumped against the wall. “My God. I did this. I trapped us.”
Inside the room, Daniel walked toward the door, having heard the shouting.
“What’s going on?” Daniel asked.
I looked at him. I looked at the son of the man who had sacrificed his life to save me before I was even born.
How could I tell him that his father’s death was because of my family?
Luca stepped in.
“Elias Vance is back in town. He wants the rest of the debt.”
Daniel’s face hardened. “I told you, we don't owe him anything. Lorraine paid—”
“Lorraine paid to keep her own embezzlement quiet, and to keep the Vance family from looking too closely at Arthur’s death,” Luca explained. “But the principal debt remains. And Elias wants it.”
“I’ll fight him,” Daniel said, his fists clenching.
“You’re a newlywed, Daniel,” Luca said firmly. “And you have a mother and a nephew in that room. You are not fighting Elias Vance.”
“Then who is?” Daniel demanded.
Luca straightened his jacket.
“I am.”
I stared at Luca. “Why? You don't owe us anything.”
Luca looked down at me. The harsh lines of his face softened just a fraction.
“I told you, Rachel. I take care of my people. And you are my people.”
He pulled out his phone.
“I’m calling my men. We’re locking down this floor. Nobody gets in or out without my approval.”
He dialed a number and walked down the hallway.
I walked back into the room.
Mom was sleeping soundly, unaware that a mob boss was currently hunting her down.
Patricia was sitting in a chair, folding the white handkerchief over and over again.
She looked up at me.
“You heard them, didn't you?” Patricia asked quietly.
I froze. “Heard what?”
“About Arthur,” she said, her voice completely steady.
I walked over to her, tears filling my eyes.
“Patricia... I am so, so sorry. If he hadn't tried to help my mother—”
“Stop,” Patricia said, reaching out to take my hand.
She pulled me down to sit beside her.
“I knew Arthur helped a young woman escape Lorraine’s wrath,” Patricia said softly. “He told me everything. He was a good man, Rachel. He couldn't stand by and watch a child be stolen from its mother.”
I sobbed, burying my face in my hands.
“But he died because of it. And you paid the price for thirty years.”
Patricia stroked my hair.
“He died because he had a bad heart, honey. The stress didn't help, but the doctors said it was congenital. And I paid that debt because I loved him, and I wanted to honor his name. But I never blamed you. And I never blamed your mother.”
She lifted my chin so I had to look at her.
“Love requires sacrifice, Rachel. Arthur made his. Now it’s time to let someone else handle the monsters.”
At 11:30 PM the next night, Luca stood in the underground parking garage of the hospital.
I stood behind him, despite his orders to stay upstairs.
A black SUV pulled into the garage, its headlights blinding in the dim space.
The doors opened.
Elias Vance stepped out. He was a terrifying man, tall and scarred, flanked by four armed guards.
Luca stood alone, his hands in his pockets.
“Moretti,” Elias sneered. “You’re out of your jurisdiction. This is a family debt.”
“The debt is void, Elias,” Luca said calmly.
“It’s written in ink,” Elias fired back. “Two million. Or the woman comes with me.”
Luca pulled a small object from his pocket.
It wasn't a gun.
It was a heavy, silver rosary.
May you like
He tossed it into the space between them. It hit the concrete with a sharp clatter.
Elias looked at the rosary, and the color instantly drained from his face.
