Chapter 7 - THE NEPHEW
I looked at Luca.
His hands were pressed against the brick wall so hard his knuckles were white.
“Mr. Moretti,” I whispered. “Is that…?”
“No,” Luca said, his voice cracking. “I don’t have a son.”
He stared through the glass at the terrified little boy.
“But my brother Matteo did.”
Daniel swore under his breath. “Boss, Matteo died in that car crash five years ago. They told us his fiancée and the baby died with him.”
“They lied,” Luca breathed, his eyes locked on the boy.
Inside the rectory, Vanessa stepped toward the scarred Rossi boss.
“Leave the kid out of this,” Vanessa snapped.
“The kid is our insurance,” the Rossi boss smiled cruelly. “You bring us the real pocket watch tomorrow at your fancy rehearsal dinner, or the kid disappears for good.”
Vanessa’s face went pale. “You can’t bring him to the estate! If Luca sees him, if he recognizes him, the wedding is off!”
“Then you better make sure Moretti is too busy looking at you to notice the catering staff,” the man chuckled. “We’ll be there. With the boy.”
They shoved the little boy back into the shadows.
Luca pulled his gun from his shoulder holster.
He was going to kick the door down.
Daniel grabbed his arm.
“Boss, no. There are at least ten Rossi men surrounding this building. We’re outnumbered. If we go in guns blazing, the kid gets caught in the crossfire.”
Luca’s chest heaved. The vein in his neck throbbed.
He looked at the little boy wiping his tears in the corner of the room.
Then, slowly, he holstered his weapon.
“You’re right,” Luca said, his voice dropping to a terrifying, deadly calm. “We don’t do it in the dark. We do it in the light. Where they can’t run.”
He turned away from the window and walked back toward our SUV.
“What’s the plan?” Daniel asked as we climbed inside.
Luca looked at me in the rearview mirror.
“Julia. Does your shoulder hurt too much to work tomorrow morning?”
I shook my head immediately. “No. I can work.”
“Good.”
Luca started the engine.
“Tomorrow is the wedding rehearsal luncheon,” he said coldly. “Vanessa thinks she has me cornered. She thinks I’m a fool who’s going to marry her while she holds my family hostage.”
He gripped the steering wheel.
“Tomorrow, we open the doors. We let the Rossis inside my house. We let Vanessa play her game.”
“And then?” I asked softly.
May you like
Luca looked at me, his eyes burning with a fierce, protective fire.
“Then, Julia, I’m going to need you to do something that will definitely get you fired.”
