Chapter 7 - THE LEATHER COAT
The black SUVs tore through the pouring rain, leaving the Bellini estate far behind.
Inside the lead car, Luca sat in the passenger seat, tracking a glowing red dot on his tablet screen.
"You chipped her?" Leo asked from the back seat, leaning forward to look at the screen.
"I chipped her wedding ring three weeks ago," Luca replied calmly. "In my world, trust is a liability. I wanted to know where my future wife went when she said she was visiting her dressmaker."
Lauren sat next to Leo, clutching her mother’s faded drawing. Her injured knee throbbed with every bump in the road, but she barely felt it. She was finally going to see her mother. After twenty years of believing she was dead, the woman who had kissed her forehead and promised to bring back her favorite candy was alive.
"She's heading toward the old docklands," Daniel said from the driver's seat, watching the GPS. "Warehouse District 4. It’s abandoned. Slated for demolition next month."
"Perfect place to hide someone," Luca murmured.
He glanced back at Lauren. "When we get there, you and Leo stay in the car. Daniel and I will go in."
"No," Lauren said instantly. Her voice shook, but her chin was held high. "She’s my mother. I’m not waiting in the car."
Luca studied her for a moment. He saw the fierce determination in her eyes, the same quiet strength she had shown when she tried to protect Hannah from Vanessa earlier that evening.
"Fine," Luca said. "But you stay behind me. Always."
Twenty minutes later, the cars killed their headlights as they rolled into the shadow of a decaying warehouse overlooking the Chicago River. The rain had slowed to a drizzle, but the wind howling off the water was biting cold.
Luca stepped out into the night, drawing his weapon. Daniel flanked him, a suppressed rifle tight against his shoulder.
They approached the side entrance. The rusted metal door was slightly ajar, the padlock broken on the ground.
"She’s inside," Luca whispered, motioning for Lauren and Leo to stay close.
They slipped into the cavernous darkness. The smell of oil, saltwater, and rotting wood filled the air. Only a few flickering emergency lights illuminated the massive space.
In the center of the warehouse, beneath a single swinging bulb, was a chair.
Tied to the chair was a woman.
Her hair was graying and matted, her face lined with years of exhaustion, but Lauren knew her instantly.
"Mom," Lauren breathed, stepping forward.
Before she could run, a figure stepped out from behind a stack of wooden shipping crates.
It was Vanessa.
But she wasn't alone. Standing beside her were four armed men in heavy leather coats.
Luca stopped, his eyes locking onto the leader of the gunmen.
"Carmine," Luca said, his voice dangerously low.
The man in the leather coat smiled. Carmine Rossetti was a rival boss from the South Side, a man Luca’s father had driven out of the city a decade ago.
"Hello, Luca," Carmine said, racking the slide of his pistol. "Vanessa called me. Offered me half your territory if I helped her clean up a little family mess tonight."
Vanessa stepped forward, her soaked red gown clinging to her skin. Her hair was wild, her eyes frantic.
"I told you, Luca!" Vanessa screamed. "I always protect my interests! You think you can just cast me aside? I am the heir to the Bellini empire!"
"You're nothing but a desperate woman hiding behind hired guns," Luca said coldly.
"Kill them," Vanessa ordered Carmine. "Kill all of them. Especially the boy."
Carmine raised his gun toward Leo.
But suddenly, the warehouse doors blew open with a deafening crash.
Blinding floodlights flooded the interior, turning night into day. Dozens of heavily armed men poured into the building, laser sights slicing through the dust and locking directly onto Carmine and his crew.
Carmine froze, his eyes widening in terror.
From the shadows, an older man walked forward, his cane clicking against the concrete floor.
It was Don Salvatore, the oldest and most respected mafia boss in the Midwest—and Luca’s godfather.
"Carmine," Salvatore said, his voice raspy but echoing with absolute authority. "If you pull that trigger, I will have your entire bloodline erased before sunrise."
Vanessa stumbled backward. "What is this? How did you..."
Luca lowered his gun, a cold smile touching his lips.
"Did you really think I didn't plan for this, Vanessa? The moment Hannah showed me that surrogacy document, I sent a copy to Salvatore. You tried to steal a Moretti heir. That is an act of war against the Commission."
Carmine looked at the dozens of guns aimed at his chest. He slowly lowered his weapon and dropped it to the floor. His men immediately did the same.
"You set me up, Vanessa," Carmine spat.
Vanessa screamed, diving toward the chair where Evelyn was tied, pulling a small knife from her sleeve.
But before she could reach the woman, Lauren lunged.
Ignoring the agonizing pain in her knee, Lauren tackled the heiress to the concrete floor. The knife skittered away into the darkness. Lauren pinned Vanessa down, her hands shaking with twenty years of grief, anger, and betrayal.
"This is for my mother," Lauren hissed, drawing back her fist and punching Vanessa squarely in the jaw.
Vanessa went limp.
Lauren scrambled off her, crawling toward the chair.
Evelyn Mitchell raised her head. Her tired, tear-filled eyes locked onto the young woman kneeling before her.
"Lauren?" Evelyn whispered, her voice cracking. "My little bird... is it really you?"
"It's me, Mom," Lauren sobbed, burying her face in her mother's lap as Daniel stepped forward to cut the ropes. "I'm here."
Leo stepped into the light. Evelyn gasped, reaching out to touch his face.
For the first time in twenty years, the family was together.
But as Luca watched the reunion, he noticed something slipping from the pocket of Carmine’s heavy leather coat on the floor.
It was a plane ticket.
May you like
Luca picked it up, reading the passenger name. It wasn't Vanessa's name.
It was Hannah’s.
