Chapter 4 - THE BLUE SNEAKER
I stared at the tiny blue shoe.
My lungs stopped working.
“No,” I whispered.
Dominic picked up the sneaker. It was a size 11. Designed for a six-year-old boy.
“Grace?” Dominic’s voice felt a million miles away.
“That’s Leo’s,” I choked out.
“Who is Leo?”
“My nephew. Tommy’s son.”
I grabbed the shoe from Dominic’s hand, clutching it to my chest like it could keep the little boy safe.
“Tommy is a single father,” I said, tears finally spilling over. “The babysitter usually watches him at night. Why would he be here?”
Dominic’s expression grew dangerously dark.
“Because Elena didn’t just want leverage over you, Grace. She wanted leverage over your brother, too.”
Michael shone the flashlight around the warehouse walls.
“Sir,” Michael called out. “Over here.”
Dominic and I ran to the far wall.
Pinned to the wooden beams was a white envelope.
Dominic pulled it down. He opened it with one hand, keeping his gun raised with the other.
Inside was a single sheet of paper.
A shipping manifest.
Dominic read it, his eyes darting across the lines.
“What does it say?” I asked.
“It’s a manifest for a private cargo plane leaving Logan Airport at midnight.” Dominic looked at his watch. “In forty minutes.”
“Are Tommy and Leo on it?”
“There are no passengers listed. Just cargo.” Dominic handed the paper to Michael. “But look at the signature authorizing the flight.”
Michael inspected the bottom line. He cursed under his breath.
“Silvio,” Michael said.
I looked between them. “Who is Silvio?”
“My uncle,” Dominic said, his voice laced with venom. “My father’s younger brother. He was exiled from Boston ten years ago for stealing from the family.”
“He’s the one helping Elena,” I realized.
Dominic nodded. “Elena wants the money. Silvio wants his revenge. It’s a perfect partnership.”
Dominic turned on his heel. “Michael, lock down the airport. Call every man we have in the north end. We’re stopping that plane.”
“Yes, sir.”
We ran back to the SUV.
My mind was racing. Elena was the mastermind inside the house, but Silvio was the muscle on the streets.
As we sped toward the airport, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
I pulled it out.
An unknown number.
I looked at Dominic. He nodded. “Answer it. Put it on speaker.”
I accepted the call. “Hello?”
“Auntie Grace?”
My heart shattered. “Leo! Leo, baby, are you okay?”
“I’m scared,” the six-year-old’s voice trembled. “Daddy’s asleep. He won’t wake up, Auntie Grace. His head is bleeding.”
“Leo, listen to me. Where are you?”
“In a big car. It goes fast. There’s a bad man driving.”
“Hold on, Leo—”
The phone crackled, and a deep, rough voice replaced my nephew’s.
“Hello, Grace.”
Dominic leaned closer to the phone. “Silvio.”
“Dominic! My favorite nephew,” Silvio laughed. “I see you figured out my little distraction at the south warehouse.”
“If you hurt the boy or his father, Silvio, I will peel the skin from your bones.”
“Oh, relax. The mechanic and his brat are fine. For now.” Silvio’s voice grew cold. “But we have a problem, Dominic. Elena called me. She went to your safe to get her insurance policy, and she claims a certain piece of jewelry is missing.”
Dominic frowned. “Jewelry?”
“Don’t play dumb. The necklace.”
“There is no necklace in that safe.”
“Don’t lie to me!” Silvio roared. “My brother kept the Isabella Diamond in that safe. Elena was supposed to secure it tonight. But she says the box is empty.”
Dominic looked at me.
I shook my head vigorously. I hadn’t taken anything.
“I don’t have it, Silvio,” Dominic said evenly.
“Then you better find it. Because if you don’t bring the Isabella Diamond to the private airstrip in thirty minutes... I’m putting Grace’s brother and nephew on a plane over the Atlantic. And they won’t have parachutes.”
The line went dead.
I looked at Dominic, panic choking me.
“What necklace is he talking about?”
Dominic stared out the window into the dark city.
“My grandmother’s necklace,” he said softly. “It’s worth ten million dollars. But it hasn’t been in that safe for over thirty years.”
“Then where is it?”
Dominic slowly turned to face me.
“My father gave it to a woman he loved. A woman he hid from the family.”
“Elena’s mother?” I asked.
May you like
“No.” Dominic’s eyes dropped to the cheap silver locket I wore around my neck every day.
“He gave it to yours.”
