The Silver Bracelet That Changed Everything

The line went dead.

Luca didn't move. He stood in the damp, empty mechanic's shop, staring at the concrete floor.

"Mr. Moretti?" I touched his shoulder. "Luca?"

He blinked, pulling himself out of the shock. "My sister. Isabella."

"I thought you were an only child," I said as we sprinted back to the SUV.

"So did the rest of Chicago," Luca said, starting the engine with a roar. "She tried to take over the family business five years ago. She allied with the Volkovs. My father ordered her dealt with. I was told she died in a warehouse fire."

"She survived," I said, gripping the passenger handle as we took a corner at sixty miles an hour.

"And she's been waiting in the shadows," Luca growled. "She used Vanessa. Let Vanessa think she was in control, pulling the strings, when Isabella was the one directing the Volkovs the whole time."

Union Station was only ten minutes away, but it felt like hours.

We abandoned the SUV at the curb, leaving the keys in the ignition, and sprinted through the grand brass doors of the station. At 1:00 AM, the massive hall was mostly empty, save for a few sleeping travelers and late-night janitors.

"Platform 9," Luca said, pulling a sleek black handgun from a holster under his jacket. He didn't care who saw it.

We ran down the marble steps toward the lower platforms.

The air grew colder, smelling of diesel and old steel.

As we rounded the corner to Platform 9, I saw them.

Three large men in dark coats stood blocking the boarding ramp of the midnight train to Detroit.

Behind them stood a tall woman in a dark trench coat, holding a small boy by the collar of his shirt.

Leo.

He looked exactly like the photograph, only older. He was terrified, his dark eyes wide, but he wasn't crying.

Laying on the concrete platform near the woman's feet was Tommy.

"Tommy!" I screamed, lunging forward.

Luca caught me by the waist, pulling me behind a thick concrete pillar as one of the men raised a weapon and fired. The bullet chipped the concrete inches from my head.

"Stay down!" Luca ordered.

"They have my brother!" I cried, struggling against his grip.

"And they have my son," Luca said, his voice deadly calm. "I will get them both back. Trust me."

He leaned around the pillar. "Isabella! It's over! The station is surrounded by my men."

Isabella laughed. It echoed through the cavernous station. "Bluffing never was your strong suit, Luca. Your men are busy raiding Vanessa's properties."

I looked down at the ground. Near the edge of the pillar lay a small, crumpled piece of paper.

I reached out and picked it up.

It was a train ticket. Chicago to Detroit.

But scribbled in blue ink on the back was a quick, messy note.

Em. Distract them. Give me 30 seconds.

It was Tommy's handwriting. He had dropped it intentionally before he was knocked down.

I looked at Luca. "Tommy's awake. He has a plan."

Luca looked at the ticket. He nodded once.

"When I say go, throw your shoes down the opposite track," Luca whispered.

I slipped off my flats.

"Ready?" Luca asked.

I nodded.