Chapter 6 - THE ANONYMOUS WARNING
My heart hammered against my ribs.
I stared down at the screen of my phone.
They are coming for the boy.
The glowing letters seemed to burn through the glass.
I looked around the chaotic foyer.
Mr. Bellini was glaring at Luca, still holding his concealed weapon.
Vanessa was weeping hysterically on the floor.
Sal was standing guard by the front door, blocking any escape.
Who sent the text?
I slipped my phone back into my pocket without making a sound.
I looked down at little Leo.
He was shivering, clutching my fingers with his tiny hand.
"Are we going home, Miss Emma?" he whispered.
His innocent voice broke my heart.
"We're going to keep you safe, Leo," I murmured back.
I looked up, catching Luca's eye across the room.
He had dismissed Vanessa's father with a single wave of his hand.
Two of Luca's massive security guards had disarmed Mr. Bellini in seconds.
The older man was now pinned against the mahogany wall.
"Where are the rest of them?" Luca demanded.
"What are you talking about?" Mr. Bellini spat blood from his split lip.
"The people who know about my son."
Vanessa looked up from the floor, her eyes wide with sudden terror.
She wasn't just afraid of Luca anymore.
She was afraid of someone else.
"Luca, you don't understand," she stammered. "If they find out we have him here—"
"Who is they?" Luca barked, grabbing Vanessa by the shoulders and hauling her to her feet.
"The Syndicate," she whispered.
The name dropped like a lead weight in the room.
Even Mr. Bellini flinched.
The Chicago Syndicate.
A ruthless coalition of rival bosses that Luca had been warring against for years.
If they knew Luca had an heir—an untested, vulnerable six-year-old boy—they would use him as leverage.
Or worse, eliminate him entirely.
And Vanessa had been hiding him right under their noses.
Or had she been working with them?
My stomach twisted.
The text message on my phone buzzed again.
Too late. They are at the gates.
Heavy thuds echoed from the front doors.
May you like
Someone was trying to break the reinforced glass.
[CLIFFHANGER: A deafening explosion ripped through the front gates, shattering the security cameras and plunging the entire mansion into pitch-black darkness.]
