Page 74 of The Mafia's Surprise Gift

The next few days were spent making sure Mae was under constant protection. We tried to make it as subtle as possible so as not to alarm her, but she caught me once or twice. With Rocco’s mother safely back in the city with his grandfather, the most pressing issue was locating the owner of the silver car. While the plates were stolen, the car itself was tracked to a dealership just off the interstate. Vito took on that responsibility, and a few days later, he delivered chilling news.

“Jian?”

“Vito?” I scanned the crowd for Rocco, assuming Vito was calling me after not being able to reach Rocco. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

“No,” Vito said sharply. “Everything is not okay. I know who bought that car, and after breaking a few fingers, I learned that they bought more than one car. Five, in fact.”

Five cars.

“Fuck.” All this time, we were keeping an eye out for that silver car, but with four other cars to change into, they could have been following us and we’d be clueless. “Who?” I demanded, finally locking eyes with Rocco in the crowd.

“The Russians,” Vito replied stiffly. “And they’re out for blood.”

31

MAE

“So, kiddo, I know you’re eager to go back to school and you miss all your friends,” I said carefully, watching Zack out of the corner of my eye while we strolled toward the park exit. “But what do you think about here?”

“The park?” Zack looked up at me quizzically.

“No, this town. Do you like it here? Do you think you’d want to live here?” Staying here had been on my mind for a while now. Every day, my boss texted to remind me that I had to be back in the office by next week, and each message pushed me closer and closer to quitting just so I could stay here.

The dangers were unavoidable, and if Rocco was right about people finding out about Zack, then I would have no choice but to face one aspect of a Mafia lifestyle. But, as always, Zack’s wants were my priority, and staying in this town because I wanted to would be meaningless if it hurt my son.

“I like it here,” Zack said, screwing up his face slightly. “I like Grandma, but… we’re not going to stay here forever, right? My friends are in school. And all my toys!” His eyes widened, and then he tightened his grip on my hand. “They miss me.”

“I know, buddy.” I smiled down at him. “I bet they miss you a lot.” His answer was as insightful as I could expect from a child. The concept of moving, of changing his entire life, was too unfamiliar to him, but he didn’t seem entirely against the idea. After all, his toys could come with him.

But his friends?

Could I really change his entire life, rip him away from his school and his friends just because I’d fallen in love?

The decision felt impossible. I already knew what my mother’s response would be, and I didn’t need her trying to persuade me. Following my head while keeping my heart in check was going to be difficult.

“Are we moving?” Zack asked, fixing me with a big, wide-eyed look.

“I’m just… thinking about things,” I replied gently, moving to ruffle his curls. “I know you’ve had a great time here with Grandma and the park and things.”

“And Rocco!” Zack beamed. “I like your new friends, Mom.”

Oh, he had no idea.

Just as I reached the gate, a shadow fell over us. Instinct had me drawing Zack closer to me, and when I glanced up, I was face to face with a burly man who towered over me.

“Miss Murphy?” he growled out in a low voice, with an accent so thick that it jarred my thoughts for a few seconds. Was he Russian?

Did Russians holiday here?

I pulled Zack closer to my leg and swallowed hard, moving to angle my body between the stranger and my son.

“Sorry, you have the wrong person.”

“This is not the time to fucking play games,” the man spat, and one thick, meaty hand suddenly gripped my upper arm.

Before I could react, a sudden yell of fury rose up from across the street. Just beyond the stranger's shoulder, I spotted Dino sprinting across the street with a gun glinting in his hand, flanked by three other men. As the stranger’s eyes slid to the side in reaction to Dino’s yell, I wrenched my arm free from his grip. I spun around, scooped Zack up into my arms, and started to run back into the park, much to Zack’s alarm.

He quickly dissolved into sobs, either picking up on my own distress or because of the stranger, I couldn’t be sure. Either way, I didn’t stop running. My entire back was tight, tingling constantly with the expectation that I would feel that burly hand clamp down on my shirt or in my hair, but it didn’t come.

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