Page 125 of Ruthless Mafia Daddy

She goes to speak, but I shake my head, not wanting to hear any more of her apologies.

My jaw is clenched tight and it’s a struggle to unclench it enough that I can talk. “Jerry is going to come and pick you up and take you back to the main house. I’m assuming I don’t need to reiterate my point of staying in your fucking room.”

Rosa hangs her head, her dark hair falling in front of her face as she nods.

“Once this is all over, Rosa, we’re going to have a very serious conversation, do you understand?”

“Yes, Andre,” she whispers.

“Good.” I place a hand on her shoulder and squeezing once.

I know she blames herself, and at this moment, to a degree, I do too, though I would never speak the words out loud. She’s clearly wracked with guilt, and I can only hope this will teach her to never defy my orders again.

But I know that ultimately, this is all my fault. I’m the one that failed at making sure they stayed in the fucking house as they should.

“Dez, Sloan.” I walk away from Rosa.

The two men flank either side of me as we stand before the wreckage, waiting for my brother to get off the phone with Kyle.

If he has nothing to offer us, I’m at a loss for where to start. We have no leads as to where Lorenzo might have taken Lila, but we’ve already wasted too much time.

My hands are shaking as I run them through my hair, trying to sort through the chaos in my mind. All I can think of is all the ways Lorenzo might be torturing her, and with each second that passes, she gets closer to death.

And I refuse to lose her too. “Marco.”

My brother hangs up the phone and turns to face me, a deep frown lining his forehead.

“There’s a potential mistress that Lorenzo has been sending large amounts of money to each month for the past few years.”

“A mistress?”

Marco nods.

“I’m assuming the money is to pay for her lifestyle?”

Marco shakes his head, his dark hair falling into his eyes.

“Kyle doesn’t think so. It seems the chick comes from money.”

Dez pipes up, “So, why does she need it?”

“He’s buying her silence.” My mind’s racing as I try to think through each scenario.

Marco frowns harder. “What do you think she knows?”

“It could be anything, but it’s clear that she’s important to him, otherwise he would’ve just killed her. Is Kyle looking into an address?”

Marco nods.

“Good. In the meantime, I suggest we start working through all of Lorenzo’s hideouts.”

“You don’t think he’d keep Lila at any of those, do you? He knows we know those locations?—”

“He wants me to come to him, Marco. Why else would he have taken Lila? He’s not simply sending a message. He wants to start a war.”

“Fuck.” Marco runs his hands over his face. “Where do we start?”

Dez tucks his hands into his pockets. “I suggest we start in East Harlem, at Luciano’s. I know he’s got a few guys making the rounds over there, so even if Lorenzo’s not there, it would send a nice little message to him.”

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