Page 72 of Ruthless Mafia Daddy

“Is Ari— Is Cara home?” I asked, forcing my voice to remain calm.

“No, she’s not,” she replied, observing me with caution. From the way she was acting, it was obvious Arielle had told her nothing of her past, and she knew nothing about me.

“Are you my mummy’s friend?” The little boy asked, and I felt my heart crack a little. “Yes,” I answered, swallowing the lump forming in my throat. David was right. He looked so much like me. I wanted to scoop him into my arms and tell him I was his father.

“Do you mind coming back in the morning?” the lady asked, tearing my attention from my son. I had almost forgotten about her until she spoke.

“I’ll wait. My purpose is a bit time-sensitive, and it can’t wait till dawn,” I said with a tone of finality, making sure my insinuation didn’t fly above her head.

She looked like she was lost in having an internal struggle before she finally removed herself from the doorway and made room for me to step in.

I walked into what looked like a Lego party with blocks scattered all over the floor. My son immediately settled into the sealed building blocks and proceeded to stack them unevenly. I couldn’t look away. Everything he did held my undivided attention.

“His name is Jason, and I’m Annalise. Can I get you anything?” the lady asked, standing awkwardly.

“I’ll take peanut butter and toast!” Jason called out from the floor, and I felt my heart twist slightly, realizing how much time I’d missed.

He probably had a favorite color, favorite food, and a favorite place, and I was not a part of them. I was sitting in the same room with him, and he was ignoring me to play with Legos. I asked myself to hold back my anger till Arielle got home.

“I’d like the peanut butter toast too,” I said to Annalise, and Jason’s eyes immediately snapped to me.

“You like peanut butter toast?” he asked with a sparkle in his eyes. I couldn’t care less about the food. I had forgotten what peanut butter tasted like. But if it would give me a great start with my son, then it was the best thing in the universe.

“Yes,” I replied, and his smile grew wider. He returned to his Legos without another word, and I found myself lost.

I played with the peanut butter toast in front of me while counting the minutes till Arielle got home.

“Do you build houses?” Jason asked, peering at me from the floor.

“Yes. I build houses,” I replied, coming to join him on the floor. “I’ve built a few hotels for myself.

“Woah! I like hotels too. Let’s make hotels.” He exclaimed, and I found my face breaking into a smile watching him.

We spent the rest of the night building Lego houses till he got sleepy and Anna took him to bed while I remained in the sitting room waiting for Arielle.

“Can you try calling Cara?” Anna asked, worry etched on her face. “I’ve been trying to call her, but her phone is switched off. It’s well past midnight, and this has never happened before.”

I pulled out my phone and dialed Arielle’s number and was met with the robotic voice of the service provider. “It’s switched off.”

“She never stays out late, and today is the first time she’s gone out at night. I even encouraged her to let loose a little, and now this,” she sighed, and I tucked the bit of information into the corner of my brain.

Another hour passed and no Arielle, and I was beyond certain something was wrong. “Annalise, I’m going to be honest with you,” I said, looking at her. “I don’t think Cara is safe wherever she is, and I need you and Jason to come with me till I figure out what is happening. Trust me, she’d appreciate it.”

“You walk in here, and all of a sudden, Cara is missing for the night, and you expect me to pack up my things and hand over her son to you? What if you’re the bad guy?” she said, giving me a look, and I couldn’t fault her for her skepticism.

“I’m not the bad guy, and I believe you must’ve noticed the resemblance between Jason and me. I would never hurt my son,” I said, hoping to soften her resolve.

“It won’t be the first time a father has killed his child. Besides, I’m certain there’s a reason Cara kept you hidden.”

I tugged at my hair in frustration, glancing at the clock. If my suspicions were right, whoever had her would be out for Jason soon if they weren’t already on her, and as smart as she was, I didn’t have the luxury of time, and I had no backup in case we got attacked.

“Here’s what you’re going to do,” I said, turning to her. “You’ll send a message to your local police station, you’ll send one to the FBI, CIA, or whichever one you prefer. You can also share details of your location with them. I don’t care, but I’m not going to sit around and do nothing when I can feel the danger brewing.”

She paused for a while, probably giving a thought to what I just said before picking up her phone and texting rapidly.

“I’ll get Jason,” she said, making her way into the room.

I sent Enzo a quick text to alert him of the situation of things and ask for security to be stationed all over my penthouse before we got there.

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