Page 82 of Ruthless Royalty

“I don’t know,” I say, pulling out my phone, my hands trembling slightly as I navigate to the GPS app. “But I’m going to find out.”

“What are you doing?” Mihai says, eyeing me suspiciously. His voice, usually smooth, is clipped with tension.

“I gave her a gift before break,” I explain, focusing on the screen. “A dagger pendant. It has a tracking device embedded in it. Just in case something like this happened.”

Connor lets out a low whistle, crossing his arms as he watches me with a raised eyebrow. “Did she know about that little addition, mate?”

I shoot him a look, smirking though it feels hollow. “No, she didn’t. But I wasn’t about to take any chances with her safety, especially not with everything that’s been going on.”

Nikolai shakes his head, a begrudging respect flickering in his eyes. “Of course, you’d do something like that. Always got to be in control, huh?”

“Damn right,” I mutter, staring at the screen as the GPS signal pings. A red dot appears on the map—Brooklyn. My stomach drops.

“There,” I say, showing the others the screen. “She’s in Brooklyn. Near the docks.”

“Shit,” Mihai curses, running a hand through his dark curls. “That’s a fucking warzone right now, with everything going down between your family and the Giannini’s.”

“I don’t know what the hell she’s doing there, but it’s not a place she should be alone,” I grit out, fury boiling under my skin.

Connor shoots me a sharp look. “What’s the plan, G? We can’t just go bargin’ in there without backup.”

“We need to move, now,” I snarl, already heading toward my car. “We can talk plans on the way.”

Nikolai grabs my arm, stopping me. “We can’t go in there alone, Gio. You know what’s happening in Brooklyn. If Chiara gets caught up in that mess, we’re fucked. We need more than just the four of us.”

I rip my arm away, the frustration boiling over. “We don’t have time for this! She’s out there?—”

“Exactly. You really think we’re walking in there blind? No. We’re getting backup.”

Nikolai doesn’t wait for my response. He’s already moving, heading towards the door that leads to Dmitri’s study.

“Let’s go,” he says over his shoulder, his tone leaving no room for debate. “My father needs to know what’s happening, and we need to bring as much firepower as we can.”

I follow him, my jaw clenched. The Giannini’s wouldn’t hesitate to use Chiara against me if they found out who she was. And if she got caught in the middle of something...

No. I can’t think like that.

We burst into Dmitri’s study without knocking, and the Pakhan looks up from his desk, his expression darkening at the sight of us. He’s a man who’s seen it all—war, bloodshed, betrayal—and he’s not easily rattled. But as Nikolai quickly explains the situation, I see a flicker of something in Dmitri’s eyes that sends a chill down my spine.

It’s fear—an emotion I’ve rarely seen on his face.

“Are you telling me,” Dmitri starts slowly, his voice deadly calm as he gets to his feet, bracing his hands on his desk, “that my stepdaughter is in Brooklyn alone, in the middle of a war between two Mafia families?”

Nikolai nods, his expression grim. “That’s exactly what we’re saying.”

Dmitri’s gaze shifts to me, and I can see the accusation in his eyes, even before he speaks.

“This is what I was fucking scared of when I spoke to her theother night,” he says, pinching the bridge of his nose. “We should have called you to check if she was there. Shit, Giovanni, what the fuck did you say to her?”

My anger flares at his tone, but I swallow it down. Now isn’t the time to start trading blame.

“We almost broke up,” I say, my voice tight. “She didn’t tell me where she was going, and I didn’t know where she was until we tracked her. But now that we know, we need to move. We can’t stand around and argue, sir.”

Mihai and Connor exchange glances, standing off to the side but tense, ready to spring into action.

“Dmitri, we need to move fast. She’s in Brooklyn, and you know how bad that area is with the Giannini’s moving in. If we don’t get to her soon—“ Mihai doesn’t finish, but the implication is clear. Time is running out.

“We’ve got the manpower, boss,” Connor adds. “We just need to know if we’re doing this with a full squad, or if we go in more covert. Either way, we need to move now.”

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