Page 16 of Lord of Little Italy

The way she looked at me before I pushed her away.

Never again.

If - when - I get her back, I'm done being a coward. Done putting politics before what matters. Done pretending I'm not completely, hopelessly in love with the most incredible woman I've ever met.

"Boss?" Tommy appears again, tablet in hand. "We got movement in Red Hook. Black SUV matching the description just pulled into a warehouse complex."

"Get me visual confirmation," I bark. "And get every available man—"

My phone buzzes. Unknown number.

The room goes silent as I answer.

"Rivera."

A pause. Then a voice I don't recognize: "We have the girl."

Ice fills my veins. But when I speak, my voice is steady. Controlled. The voice of a man who's about to unleash hell.

"Listen carefully," I say. "Because I'm only going to say this once. Return her - unharmed - and you might live to see tomorrow. Hurt her, and there won't be a hole deep enough to hide in. I will burn this city to the ground to find you. And when I do..."

"Interesting." The voice sounds amused. "We were told you were just a business partner. But you sound like a man in love."

"I'm a man who's going to kill you. Slowly. That's all you need to know."

"Such passion. Does Dom know you want to fuck his sister?"

Red clouds my vision. "When I find you—"

"If," the voice corrects.

"Touch her and I'll make you beg for death."

"You have twenty-four hours to gather twenty million in cash. We'll contact you with delivery instructions." A pause. "And Rivera? Keep the police out of this. Or we send her back in pieces."

The line goes dead.

Dom looks at me. I look at him. No more pretense. No more hiding.

"Red Hook?" he asks.

I check my gun, tuck it into my holster. Around us, men are already moving, arming themselves, preparing for war.

"Red Hook."

Let them run. Let them hide. Let them pray to whatever god they believe in.

It won't matter.

They took Isabella.

And I'm coming for her.

Chapter 10

Isabella

The city blurs past the tinted windows of Dom's SUV. Red Hook's warehouses loom ahead, dark shapes against a darker sky. My knee bounces with barely contained energy, each second feeling like an hour. The weight of my gun against my side should be comforting - familiar - but tonight it's not enough.

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