Page 34 of Claimed By the Don

When she tells me I can hate her later, after we find our son, it nearly breaks me. I have to take in a deep breath and shove those emotions back down deep. I might need to go to dark places to save that boy’s life and I cannot allow fear, sorrow, or pain to cloud my judgment.

We walk out of the police station, and I brief Gino.

“The Calabrian Gardens building,” I say.

He drives and Daisy holds my hand and looks at me, scared, hopeful. I force myself to form words.

“The Gardens is a new development, been in the works a couple years. Apartments, townhouses, a pool, a gym, all the fancy shit. Grigo’s mom just moved in there last month.”

“Grigo?”

“He’s making a run for the territory.”

“Another family?”

“Myfamily,” I bite out.

“Shit,” she says, “mutiny.”

“Betrayal,” I say, “a killing offense.”

“You think he has Liam,” she says.

“I’m about to find out.”

The gated housing development is shiny and new, stucco and terracotta tiles, iron gates, a guardhouse. Grigo put his mom here so he could keep her safe. Except he didn’t think I knew.

I ring the doorbell at the second townhouse, pool view. An older woman answers the door.

“Benny! Oh, I’m so sorry to hear about your dad. Come in. Let me get you something to eat.”

Grigo’s mom has always been a sweet lady, too bad she’s got a snake for a son. She ushers us in and starts taking things out of her refrigerator—soup and pasta to reheat, a pink bakery box tied with twine. She bustles around, making espresso and setting out the tin of amaretti cookies.

“Thank you,” Daisy says. “I don’t know how to ask you this—my little boy, Liam, is missing—” she shows his picture.

“What a handsome young man!’ she says, gushing over the picture. “I had no idea you were a daddy now,” she says to me. “Those beautiful eyes, no way anybody can’t tell he’s a Falconari.”

“That’s the problem,” I say. “He was kidnapped from school today, and like you said, he’s obviously a Falconari. We think Grigo took him.

“My Gregory? Look at how good he takes care of me, puts me in this fancy place with a driver and everything. He’s such a good son. He would never hurt a child or anyone else. He’s just expanding his business.”

“No, ma’am. He’s aftermybusiness. Your Gregory had my dad shot this morning. He’s trying to stage a takeover, and I’m going to need your help making him see sense.”

“What do you mean?” she stops heating soup on the stove and comes to us at the table again. I can tell she doesn’t want to believe this.

“Your son has always been family to me, like a cousin. Good head on his shoulders and kept the outcome for the company in mind.Until he went off the rails and got big ideas a few months ago. He decided he could do a better job at running the organization than my dad or myself. He’s been fighting for more territory and I set up a meeting to work out a compromise. While we were sitting down to lunch, he had my father gunned down in the street and bragged about it. You think he wouldn’t try to leverage the life of my child?” I say as calmly as I can.

“Can you help us?” Daisy asks. “I know how much you love your son, the same way I love mine.”

“I don’t know what you expect me to do—” she says, clearly upset.

“I want you to Facetime Grigo. Now.”

Flustered, she gets her phone off the charger and sits down, taps the screen. When the call connects, I take the phone.

“Hi Grigo. I’m here with your mom,” I say. “I want to see my son.”

“What the fuck?”

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