Page 39 of Vows Made in Silence
Gunfire erupts, automatic and brutal. Junior’s men pivot, caught between targets. I shout orders, ducking behind the door as bullets rip through metal and night.
Smoke. Screams. Chaos.
Through the mayhem, I spot Nick diving toward Daniel—he tackles the man holding him, both crashing into the dirt.
More shots.
Junior takes one to the chest. Another to the leg. Still firing back.
Then I hear Turk’s voice, raw and distant, over the comms. “They have him. Luca—they’ve got the boy!”
I sprint through smoke, cutting past burning wreckage and bodies. But the second van’s already moving, tires spinning, back doors slamming shut with Daniel inside.
Nick lies in the dirt, blood seeping from a gut wound. He grips his radio, voice trembling. “We tried… we tried, boss… Tell her I’m sorry…”
Turk’s voice cuts through. “They’re heading north. Interstate access. We’re regrouping to follow.”
And just like that—my promise shatters.
Daniel is gone.
___
The pain in my ribs is sharp, but it’s nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
I close my eyes for half a second and picture Daniel’s face—those curious eyes, the stubborn chin, the way he always leaves thecrusts on his plate. He’s waiting for me. He’s terrified. And I’m not letting him die at the hands of a Moretti enemy to pay for our sins.
Turk’s men rush me into the compound like I’m made of glass. I’m not. I’m splintered steel held together by a mother’s fury.
The moment I’m through the doors; I twist in their grip. “I’m not staying locked in here while he’s out there!”
Leo steps forward, blood on his sleeve, jaw tight. “Luca gave the order. You don’t move without us. No exceptions.”
I stare at him, wild-eyed, furious. “My son is out there.”
He nods, and for the first time, I see the grief in his eyes. “And the boss will bring him home. But if you leave now, you risk everything he’s doing to make that happen.”
My knees threaten to buckle. I grip the edge of the steel door, letting its coldness seep into my bones.
I know I have no choice. I have to believe in the man who once shattered me—a man I learned to hate.
I’m escorted inside to a war room that’s fortified beyond anything I’ve ever seen. Walls layered with ballistic panels. LED-lit consoles humming with encrypted surveillance systems. Tactical operators swarm the space like nerves in a living organism. Guns are laid out like holy relics, polished and loaded. Touchscreens blink with live drone feeds and AI-enhanced thermal imaging. A massive 3D map of Las Vegas dominates the center of the room—digital markers pulsing like pressure points along a spine—veins to a heart they’re ready to stop.
Everything here screams precision. Power. Retaliation.
Leo sits across from me, a radio buzzing faint static.
I wrap my arms around myself and sit. But I can’t stop the whisper escaping my lips.
"Luca, bring him back. Please."
The radio crackles—and then a voice. Not Luca’s. A man I haven’t heard from in years.
“Giuliana... you always did bring out the worst in powerful men.”
—
My blood turns to ice.
