Page 27 of A Second Dawn

Not long now until I have Ella back in my arms.

At the next intersection, the pickup is forced to break heavily for a red light.

Yes!

It’s exactly what I needed. I’ve got her now.

Come to me, Ella.

We’re pulling up a few cars behind them, and I grab the door handle, ready to swing it open and dash for the truck.

That’s when they suddenly turn right across the intersection, leaving us behind in a cloud of exhaust and dust.

Merda!

In those precious seconds, the traffic thickens ahead of us and we can’t get across.

Fuck, fuck, fuck. We were so close!

In that one instant, everything changes. The pickup disappears into an area with a row of sheds.

“Shit,” Uberto curses. “I’ve lost visual.”

Frustration simmers beneath my skin, threatening like Mount Vesuvius.

I steel myself, pushing aside the panic clawing at my chest.

“Find her,” I command, my voice a taut thread of determination.

“There are no cameras in that area, but I’ve got all the surrounding streets up on the screen. As soon as she’s back on the road, I’ll know.”

We dart down the road we saw the pickup take. The blinding sunlight illuminates my surroundings, the world becoming a whirlwind of colors and motion.

“She’s back,” Uberto announces, followed by, “Oh shit,” the next second.

“What?” I demand. But then I see for myself.

The pickup roars down the road. Out of the blue from behind one of the sheds, three identical vehicles materialize, the four cars moving with calculated precision.

Surprise and disbelief crash over me. Whoever is helping Ella has a well-orchestrated plan worked out. These are no amateurs.

F.U.C.K.

“You know what’s going to happen next,” Santino mutters. “They’re going to go in different directions. Four cars versus two of ours. Which ones will we follow?”

Mangia merde e morte.

This isn’t happening.

“I won’t be able to monitor all four of them,” Uberto’s says, his voice accompanied by the mad clicking of a keyboard.

Determination surges through my veins, pushing me forward despite the doubts that threaten to consume me.

“Tell Stefano to follow one of the cars, we pick another. Uberto, you trace the other two.”

Ella isn’t going to get away.

Chapter Seven

---