"What do you want?"
"I'll be in touch with my demands. In the meantime, I suggest you don't do anything stupid. Any attempt to rescue her will result in her immediate death. And the baby's. Do you understand?"
I have to force the words out through gritted teeth. "I understand."
"Good." There's a pause. "She's very beautiful when she's scared, you know. The way her hands shake. The way she keeps touching her stomach, trying to protect something she can't protect. It's almost touching."
The line goes dead. I spin, slamming my fist against the wall hard enough to crack the plaster. Pain explodes through my knuckles, but I barely feel it.
"Luca." Romeo grabs my arm. "Stop. You're not helping her by?—"
"He threatened the baby." My voice doesn't sound like mine. "He's using the baby to control her. To terrify her. And I'm not there. I can't?—"
I can't protect her. Can't do anything except stand here and wait for Alessandro to call back with his demands.
"We'll get her back." Romeo's grip on my arm tightens. "I promise you, we'll get her back."
"How?" I turn to face him. "He's in Marchesi territory. He's fortified. He has her, and he knows we can't move without risking her life."
"Then we negotiate." Dante's voice cuts through my panic. "We give him what he wants, and we get Giulia back."
"And if what he wants is unreasonable?" one of the capos asks. "If he demands territory, we can't give up, or resources we can't spare?"
"Then we find a way to get to him." Dante's expression is cold. "We’ll make him believe he will get what he wants and lure him into a false sense of security.”
The words should be comforting, but they're not. I know what Alessandro really wants. He wants me to suffer. He wants revenge for the humiliation of losing Giulia. And he's using her and our baby to make it happen.
"There has to be another way." Romeo is looking at the map, his tactical mind working. "Some way to get to her without triggering a war."
"There isn't." The other capo shakes his head. "The warehouse is a fortress. Even if we could get inside, Alessandro would kill her before we reached her."
"Then we wait for his demands." Dante starts gathering the maps. "We prepare for negotiation.”
"No." I'm surprised by the firmness in my voice. "We don't wait or negotiate. We get her out."
"Luca, that's suicide?—"
"I don't care." I meet Dante's eyes. "You want to negotiate? Fine. But I'm not leaving her in that warehouse one second longer than necessary. So while you're preparing your offers and your compromises, I'm preparing a rescue."
"You'll get her killed." His voice is sharp. "You heard Alessandro. Any rescue attempt?—"
"Will be done right." I turn to Romeo. "I need blueprints of that warehouse. Security assessments, guard rotations, everything."
Romeo looks at Dante.
Dante studies me for a long moment, then nods slowly. "Get him what he needs."
"Sir, with respect—" The capo starts.
"Get him what he needs," Dante repeats. "Luca is right. We prepare for negotiation. But we also prepare for extraction. If Alessandro's demands are unreasonable, we'll need another option."
Romeo is already on his phone, calling contacts and requesting information. I should feel relief. Instead, all I feel is the crushing weight of time passing. Every minute Giulia is in that warehouse is another minute she's terrified, another minute Alessandro has to hurt her, threaten her, use the baby as leverage. Another minute I'm failing to protect her.
"Luca." Romeo disconnects his call and moves closer. "We'll get her back. I promise."
"You can't promise that."
"Yes, I can." His voice is firm and absolute. "Because I'm not letting my sister die. And I'm not letting my best friend destroy himself trying to save her alone."
