Chapter 7 - The PierRafael tried to stop me.
I threatened to steal his car.
He pointed out I didn’t know where the keys were.
I told him I would take Luca’s Ferrari.
He looked genuinely horrified.
That was how I won.
Ten minutes later, Rafael and I were following Luca toward Manhattan in an unmarked SUV.
“You understand he’ll fire me,” Rafael said.
“He can rehire you after we save him.”
“He may kill me.”
“That would undermine his legitimate-business transformation.”
Rafael glanced at me.
“You make jokes when terrified.”
“Apparently.”
We had one advantage.
Luca believed Dominic had disabled the GPS tracker in his vehicle.
He had.
What Dominic did not know was that Rafael had placed a second tracker inside Luca’s watch months earlier after a security incident.
“Does Luca know?”
“No.”
“So you’re stalking your boss.”
“For security.”
I looked at him.
He sighed.
“Yes. I hear it now.”
Pier Seventeen was mostly abandoned after midnight.
Warehouses.
Containers.
Black river.
Industrial lights.
Rafael stopped two blocks away.
“We wait for tactical support.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“Mateo is in there.”
“And rushing inside gets him killed.”
I hated rational people.
We watched through binoculars.
Luca crossed the open loading area alone.
Dominic waited beneath a warehouse awning with four men.
Mateo sat in a chair nearby.
Alive.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
No obvious injuries.
Luca removed a folder from inside his coat.
Documents.
Dominic examined them.
Then laughed.
Even from the distance, I could see Luca looking only at Mateo.
“Something is wrong,” Rafael whispered.
“What?”
“Dominic has the papers.”
“So?”
“If this were only about ownership, Mateo would already be released.”
I saw it too.
Dominic handed the folder to one of his men.
Then drew a gun.
“No.”
I opened the door.
Rafael grabbed me.
“Claire.”
“He’s going to kill Luca.”
“Police are ninety seconds away.”
“Ninety seconds is forever when someone has a gun.”
Then Mateo did something no one expected.
He bit the man holding him.
Hard.
The man shouted.
Mateo ran.
Dominic turned.
Luca lunged.
The gun fired.
Chaos exploded.
I was out of the vehicle before Rafael could catch me.
“Mateo!”
He heard me.
“Claire!”
He ran toward my voice.
A second man moved to intercept him.
Rafael tackled him.
Gunshots cracked behind us.
I grabbed Mateo and pulled him behind a concrete barrier.
“Are you hurt?”
He sobbed.
“No.”
“Stay down.”
“Papa!”
“I know.”
I looked over the barrier.
Luca and Dominic were fighting.
No elegant movie choreography.
Two furious men slipping on wet concrete, throwing ugly punches.
Dominic had lost the gun.
Luca was bleeding from the mouth.
Sirens screamed nearby.
Dominic heard them.
He broke free and ran toward the river.
Luca followed.
“Don’t!” I shouted.
He didn’t hear me.
Or ignored me.
They reached the edge of the pier.
Dominic turned.
A knife flashed.
He drove it toward Luca’s stomach.
Luca caught his wrist.
They struggled.
Police flooded the loading area.
“Drop the weapon!”
Dominic laughed.
Actually laughed.
Then looked at Luca.
“You ruined everything.”
Luca’s voice carried across the pier.
“No.”
He twisted Dominic’s wrist until the knife fell.
“You did.”
Dominic swung.
Luca ducked.
For a terrifying moment, Dominic lost balance.
He slipped backward over the edge.
Luca caught his arm.
Everyone froze.
Dominic dangled above the black river.
Luca could have let go.
Nobody would have questioned it.
Maybe nobody would even have blamed him.
Dominic had threatened Mateo.
Shot Luca.
Kidnapped a child.
Destroyed lives.
I watched Luca’s hand tighten around his brother’s wrist.
Dominic looked up.
“Do it.”
Luca stared down at him.
“Let go.”
Dominic smiled.
“You always wanted to.”
I saw the old Luca then.
The man from the ballroom.
The one people feared.
The man who could solve problems permanently.
Then Mateo appeared beside me.
“Papa!”
Luca looked toward his son.
And everything changed.
He pulled Dominic upward.
Police seized him.
Handcuffs clicked.
Dominic screamed.
“You coward!”
Luca didn’t react.
“You should have killed me!”
Luca wiped blood from his mouth.
“No.”
He looked at Mateo.
“My son has seen enough death.”
Dominic was dragged away.
I ran toward Luca.
He reached for Mateo first.
Of course he did.
Mateo jumped into his arms.
Luca buried his face against his son’s neck.
Then he looked over Mateo’s shoulder.
At me.
“You followed me.”
I was crying and furious.
“You’re welcome.”
“I told you—”
“I know what you told me.”
“You could have been killed.”
“So could you.”
“That is different.”
“No, it isn’t.”
“It absolutely—”
I kissed him.
Right there.
Police everywhere.
Rafael bleeding from one eyebrow.
Mateo trapped between us and complaining.
“Ew.”
I pulled away.
Luca stared at me.
“You are completely impossible.”
“I know.”
“You disobeyed direct instructions.”
“I don’t work for you anymore.”
His face changed.
“What?”
“I quit.”
His expression went blank.
“Why?”
“Because I’m not kissing my employer.”
Rafael turned away, shoulders shaking.
Luca stared at him.
“Are you laughing?”
“No.”
“You’re fired.”
Rafael nodded solemnly.
“Yes, sir.”
I touched Luca’s face.
“I love you too.”
The anger disappeared.
“What?”
“You told me earlier.”
His eyes searched mine.
“I thought I might die.”
“Romantic.”
“I meant it.”
“So do I.”
For a moment, the pier, police, sirens, and entire disastrous Moretti empire disappeared.
There was only Luca.
Then one detective approached.
“Mr. Moretti?”
Luca turned.
“We need to talk.”
“About Dominic?”
The detective’s expression was serious.
“About him. And about you.”
Luca became still.
The detective continued.
“Your attorney contacted federal prosecutors three weeks ago regarding cooperation.”
I looked at Luca.
He hadn’t told me.
The detective nodded toward the police vehicles.
“Tonight changes things.”
“How?”
“Your brother is prepared to accuse you of multiple felonies.”
Luca’s face revealed nothing.
The detective lowered his voice.
“He’s claiming you ordered three murders.”
My stomach turned.
I looked at Luca.
“Did you?”
May you like
He didn’t answer.
And that silence frightened me more than anything Dominic had done.
