52

52
Alaric’s POV
My phone buzzed on the desk behind me. I knew it was Allesio without even looking at the screen. He was the only one who would call at this hour unless it was an emergency.
“Speak,” I said, answering the call.
“Boss,” Allesio’s voice was low and urgent. “I’m outside. We need to talk.”
I hung up without replying, already making my way to the front entrance. When I pulled open the heavy doors, Allesio was standing on the steps, his face shadowed in the dim light. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days, and I knew whatever he had found wasn’t good.
“Let’s go to the study,” I said, leading him inside. The mansion’s staff had long since retreated to their quarters, giving us the privacy we needed. As we entered the study, I closed the door behind us and gestured for him to sit.
He didn’t. He paced instead, running a hand through his hair in a rare display of frustration. “Alaric, it’s worse than we thought,” he began. “The threats-it’s not just some lone wolf trying to scare you. This is organized. It’s deliberate.”
I clenched my jaw, fighting to keep my expression neutral. “Tell me everything.”
Allesio stopped pacing and faced me, his eyes sharp with intensity. “I dug into the letter, the handwriting, the phrasing. It’s not random. It matches communications we’ve intercepted before-from a rival group. It’s the Santorini family.”
The name hit me like a punch to the gut. The Santorinis had been lying low for years after their leader died. They’d splintered, their operations faltering. But if they were back now, and targeting me through my daughter… I swallowed hard, feeling a surge of anger boiling up from deep inside me.
“They’re trying to exploit your vulnerability,” Allesio continued, watching my reaction closely. “They know Francesca is your weak spot. They’re counting on the fact that you’d be more protective, more emotional, if she’s involved.”
I turned away from him, staring once again out the window but not really seeing the city lights anymore. The realization that someone was using my daughter to get to me felt like ice spreading through my veins. It wasn’t just an attack on me-it was an attack on my family, on the small, fragile piece of my life I actually cared about.
“And Emilia?” I asked, my voice rough. “Was she a target, or just collateral?”
Allesio hesitated, which was all the answer I needed. “I don’t think they know the full extent of her involvement,” he said slowly. “But they might suspect something. Her presence here is still relatively new. If they know she’s close to Francesca…”
I slammed my fist down onto the desk, the sound echoing through the room. “This is unacceptable,” I snarled. “They’ve crossed a line.”
Allesio nodded, his face set in a grim expression. “I agree. But we need to be smart about this, Alaric. They’re baiting you. If you react too quickly, too aggressively, we play right into their hands.”
I knew he was right. It was one thing to be angry, another to be reckless. But every instinct in me screamed to retaliate, to make them regret even thinking about threatening my little girl.
“Tell me what you’ve found,” I said, forcing myself to calm down. “All of it.”
“We’ve confirmed that a few of their key players have been spotted in the city over the past month,” Allesio said. He pulled a small notebook from his pocket, flipping it open. “And they’re not here by accident. They’ve been meeting in places that are way too close to our operations for comfort. It’s like they’re circling us, testing the waters.”
“And you think this is the start of something bigger?” I asked, my voice low.
Allesio met my gaze, unflinching. “I do. They’re probing for weaknesses. And they’ve decided to start with the most obvious one.”
Francesca. The realization twisted in my gut, leaving me feeling raw and exposed. I knew I should have shielded her from this world the moment she was born. Kept her a secret or whatever. But I’d thought I could keep her safe. That was my job, my responsibility. And now I was being shown just how wrong I might have been.
“I want increased surveillance on all their known associates,” I ordered. “If they’re here, I want to know where they’re staying, who they’re meeting, what they’re eating for breakfast. I want everything.”
“I’ve already started,” Allesio replied, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. It was a grim smile, but it was there. He lived for this kind of work-the hunt, the strategy. “But I need to know, Alaric… how far are you willing to go with this?”
I turned to face him fully, letting him see the darkness in my eyes. “As far as I need to,” I said coldly. “If they think they can use my daughter as leverage, I’ll make an example out of them that the entire city won’t forget.”
Allesio nodded, satisfied. “I thought you’d say that. I’ll keep digging. There’s bound to be a pattern we can exploit.”
“Good.” I took a deep breath, forcing myself to think clearly. “And Emilia?”
“What about her?” Allesio asked, raising an eyebrow.
“She’s scared,” I admitted, hating the way the words tasted in my mouth. “She feels guilty, like she’s the reason for this.”
Allesio’s expression softened slightly. “She cares about Francesca,” he said simply. “More than I think she expected to. That kind of guilt isn’t rational, Alaric. It’s emotional. She’s worried because she’s invested.”
I nodded slowly, understanding more than I wanted to admit. Emilia’s worry wasn’t a weakness. It was a sign that she was already part of this twisted, complicated family I’d built. Whether she realized it or not, she was in this as deeply as the rest of us.
“Keep an eye on her too,” I said finally. “But don’t make it obvious. She’s already feeling cornered.”
“Understood,” Allesio said. He paused for a moment, as if considering his next words carefully. “You know, this could be a good thing.”
I shot him a sharp look. “How the hell do you figure that?”
“They’re overplaying their hand,” he explained. “If the Santorinis are desperate enough to go after Francesca, it means they’re weaker than we thought. They wouldn’t resort to this unless they were running out of options.”
I mulled that over, pacing back and forth behind my desk. He was right, as usual. The Santorinis weren’t strong enough to challenge me directly, so they were going after my weakest link. It was a bold move, but it was also reckless. And recklessness could be exploited.
“Then we’ll use that,” I decided. “We’ll make them think they’ve got us on the defensive, and then we’ll strike when they least expect it.”
Allesio’s smile widened, the glint of a predator in his eyes. “Now that’s the Alaric I know.”
I returned his smile, though it felt more like baring my teeth. The fury inside me hadn’t subsided, but it had been tempered into something far more dangerous. Cold, calculating rage.
“Keep me updated on their movements,” I said. “And Allesio…”
He looked up, waiting.
“If they make another move against Francesca,” I said, my voice deadly quiet, “I want their blood. All of it.”
“You have my word,” he replied, his voice equally cold. He turned and left the study, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
I stood there for a long time, staring out into the darkness. Somewhere out there, the Santorini’s were plotting, thinking they had found a chink in my armor. They thought they could use my daughter against me.
They had no idea what they’d just started.