Chapter 7 - The Hostage
Consciousness returned in waves of agonizing throbbing behind my eyes.
The air was frigid, smelling strongly of gasoline, damp salt, and rusted iron. I tried to move, but coarse ropes bound my wrists tightly to a metal support pillar behind me. My beautiful emerald gown was torn at the hem, smeared with soot and dirt.
""Ah, the sleeping beauty awakens,"" a voice sneered from the darkness.
Footsteps echoed across the concrete. Victor Moretti stepped into the pool of dim halogen light, holding a glass of cheap bourbon. Flanking him were half a dozen men carrying heavy automatic rifles.
""Victor,"" I spat, coughing as the dust irritated my throat. ""Dominic will tear you apart for this.""
Victor threw his head back and laughed, a shrill, grating sound. ""Dominic is a dead man walking. He thinks he rules New York because he strikes fear into people. But a beast that falls in love is just an animal waiting for slaughter.""
He stepped forward, kneeling in front of me with a cruel sneer. ""Do you know where we are, Lily? We're at Pier 42. Dominic’s primary shipping hub. I’ve wired the entire warehouse with C4 explosives. In forty minutes, Dominic will arrive alone to trade his empire for your life. And when he walks through that rusted door, I will detonate the charges, wiping out the Vale leadership in a single glorious explosion.""
A cold dread flooded my veins. ""He won't come alone. He’s smarter than you.""
""He will,"" Victor smiled, pulling a phone from his pocket and displaying a live video feed.
On the screen was Dominic Vale. He was driving his personal car at breakneck speeds through the rain-slicked streets of Brooklyn, his face pale with frantic, unmasked terror. The ruthless mafia kingpin looked completely unhinged.
""I told him if he brought a single man, I’d slice your pretty throat,"" Victor chuckled. ""Look at him, Lily. The untouchable boss, breaking his own rules, abandoning his army, rushing to his own execution like a foolish boy.""
Tears burned my eyes, but this time they were not tears of fear for myself. They were tears of heartbreak for Dominic. He had spent his entire life in emotional isolation to keep himself safe from betrayal, and the moment he let someone into his heart, that person had become a weapon pointed directly at his chest.
""Victor, please,"" I begged, struggling against the ropes until the coarse fibers cut into my skin. ""Take the ports. Take the money. Don't do this to him!""
""Too late, sweetheart,"" Victor sneered, checking his gold Rolex. ""He’s outside.""
The heavy metal roller-doors of the warehouse shuddered.
With a deafening crash, the locks shattered inward. A lone silhouette stepped through the thick mist of the rain into the vast, cavernous warehouse.
It was Dominic.
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He wore no body armor, carried no drawn weapon. His hair was soaked with rain, his dark eyes blazing with an unholy, terrifying fire that made even Victor’s armed goons take a hesitant step backward.
""I am here, Victor,"" Dominic’s voice echoed across the steel beams, terrifyingly steady. ""Release her.""
