The Mafia Boss's Son Reached For Me At His Wedding—Then I Looked Up At His Dead Wife’s Face

Alexander slammed his fist against the dashboard so hard the plastic cracked. ""Lucas..."" he hissed through his teeth, the vein in his temple throbbing with lethal anger.

Lucas Whitmore was Alexander’s younger half-brother, the charming financier who handled the syndicate’s offshore accounts and public charity foundations. He had always played the part of the devoted, harmless younger sibling who wanted nothing to do with the cartel's violent operations.

""He promised Victoria she would be the queen of the syndicate once you were removed,"" Eleanor explained, leaning her head against my shoulder as I wrapped my coat around her shivering body. ""He was the one who tampered with my brakes two years ago. Victoria only carried out the cover-up because she thought you would marry her out of convenience to keep Oliver safe.""

""He used Oliver as leverage from the very beginning,"" Alexander muttered, his voice dropping into a register of terrifying calm. ""Every move he made was designed to isolate my son and corner me into stepping down.""

My heart went cold thinking of Oliver, currently tucked into his crib at the compound with only Martha and a handful of guards to protect him. ""Alexander, we have to get back. If Lucas realizes the clinic was breached, he will take Oliver!""

""He’s already moving,"" Alexander said, checking the tactical dashboard display. The tracking signal for the compound’s main gates was flashing red. ""Communications with the main house have been severed. Lucas just jammed the local towers.""

Alexander turned to me and Eleanor. His gaze flicked between the two of us, calculating an impossible strategy in seconds. ""They don't know both of you are alive. As far as Lucas and Victoria know, one of you was supposed to be dead in that clinic fire, and the other was supposed to be executed at the docks.""

""What are you saying?"" I asked, leaning in.

""We use your faces against them,"" Alexander said, an icy smile touching the corner of his lips. ""Claire, you walk in through the front gate dressed as Eleanor. You pretend you survived the fire and came back to confront Lucas. He will focus every single guard and weapon on you to finish the job.""

""And while he's focused on me?"" I asked, feeling the rush of adrenaline ignite my blood.

""Eleanor stays hidden with Roman at the perimeter gate,"" Alexander continued, his silver eyes flashing with deadly intent. ""And I go in through the drainage tunnels to tear Lucas’s throat out before he can lay a single finger on my son.""