Chapter 45
Caterina
I gathered my men in my office. I didn’t care if I wasn’t fully healed yet.
There would be no more moping around, waiting for a miracle to happen.
I would find my wife and bring her home.
Vincenzo fucked himself, and so did every other family associated with him.
Orlov was a traitor to the Petrov family, and on their top priority list next to Vincenzo.
Because of it, I now had more allies to use in this fight.
Roman couldn’t be here in person, so I FaceTimed him so he could be a part of my plan.
“Listen, there is no more waiting. For years, we let Vincenzo operate and destroy lives because we had no choice, but now, the treaty is broken and I have Roman Petrov standing tall,” I started.
Most of my men already knew. “Vincenzo is hiding because he is a coward. Someone in his club has to know where my wife is. We plan a raid. We will save the girls who are trapped there and kill the men who worked for Vincenzo. Clients can surrender or die, too.”
“Boss, you’re still hurt,” Alexi stated the obvious.
“I can still shoot. My goal will be saving the girls and looking for my wife. Malachi, congratulations, you get to be my husband for the night.”
“Damn, we skipped all the bases. Do I need to get on one knee?”
I rolled my eyes as I gave him a sticky note.
“Call this number. Ask for a private viewing of a dozen girls for us to buy. We will have a handful of men in the club, as well. Luca is already working on fake identities to feed into their computers. You will get a girl, but you will not touch her. Your only goal is to save them. Tommaso, tell Gianna her services will be needed once more at the hotel. I will provide whoever she needs to help these women.”
I finished going over the details with them as Roman and Luca each chimed in.
Luca would have everything done tonight, and we could do this tomorrow night.
Roman would deliver more guns to my house along with bombs and grenades.
We would plan a sit down with the other heads of the families in a few weeks once the waters clear to discuss new alliances and deals.
Vincenzo and Orlov’s betrayal affected more than just Petrov and myself, but a handful of other families in the States, and even in Europe and Mexico.
Luca said Lizzy would have details on the men who would be at the club, as I needed to have an idea so I could inform them of who we were dealing with.
I hated having to ask her, but she was my only option.
Things could have changed in the six years she’s been gone, but most things could be the same.
I knocked on Lizzy’s door, but she didn’t answer.
Luca was with Roman, so I knew they weren’t having sex.
I cautiously opened the door, hearing her in the bathroom, throwing up.
I walked inside and she glanced at me before heaving into the toilet once more.
Crouching down next to her, I pulled her hair out of her face.
She hadn’t been eating, and she looked horrible.
She pulled back, resting her head on her arms. “Sorry. I tried to eat, but not eating disagreed with me.”
“It’s okay. Do you want me to have Lena check you out?”
She shook her head. “No. I’m just shit at coping. I’m gonna try to eat soup and crackers tonight before trying to eat Antonio’s amazing pastas.”
“You need to take care of yourself. Harlow…She would want you to take care of yourself. I’ll be out here waiting for you. I need to talk to you.” She nodded and I stepped out of the bathroom and back into the bedroom.
Lizzy was truly an amazing friend to Harlow, but I needed her to take care of herself. I felt like a hypocrite because I was doing a shit job at taking care of myself, too. She stepped back into the bedroom, sitting on her bed.
“What’s up?”
“We are going to destroy the club. I know it’s going to be hard, but can you tell me anything?” I asked.
Her eyes went glassy for a second before she shook whatever memory she saw from her mind.
“If it will help, I’ll do my best. I haven’t thought of the club in a while.
It’s where he sells the women. You need to check everywhere because he has lots of rooms, and even a basement,” she explained.
“Sebastian will be the leader. He was in charge of the club when Xavier and Vincenzo were absent. Andrey, Killian, and Roberto are also big players at the club. Andrey…he got the girls. He was…he was the one who took me.”
I grabbed her hand. “I’m going to make them pay, Lizzy. I’m going to save as many girls as I can while we try to find Harlow and get rid of his mark for good.”
She nodded. “I don’t know how many girls are still there from my time, but Harlow had more girls there she cared for. If you mention Harlow’s name, some of them might believe you are there to help them.”
“I’ll make sure I get them here safely. Are there any other locations we need to check?”
“The warehouse. If we weren’t at the club, we were there. I think it’s further back behind the club because when we tried to escape, we saw gravel and trees, but it didn’t take long to get to the club. We were always blindfolded.”
“We’ll send a drone to investigate.”
“Harlow is going to be proud when we find her, knowing you saved them.”
“I should’ve done it sooner regardless of a war. Get some rest. I’ll check in on you and keep you updated.”