Chapter 61 The Drive
Alexander — POV
The disposable phone buzzed again in my hand.
The screen lit up with another message.
Get in the red car and drive. Key’s already inside.
I slipped the phone into my pocket and scanned the harbor one last time.
Empty.
Quiet.
Too quiet.
Moretti was careful. Always had been.
This was a controlled game, and he was pacing every move.
Fine.
I turned away from the water and walked toward the red car waiting under the flickering streetlight.
The parking lot near the docks was nearly empty.
A few scattered vehicles.
A flickering streetlight.
The distant hum of traffic from the highway.
I unlocked the red car and slid into the driver’s seat.
For a moment, I just sat there.
Hands resting on the wheel.
Engine silent.
Waiting for the next move.
My hands rested on the steering wheel.
And suddenly all I could see was Isabella that morning.
Standing on the sidewalk outside the campus building.
Her hair falling over her shoulders, sunlight catching in it.
She had smiled at me.
That soft, teasing smile she used whenever she thought I was being ridiculous.
You worry too much.
Maybe I did.
But I had never been more afraid in my entire life than I was right now.
Because I had seen the picture.
The vest.
The wires.
The fear in her eyes.
My hand tightened on the wheel.
“Hold on,” I muttered under my breath.
The phone buzzed again.
I picked it up immediately.
A new message appeared.
Drive east.
Then another.
Stay on the main road for ten minutes.
No address.
No explanation.
Just instructions.
I started the engine.
The car rolled slowly out of the parking lot and onto the road. The city lights stretched out ahead of me, glowing against the dark sky.
Ten minutes.
I could do ten minutes.
My mind, however, refused to stay quiet.
Every thought kept circling back to the same place.
Isabella.
Where was she right now?
Was she still tied to that chair?
Was someone standing there watching her?
Had Moretti touched her?
The thought made something violent twist inside my chest.
My fingers tightened around the steering wheel until my knuckles went white.
If he had hurt her—
If he had laid a hand on her—
I exhaled slowly through my teeth, forcing the thought away before I lost control.
Because losing control right now would get her killed.
And that was the one thing I could not allow.
The phone buzzed again.
I glanced down.
Good. Keep driving.
My jaw tightened.
He was watching.
Somehow.
Somewhere.
Probably through traffic cameras. Maybe someone following from a distance. Moretti had always been meticulous about these things.
I drove in silence for several minutes.
The city slowly changed around me. The bright downtown streets faded into quieter industrial roads. Warehouses and shipping yards replaced restaurants and office buildings.
The farther I drove, the darker the streets became.
The phone buzzed again.
Turn right at the next intersection.
I did.
Another buzz.
Continue straight.
I followed every instruction exactly.
Every turn.
Every mile.
Every second felt heavier than the last.
Because the closer I got to him—
The closer I got to Isabella—
The more I felt something building inside me.
Not fear.
Something darker.
Something colder.
Rage.
Moretti had tried to take many things from me over the years.
Business.
Allies.
But this—
This was different.
This was Isabella.
The one person in the world I had never wanted dragged into any of this.
And now she was sitting somewhere with a bomb strapped to her chest because of me.
My hands tightened again.
I had spent my entire life building power.
Control.
Protection.
And none of it had been enough to keep her safe.
The phone buzzed again.
I picked it up instantly.
Another message appeared.
You’re getting close.
My chest tightened.
Then another.
You’re doing very well, Alexander.
The casual tone made my teeth grind.
Another message came seconds later.
Most men would have brought an army by now.
My eyes stayed fixed on the road.
He wanted to provoke me.
Push me.
Make me angry enough to make a mistake.
I refused to give him that satisfaction.
The next message appeared.
But you…
Three dots flashed on the screen as he typed.
Then finished the sentence.
You came alone.
My voice came out low as I spoke to the empty car.
“You told me to.”
The phone buzzed again.
Yes. I did.
A pause.
Then another message.
Which is why your wife is still breathing.
My chest tightened painfully.
The car slowed slightly as I approached another intersection.
Another message appeared.
Turn left.
I followed the instruction.
The road ahead narrowed now, leading deeper into the industrial district. Large warehouses loomed in the distance, their dark shapes stretching across the skyline.
Another message appeared.
You’re almost here.
My pulse quickened.
Then the final instruction came.
The warehouse with the broken lights.
My eyes lifted.
About two hundred yards ahead—
A massive building stood alone.
Half the exterior lights were shattered.
Only a single dim bulb flickered above the entrance.
The phone buzzed one last time.
Park outside.
Then come in.
A pause.
And then the final message appeared.
Alone.
I slowed the car until it rolled to a stop in front of the warehouse.
For a moment, I didn’t move.
The building loomed in front of me like something out of a nightmare.
Somewhere inside—
Isabella was waiting.
I shut off the engine.
The silence inside the car was deafening.
My heart pounded once.
Twice.
Then I opened the door and stepped out.
Cold air hit my face as I walked toward the entrance.
Every instinct in my body told me I was walking into a trap.
But that didn’t matter.
Because traps only worked if you cared about getting out alive.
And right now—
The only thing I cared about was getting Isabella out.
I reached the warehouse door.
My hand closed around the handle.
And for the first time since this nightmare began—
Fear crept into my chest.
Not for myself.
For her.
Because if Moretti had hurt her— If he had even tried—
No.
Isabella wasn’t dying here.
She would get out of this. I would make sure of it.
Moretti wanted revenge for what I’d done to his father. If he wanted my life in return, fine. He could take it.
I didn’t care.
But before that happened, I would make damn sure Isabella walked away from this nightmare.
I pushed the door open.
And stepped inside.