LUCA 25
The moment Luca steps into the room, he knows something is wrong. The air is too still, too silent. His heart hammers in his chest as he scans the room, every instinct screaming that something is terribly, horribly off.
“Phoenix?” he calls, his voice echoing through the empty space. There is no answer, just the oppressive silence that makes his skin crawl. He strides across the living room, his eyes darting to every corner, searching for any sign of her. But there is nothing.
The unease that has been gnawing at him all day now twists into a cold, hard knot of fear. He pulls out his phone, his fingers shaking as he dials Miguel’s number.
“Where is she?” he demands the moment the call connects, his voice tight with barely restrained panic.
Miguel hesitates on the other end, his tone cautious. “Boss, what do you mean? She’s at home, right?”
“She’s not here,” Luca snaps, his heart pounding in his chest. “I need every man out looking for her. Now.”
There is a beat of stunned silence, and then Miguel’s voice comes through, urgent and focused. “I’m on it. We’ll find her, Luca.”
But the words did nothing to calm the fear clawing at Luca’s insides. He ends the call, his mind racing with a thousand terrible possibilities. Where could she have gone? Had she run again? Or—his stomach twists with dread—had someone taken her?
He tries to breathe, tries to keep his mind from spiralling into dark places, but the panic is relentless, suffocating. He had thought he had everything under control, had thought he could keep her safe. But now she is gone, and the uncertainty is tearing him apart.
His phone buzzes in his hand, he answers it with a bark of desperation. “What?”
It was Gabriel. “Luca, we’re mobilizing the men. No one’s seen her leave the building. Security footage is being reviewed now.”
Luca’s hands shake as he paces the room, his heart slamming against his ribs. “Check every exit, every camera. I want to know who took her.”
“We’re on it,” Gabriel assures him, his voice steady. “We’ll find her, Luca.”
But Luca isn’t listening. His mind is racing with every horrible scenario he could imagine. Phoenix, alone and scared, taken by some unknown enemy, vulnerable because of the baby. Their baby. The thought of her in danger, of something happening to her or the child, was more than he could bear.
He storms into the bedroom, his eyes scanning the space, searching for any clue, any sign of what had happened. The bed was neatly made, her clothes still hanging in the closet. But her phone is gone, her purse missing. His stomach churns with fear.
Had she run? Had she tried to escape again? Or was this something else, something darker?
Luca’s chest tightens with a panic he hadn’t felt in years. The thought of losing her, of something happening to her, was unbearable. She was everything to him, the only thing that mattered in this brutal, bloody world. And the baby—the life they had created together. He couldn’t lose them. He wouldn’t.
He grabs his phone again, dialling Miguel with trembling hands. “Anything?”
“Not yet,” Miguel replies, frustration lacing his voice. “But we’re checking every contact, every safe house. We’ll find her, Luca. I swear it.”
Luca’s vision blurred with rage and fear, his heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst. “I don’t care what it takes, Miguel. I want every man on this. I want every rat in this city questioned, every safe house searched. Find. Her.”
He ends the call, his hands shaking as he leans against the wall, his breath coming in harsh, ragged bursts. He has never felt so helpless, so out of control. The fear, the desperation, it is suffocating, threatening to pull him under.
“Luca,” Gabriel’s voice cuts through the fog of panic, steady and calm. He steps into the room, his expression serious but reassuring. “We’ll find her. You have to stay calm. We need you focused.”
“Calm?” Luca snarls, his voice raw with fear. “How the hell am I supposed to be calm? She’s out there, Gabriel. She’s pregnant, and she’s out there alone. I can’t—” His voice breaks, the weight of his emotions crashing down on him like a tidal wave. “I can’t lose her.”
Gabriel’s eyes soften, his hand resting on Luca’s shoulder, firm and grounding. “We’re going to get her back, Luca. We’ve been through worse. We’ll get through this.”
But Luca can’t breathe, can’t think. All he can see is Phoenix’s face, her eyes wide with fear, her body trembling as someone drags her away, as someone hurts her. The images flash through his mind, each one more terrible than the last, and he feels like he is losing his grip, like the ground is crumbling beneath his feet.
“I should have been here,” he whispers, his voice breaking. “I should have protected her.”
“You did everything you could,” Gabriel says quietly, his voice filled with a calm certainty that Luca can’t seem to grasp. “This isn’t your fault.”
But Luca can’t believe that. All he can think about is Phoenix’s face, the way she had looked at him the last time they were together, the way she had held him, kissed him, told him she loved him. And now she was gone, and he didn’t know where she was, didn’t know if she was safe, if she was alive.
He felt like he was drowning, the fear and guilt and rage choking him, pulling him under. He had spent his entire life in control, had built his empire with blood and sweat and iron will. But now, the one thing he couldn’t control, the one thing he couldn’t protect, was the person who meant more to him than anything in the world.
“Luca,” Gabriel’s voice is softer now, filled with an emotion that Luca doesn’t want to acknowledge. “We’re going to find her. But you have to stay strong. For her. For the baby.”
The words hit him like a punch to the gut, and Luca’s knees almost buckle under the weight of it all. The baby. Their baby. The tiny, fragile life that they had created together, that was growing inside her, that was depending on him to keep them safe.
He felt like he was going to be sick, his head spinning with the enormity of it all, with the fear that he was going to lose them, that he was going to fail.
“I can’t lose them, Gabriel,” he whispers, his voice breaking. “I can’t.”
Gabriel’s hand tightens on his shoulder, his eyes fierce and determined. “You won’t. We’ll find them, Luca. We’ll bring them home.”
But Luca can’t breathe, can’t think past the fear and the guilt and the rage. He was supposed to protect her, to keep her safe, and now she was gone, and he didn’t know if he would ever see her again.
His phone buzzes in his hand, and he looks down, his heart racing as he sees Miguel’s name flash on the screen.
“Anything?” he demands, his voice tight with desperation.
“We found her car,” Miguel says, his voice grim. “It was abandoned near the docks. No sign of her.”
Luca’s heart plummets, his chest tightening with a panic so intense it felt like it was going to tear him apart. The docks. The cold, dark, empty docks. It was a place where people disappeared, where bodies were found floating in the water, where the city’s darkest secrets were buried.
His vision blurs with rage and fear, his mind spinning with every horrible possibility. Who had taken her? Where was she? Was she hurt? Was she—
“Get everyone down there,” Luca growls, his voice shaking with barely contained fury. “I want every inch of that area searched. I want answers, Miguel.”
“We’re on it,” Miguel promises, his voice filled with determination. “We’ll find her, Luca. I swear it.”
But Luca’s hands are trembling, his heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst. The fear, the panic, it was overwhelming, suffocating. He had to find her. He had to bring her back.
“Luca,” Gabriel says softly, his voice a steady, calming presence. “We’ll find her. We won’t stop until we do.”
But Luca couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. All he could see was Phoenix’s face, the fear in her eyes, the terror in her voice. He had to find her. He had to. There was no other option.
“I’m going down there,” he says, his voice hard with determination. “I’m not sitting around waiting for news. I’m going to find her.”
“Luca, wait,” Gabriel tries to stop him, his voice urgent. “You need to think—”
“No,” Luca snaps, his eyes blazing with a fury that makes Gabriel step back. “I’m not waiting. I’m not sitting here while she’s out there, scared and alone. I’m going to find her.”
He turns on his heel, his mind set, his heart pounding with a desperate, furious energy. He would find her. He would tear this city apart to find her.
And whoever had taken her—whoever had dared to touch her—they would pay. They would pay with everything they had.
The screen of Luca’s phone lit up with a notification—a blurry photo of Phoenix’s car abandoned near the docks, the faint outline of a figure in the background, barely visible in the shadows. Luca’s heart stops, his breath catching in his throat as he stared at the image, his mind racing.
Was it her? Was she still there?
He didn’t know. And the not knowing was going to drive him insane.
He takes a deep breath, his hand shaking as he looks at Gabriel, his voice low, filled with a terrifying calm. “I’m going to find her. Whatever it takes.”
And as Luca storms out of the house, his mind consumed with fear and fury, he knew one thing for certain: whoever had taken Phoenix, whoever had dared to hurt her, they would regret the day they crossed Luca Tempo.
But for now, the darkness closed in around him, and he is left with only questions, only fear, and the desperate hope that he wasn’t too late.
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