Chapter 29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Matteo
"Matteo!"
I'd barely stepped into the main house when Rachel came tearing out of the living room. Her hair was a mess, eyes rimmed red, her whole body shaking. Leona followed behind her, face chalk-white, clutching Sofia's little rabbit toy so hard it was losing shape.
"Sofia's gone."
I froze. Something inside my chest pulled so tight I could barely breathe. My eyes locked on Rachel's face—her lips were bloodless, tears streaming down uncontrollably.
"Tell me what happened."
"This afternoon I... Charles asked me out, and when I got back, Leona was out cold... Sofia was gone."
Rachel choked on the words, could barely get them out.
"Matteo..." She grabbed my arm. "What do we do?"
My mind went blank. What the hell did she mean Sofia was gone?
But I snapped back fast, caught Rachel's hand.
"You said—Charles asked you out this afternoon?"
"Yeah." Rachel nodded. "He said it was a farewell dinner. I felt bad, so I went..."
I looked up at Luca. He was already at the end of the hall, face dark as storm clouds.
"Charles is gone too."
"Luca, pull every camera from inside and outside the estate tonight. Everyone near Sofia's room, don't miss a single one. And Charles's movements today—hotels, docks, old house, turn them all inside out."
"Yes, sir."
Rachel's eyes were burning red, staring at me without blinking. "Will he hurt her?"
"I'll bring her back."
Rachel's lips trembled. She tried to hold it together, but couldn't. Tears spilled over. She wiped them away roughly with the back of her hand, but her voice came out steadier.
"I'm coming with you."
"No."
"Matteo." She looked up at me. "Sofia is my daughter."
Luca was fast as always. Thirty seconds later, screenshots and location data hit my phone.
Sofia's last appearance was in the second-floor hallway, still holding her toy.
Next frame, a guy in maintenance gear slipped out of a blind spot, pressed a cloth over her mouth and nose, and carried the kid out the back door.
The guy kept his cap pulled low, but I still recognized that hand. The old knife scar on the back of it—I'd seen it too many times.
Charles's man.
"Boss, white van outside the estate's back gate. Plates are fake. Lost them after they left the city." Luca pointed at the screen, tapping several locations on the outskirts. "We've got people at the port and airport. They can't get out. They have to be hiding."
Charles was decent at covering his tracks. He'd cut the cameras clean at intersections, his usual hideouts all came up empty. But there weren't many places he could hole up—had to be remote enough, familiar enough, and have ready-made cover.
When my eyes hit the west side of the map, I stopped. Black Grape Vineyard.
That property had been abandoned for years, still under Farrell's name. Remote location, plenty of warehouses, narrow roads. Charles and Farrell were tight—ten to one, that's where he was.
"That's it." I looked up at Luca. "No one in or out of the estate. Convoy follows me to Black Grape. Lock that place down. Not even a bird gets out."
"Yes, sir."
I headed for the door. Rachel followed.
"Go back."
"No." Tears still on her face, shoulders shaking, but those green eyes locked on me—not backing down one inch.
"If you lock me in here, I'll drive there myself."
I let her get in the car.
From the estate to Black Grape was forty minutes. Those forty minutes, the car was dead silent. Rachel kept gripping Sofia's little rabbit toy, knuckles white, phone pressed to her palm, screen lighting up and dying, always stopping on that unanswered call screen.
I leaned back, eyes on the road ahead, mind racing.
Sofia was afraid of the dark. If she woke up and didn't see anyone familiar, she'd cry.
When she got shots, she'd bury her face in someone's chest. If that lunatic Charles touched one hair on her head, tonight I'd make sure there wasn't even a bone left of him.
The convoy stopped a kilometer from the vineyard. I took Luca and the action team and crept up to the warehouse entrance. From behind the iron door came Sofia's muffled crying.
Rachel grabbed my sleeve. Her whole body went rigid.
"That's Sofia."
The crying wasn't loud, but it stabbed straight into my temple, made my blood run hot. I signaled the team to spread out and flank. I moved to the door, was about to break the lock, when Charles's laugh came from inside.
"What are you crying for? When Matteo gets here, I'll give you all a family reunion."
Sofia was sobbing so hard she couldn't breathe, her baby voice breaking with each gasp.
"You're a bad man... don't hurt Daddy and Mommy..."
Rachel's eyes went instantly red. Her knees nearly gave out, but she bit down and stayed silent.
I kicked the door. It slammed inward with a crash, rust and dust hitting me in the face. I charged in. First thing I saw was Sofia tied to an old chair, face red from crying, deep marks on her wrists from the rope.
Charles stood behind her. The knife was right at her throat.
Rachel rushed in behind me, screaming. "Sofia!"
Our daughter heard her voice, cried even harder, and tried to lunge toward her. But the rope held her back—she couldn't move an inch.
Charles glanced at Rachel, then at me, laughing like a madman. "Everyone's here."
I took a step forward. He pressed the knife closer to Sofia's neck. "Stop."
I stopped. I couldn't risk it. "Going after a kid. You really are a worthless piece of shit."
Charles sneered. "You took my position, destroyed my path. Even they should've been mine. Matteo, you don't deserve any of this!"
"And an idiot like you deserves it even less."
In that instant, I lunged. Charles kicked the chair over and rolled to the side.
Sofia fell with the chair and hit the ground.
Luca and his team rushed over. Charles grabbed a piece of broken steel pipe and swung it hard at my head.
I dodged. The pipe smashed a wooden crate behind me, splinters exploding everywhere.
He didn't give me a second to breathe. His other hand already had a short blade out, going straight for my ribs.
Too close. I blocked with my arm. The blade scraped flesh.
My shirt tore open, sharp burning pain. I drove my knee into his gut.
He grunted but didn't drop the knife, flipped it, and aimed for my throat.
I caught his knife hand and used the momentum to twist outward. But his other fist was already crashing into my jaw. Instantly tasted iron.
"You got what's coming." Charles was panting hard, eyes bloodshot. "You think you can take them away?"
The blade was pointed at my throat. I had both hands clamped on Charles's wrist, shoulders burning with tension, even breathing felt forced.
"Charles, please, don't kill him!" Rachel had dropped to her knees, tears pouring down her face.
"Let him go. Whatever you want, I'll do it. Whatever you want me to do, I'll give you everything, please..."
Charles stared at her. For a split second, something flickered in his crazed eyes—distraction. Now! I knocked the blade aside and pulled my gun.
"Matteo! Go ahead and shoot! You bastard!"
I pressed the barrel to Charles's forehead. Signaled Luca to cover Sofia's eyes and ears. I looked at that face twisted with pain and rage, those eyes full of poison and resentment. The fury inside me finally erupted.
"I gave you chances." My voice was ice. "I let you go more than once. Because you're my brother's only son. I even let your betrayal slide."
"But you, Charles?" I stared into his eyes. "You just had to hurt my daughter."
"Matteo, you can't—"
The gunshot echoed in the empty warehouse for a long time. Dust drifted down from the rafters, settling on Charles's face as the light faded from his eyes, finally going still. I stared at his body for a few seconds. Then handed the gun to Luca.
"Clean this up."
"Yes, boss."
Rachel sat on the ground. Sofia had already thrown herself into her arms, sobbing until she hiccupped, little hands clutching her neck, whole face buried in her shoulder.
"It's okay, baby, it's okay. Mommy's here."
I wanted to reach out. My hand stopped mid-air. She'd be afraid of me. The thought barely formed when Rachel leaned into me, still holding the child.
"Matteo." Her voice was hoarse. "Take us home."
"Okay."