Chapter 12 NICO
NICO
Morning light spills across the sheets in pale stripes.
Izzy sleeps on her stomach beside me, one arm tucked under the pillow, hair fanned across the white linen like a dark spill of ink. The sheet has slipped low on her hips. Her back is bare. One of my hands rests there without me remembering when I put it there.
I keep it there. Her skin is warm. Real.
Seven years.
Seven years thinking about that night, wondering where she went, if she ever thought about me again. Seven years telling myself it was better this way.
Now she is here, asleep beside me, on the same bed.
And I still have to leave. As if on cue, my phone buzzes on the nightstand.
Leone.
I ease my hand away from Izzy’s back and answer quietly. “Talk.”
His voice is tight. “Boss. We’ve got movement.”
I swing my legs over the side of the bed. “What kind of movement?”
“Pavlov’s men were spotted at the club last night. The downtown one.”
The words land hard in my chest.
The same club where I met Izzy.
“What were they doing?” I ask.
“Asking too many fucking questions, if you ask me.” He pauses. “It’s the head of the snake, boss. I think he’s moving.”
I stand and start pulling on my clothes.
“Hold the place,” I tell him. “I’m coming.”
I end the call and turn back toward the bed.
Izzy is awake now, propped up on one elbow, watching me. Her expression is already closing in on itself.
“You’re leaving,” she says.
Not a question.
“I have business.”
She pulls the sheet higher around herself, like armor. “So, that’s it?” she asks. “One night and you’re done?”
“That’s not what this is.”
“Then, what is it?”
I step closer to the bed.
“Danger,” I say quietly. “That’s what it is.”
Her jaw tightens.
“Right. Of course.”
“Izzy—”
“You don’t have to explain.” Her voice is light, but her eyes are not. “I get it. You’ve got a life. You’ve got responsibilities. Noah and I were just… nostalgia.”
The words hit harder than I expect. “That’s not what I said.”
“You didn’t have to.”
I exhale slowly. “You shouldn’t be near me,” I say. “Not right now.”
Her laugh is sharp. “How convenient.”
Before I can answer, the bedroom door creaks open.
A small head peeks through.
Noah.
His hair sticks up in every direction like he just rolled out of bed.
He blinks at me. “You’re leaving?”
I crouch slightly so we’re closer to eye level.
“Yes.”
He steps into the room. “Aren’t you staying for breakfast?”
That simple question nearly cracks my fucking heart.
“I can’t.”
He studies me for a moment. “Are you my dad?”
The room goes still.
I glance at Izzy. She is staring at me. Waiting.
I feel the weight of both of them.
The answer is right there in front of me. In the shape of the boy’s eyes. In that birthmark behind his ear.
But saying it out loud changes everything.
And right now the world is already shifting under our feet.
So I don’t answer. Just ruffle his hair as I pass and try not to let it fucking break me.
“I’ll see you later,” I say to both of them.
Then, I walk out on my son and the only woman I’ve ever loved.
The club is already alive when I arrive.
Music pulses through the walls. Colored lights flash across the dance floor. Bodies move, drink, laugh.
To anyone else, it looks normal.
To me, it smells wrong.
Leone meets me near the bar.
“You feel it too,” he says.
I nod.
Too many unfamiliar faces. Too many men standing still. Watching. Not drinking.
“Security sweep?” I ask.
“Done once already.”
“Do it again.”
He signals two of the men.
They melt into the crowd.
I walk through the club slowly, scanning everything. Management hovers nearby like nervous birds.
“Anything unusual?” I ask the floor manager.
He shakes his head quickly. “No, Mr. Neri. Everything’s fine.”
It isn’t.
Leone joins me again near the hallway leading to the VIP rooms.
“We confirmed something,” he says quietly.
“What.”
“Two Pavlov guys were here earlier this week. Came pretending to be cops, but our guys ain’t that dumb.”
My jaw tightens. “What did they want?”
“To see our security footage.”
My voice lowers dangerously. “Our guys didn’t do it, I hope.”
“Couldn’t even if they wanted to, boss.” His lips press into a grim line. “Footage that old is stored on your private security server. It needs your password to be accessed.”
“Old?”
“They wanted it from seven years back. ”
For a moment, the music fades under the rush of blood in my ears.
Seven years.
The night I met Izzy.
“Did they get anything?” I demand.
“No.”
“Good.”
I look out over the crowd again.
“They’re testing us,” I say.
Leone nods. “Looking for weak spots.”
“They won’t find one.” I straighten up. “I want surveillance on Izzy’s building.”
“Already started.”
“Double it.”
“Done.”
“Noah’s school too. His daycare. And Notte Bianca.”
Leone raises an eyebrow. “You think the Pavlovs are going after them?”
“I don’t know, but I’d rather be prepared.”
He nods. “And if she notices?”
“Then, you’ve failed.”
He gives a crooked grin. “Fair enough.” Then he adds, “Does she know anything about this? The Pavlovs trying to steal your crown?”
“No.”
“Should she?”
“No.” The word is final. “She stays out of this.”
Because once she’s in, there’s no getting her out again.
Leone studies me for a moment but doesn’t argue. “I’ll make the calls.”
Before leaving, I stop in the security office. Rows of monitors glow in the dim light.
“Pull footage,” I tell the tech. “Seven years ago.”
He blinks. “That far back? I’ll need your—”
I type in the password, too quick for his eyes to catch.
“Here. Just do it.”
He doesn’t make me ask twice.
A moment later, grainy black-and-white footage appears on the screen.
The bar. The dance floor.
And then—
Her.
Izzy.
“Take a walk,” I order the tech, and he practically flies out of his seat.
I go back to watching Izzy on the screen. Younger. Laughing. Her head tipped back, eyes bright.
I watch myself appear behind her. Younger too. Less tired. Less… hollow.
On the screen, I follow her towards the private hallway. Towards the room where everything changed.
I remember the way she looked under me.
The way she whispered my name.
The way she disappeared like a ghost after that night.
And the boy who exists now because of it.
I reach forward and shut the monitor off. The room goes dark.
Whatever the Pavlovs are digging for… They will not find it.
And if they try to use her against me—
They will learn exactly what happens when someone threatens what belongs to me.