Chapter 14
Alessandra Pov~
I held onto my sisters' hands, my stomach twisted into knots. We watched the door in complete silence as we heard the lock begin to turn.
A.J. was the closest one to the entrance, his gun aimed directly at the door. The second the others heard the sound, every weapon and every pair of eyes focused on that same spot.
Their expressions changed instantly. The playful teenagers from moments ago disappeared.
Their faces were hard and unreadable. Their eyes narrowed with focus. Their bodies were rigid and prepared for whatever was about to come through that door.
They were ready for a fight.
The door slowly opened. A scream echoed through the house. But it wasn't a scream of fear. It was a scream of surprise.
Standing in the doorway was a small, plump elderly woman.
Her short gray hair framed her face, and one hand was pressed against her chest as she stared at the five men pointing guns at her.
My instincts kicked in immediately.
"Oh my gosh." I rushed forward, stepping between her and the boys. "We are so sorry to scare you," I said quickly, keeping my hands slightly raised. "We won't hurt you, I promise."
The woman's expression hardened. "What is the meaning of this?" Her thick accent was obvious as she spoke English.
She looked like my grandmother when she was angry with us. Then her eyes shifted toward the boys. "And you boys, put those things down."
Her voice held so much authority that even I almost stood straighter. "How dare you point those killing machines at me in my own house!"
I glanced back. Slowly, all five of them lowered their weapons.
"We're sorry," I said again. "We truly mean you no harm. We just needed somewhere to stay for the night, and your house was the closest place we could find."
I gave her a small reassuring smile. She stared at us for a moment before stepping inside and closing the door behind her. "Where is the couple that was staying here?" she asked.
A.J. immediately stepped forward and handed her the note we found on the door. "Ci dispiace per averla spaventata, signora Hart." (We are sorry for scaring you, Mrs. Hart.)
He gave her a sincere smile.
She looked down at the note before looking back up at him.
Raf stepped forward next. "Non volevamo davvero causarle problemi, signora Hart.
Stiamo solo cercando di proteggere la nostra famiglia da delle persone cattive che ci stanno dando la caccia.
" (We really did not mean to cause you any trouble, Mrs. Hart.
We are just trying to protect our family from bad people who are coming after us.)
Something about his words softened her expression. Mrs. Hart waved her hand dismissively. "Stay as long as you want."
Everyone blinked. The complete change in her attitude caught us all off guard. Then, as if on cue, Marcio's stomach growled loudly.
The room went silent.
Mrs. Hart looked at him before smiling. "Oh, you must be hungry. Let me cook you all something to eat."
That was Raf's gift. He could make almost anyone feel comfortable. Even someone who had every reason to be terrified of us. That's why everyone called him The Golden Boy. He was kind, patient, and genuine. Sometimes I wondered how someone like him belonged in the Mafia.
I looked around at everyone else's confused expressions. They were just as surprised as I was. Raf only smirked. He followed Mrs. Hart toward the kitchen and slapped Damien on the back as he passed. "And that's how it's done."
I rolled my eyes. Typical Raf. I followed behind them, my stomach reminding me that I hadn't eaten in hours. Honestly, I was pretty hungry too.
Adriano Pov~
We stood in the middle of the empty freeway. The only light came from the tall lampposts shining down on the abandoned vehicle sitting in the middle of the road.
It was nearly midnight, and we had made sure the roads were blocked off. No one had touched the car or moved anything, exactly as I ordered.
Matteo looked over the surveillance footage on the tablet while Giovanni inspected the abandoned vehicle.
"They headed back south," Matteo said, showing me the screen. "The kids continued north. We can follow their trail, but we need to move quickly."
I watched the footage of my sons and nephews taking down the tires of the vehicle. A small smirk pulled at my lips. Pride washed over me. They handled themselves exactly how they were trained to.
"No time for your demented father pride, Adriano," Giovanni said, slapping my shoulder. "We have to go."
I gave him a look before turning back toward the SUV. He wasn't wrong. As much as I wanted to think about how proud I was of my children, there were still people out there who had targeted them.
And I needed answers.
Matteo drove us in the direction the men had gone while I sat in silence, already imagining what I would do once I had them in front of me.
I wasn't going to kill them. Not yet, death was too easy. They came after my children. They threatened my family. And for that, they would suffer before they ever saw the end.
I needed to know who they were, who sent them, and whether Aldo Basilio had anything to do with this.
Thirty minutes later, we arrived at our destination. An old, abandoned brick building sat hidden away from the main roads. The van parked outside belonged to the same men who had followed my children.
I pulled my gun from its holster and removed the safety.
Matteo and Giovanni followed behind me as we scanned the area. The silence was unsettling. Too quiet. I walked toward the entrance and paused. Nothing. No voices. No movement. No warning.
That alone told me they weren't expecting visitors.
I stepped back and kicked the door open. The moment we entered, gunfire erupted. But they were too slow, predictable. We moved before they even had time to think. Within seconds, the room fell silent.
The remaining men were on the ground, unable to fight back. I walked toward the one closest to me.
He looked up with fear in his eyes. Good, he should be afraid. I grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him toward me. "Who sent you?" His silence only fueled my anger.
I studied his face, searching for any sign that he was ready to talk. Nothing. A slow smile crossed my face. "Wrong answer." He needed to understand something.
Coming after me was one thing. Coming after my children was another.
And anyone who threatened my family learned very quickly that I had no limits when it came to protecting them.
"Who sent you to my kids?"
This time, my voice was quieter. More dangerous.
He stayed quiet which made a grin appear on my face. I pushed the bullet in further, feeling the warmth of the blood oozing out.
He cringed and screamed out again, I smiled at him writhing in pain."K-Kale..."
I narrowed my eyes. "Kale who?"
"Giordano."
I stared at him for a moment before scoffing. "Was that so hard?" I stepped away from him as he collapsed onto the floor, barely holding himself up.
I looked around the room at the aftermath before turning toward Matteo and Giovanni. "We got a name." The two of them exchanged a look.
I walked over to the man one last time.
"You were helpful," I said calmly. "I was considering making you suffer instead of ending this quickly."
His eyes widened slightly. "But since you cooperated..." I raised my weapon.
The shot echoed through the empty building. "See?" I murmured. "Painless." I turned and walked out of the building, stepping over the bodies left behind.
Outside, the cold night air hit my face. Giovanni looked over at me as we got back into the SUV.
"Who's Kale Giordano?"
I wiped the blood from my hand with a handkerchief and leaned back in my seat. "Don't know yet."
I looked out the window, my mind already working through every possibility. "But I will." A small smirk crossed my face. "I own the top security company in the world. Finding someone is what I do." I pulled out my phone and dialed Luca.
He answered after the first ring. "Boss."
"Luca, I need you to run a name for me." I paused. "Kale Giordano." There was a brief silence before he responded. "Yes, boss."
"As soon as you find anything, call me."
"Understood."
I hung up the phone and looked ahead. Whoever Kale Giordano was...he had made the biggest mistake of his life.
"Take us to the kids," I commanded.
Matteo nodded and made a left turn, heading us in their direction.
Gianna Pov~
I could barely stand still, let alone sleep.
I paced back and forth across the living room with a cup of coffee in my hands. The caffeine wasn't doing anything to calm me down.
Ano Vicenza sat nearby, watching me with a tired but amused expression. "Child, why don't you take a seat?" she said, patting the spot beside her.
I shook my head and continued pacing.
"All you're doing is putting track marks into this expensive antique rug that has been passed down for fifteen generations," she said, pointing down at the floor.
I immediately looked down, my cheeks heating. "Sorry, Ano V," I mumbled before finally sitting beside her. "I'm just so worried."
She placed a comforting hand on my knee. "I know," she said softly. "But Adriano will bring them back."
I nodded, letting out a shaky breath. "I know he will. It's just..." I looked down at my hands. "My kids are so much like him. I'm not worried that they can't handle themselves. I know they can."
I paused, struggling to explain the feeling sitting heavily in my chest. "It's just..."
"You're worried," Ano V finished for me. I nodded, happy she understood the worry gripping my heart.
"That is perfectly normal for a mother," she said with a gentle smile. "I would be worried if you weren't worried."
A small chuckle escaped me, but it didn't last long. The sound of footsteps caught my attention as Mili, Leena, and Yana walked into the room.
They looked exhausted. Actually, they looked exactly how I felt.
"Good, you're awake," Leena said, dropping onto the couch beside us. "Have you heard anything yet?"
The other two sat down beside her. I shook my head. "No." They all sighed, their faces showing the same worry and fear I felt.
Ano Vicenza looked between all of us before shaking her head. "You girls need to have a little more faith in your men and your children." Her voice held a strength that made us all look at her.
"That Basilio bloodline can withstand anything." She said it with so much confidence that I almost believed it immediately. "And that is a promise."
I looked at the women around me. Maybe she was right, maybe we did need a little more faith. Because if there was one thing I knew...my family was strong.
And they would come home.
Damien Pov~
Mrs. Hart prepared us lasagna for dinner, and within thirty minutes she was hovering over us, making sure every single one of us had eaten enough.
I smiled at the older woman. She reminded me of my Grammy Fiore, my dad's mother. She was always stuffing us with food like she was trying to feed an army.
I guess it's an Italian thing.
"Thank you so much, Mrs. Hart. This lasagna was amazing," Leo said, giving the older woman a big smile.
Yup. The way to a man's heart was through his stomach. Everyone knew that.
"Mrs. Hart, how come you were coming home so late?" Marcio asked. "You know it's not safe to be out this late, especially when you live secluded from everyone else." He was half scolding her, which made me laugh.
She looked slightly flustered before smiling.
"I was visiting my son. He lives an hour away and insisted I stay after dinner so we could catch up. Time got away from me, and before I knew it, it was already ten o'clock."
She reached over and patted his cheek. "But thank you for worrying about me, Marcio."
We grew up respecting our elders. Especially women. They were the foundation of every family. Whether in a good way or a bad way, they were the ones who held everything together.
At least, that's what Dad taught us.
Mrs. Hart reminded me of another grandmother. She was sweet, but there was a fire behind her eyes. A true Italian woman.
I smirked as she scolded AJ for teasing Kalani. AJ actually apologized. To Kalani. And Mrs. Hart. That was something no one could make AJ do except our parents, aunts, and uncles. Anyone else would've gotten a sarcastic comment and a smile before he walked away.
Ales was telling Mrs. Hart about our family when we suddenly heard the front door open.
Instantly, my entire body went into defense mode. I reached for the gun at my side. The guys did the same.
Mrs. Hart's eyes widened as she moved behind us while the girls positioned themselves nearby.
They were trained too. If someone somehow managed to get through us, which wasn't happening, they would have to get through the girls before they ever touched Mrs. Hart.
We motioned for her to stay quiet as we waited. Footsteps echoed through the house. Then a figure appeared from around the corner. My breath released when I saw who it was.
Dad.
Behind him were Uncle Matteo and Uncle Giovanni.
But Dad's gun was still raised and it was pointed directly at AJ. I sighed and lowered my weapon. The others did the same.
Except Dad and AJ. They just stared at each other. "Drop it," Dad commanded. AJ's lips curved into a smirk. "You drop it, old man." Dad mirrored the smirk.
"You really want to do this right now?" The two of them stood there for a few seconds, neither willing to back down. Typical. Finally, AJ lowered his weapon. Dad followed.
"One day," AJ muttered. Dad laughed quietly before pulling him into a hug.
"Thank God Dad's here," Kalani said, running over and throwing herself into his arms. Kaia followed right behind her.
Dad immediately wrapped them both in a tight hug. "You're okay, right?" he asked. They both nodded. Then Ales replaced them, hugging him just as tightly.
I watched Dad's expression soften. No matter how terrifying he was to everyone else...To us, he was just Dad.
His eyes moved around the room before landing on Mrs. Hart, who was still standing there watching everything unfold.
"Who's this?"