Chapter 59 The Picture
Alexander — POV
The drive back to the penthouse felt endless.
Traffic lights.
Pedestrians.
Cars moving too slow.
Every second felt like it was being stolen from me.
My phone sat in my hand the entire time.
Waiting.
Waiting for the message Sarah said would come.
Waiting for the name I already knew.
Moretti.
The driver pulled into the underground garage and I was out of the car before it had even fully stopped.
The elevator ride up felt suffocating.
By the time the doors opened into the penthouse, my security team was already there.
Six men.
Three laptops open.
Footage running across screens.
Maps of the city already pulled up.
No one spoke when I walked in.
They didn’t have to.
They could see the storm on my face.
One of them finally spoke.
“We’re pulling cameras from the university district now.”
“How long.”
“Twenty minutes for the first sweep.”
“Ten.”
“Yes, sir.”
I paced the length of the room like a caged animal.
Every muscle in my body was tight.
Every thought in my head was violent.
If Moretti had touched her—
I stopped that thought immediately.
Because if I finished it I might actually kill someone in this room before the night was over.
My phone buzzed.
The sound froze every person in the room.
I looked down.
Unknown number.
My chest tightened.
Then I opened the message.
The first line appeared.
I’m going to make this easy for you.
My jaw clenched.
Another message came immediately.
I have your wife.
The words felt like a blade sliding between my ribs.
Then the picture loaded.
My entire world stopped.
Isabella.
Standing in a warehouse.
Her arms bound behind her.
And strapped around her chest—
A vest.
Covered in wires.
Explosives.
For a second my lungs forgot how to work.
The room around me blurred.
James stepped closer from across the room.
“What is it?”
I didn’t answer.
Because my heart felt like it had just been crushed in my chest.
Another message appeared.
My issue is not with your wife.
Then another.
My issue is with you.
Moretti.
I already knew it.
Another message.
If you want her alive…
My fingers tightened around the phone.
You will come meet me. Alone.
James saw my face change.
“Alex?”
I kept reading.
You know where I will be.
Of course I did.
Moretti wasn’t subtle.
He wanted this personal.
Another message appeared.
And you better not bring anyone.
My chest tightened.
Because if you do…
Another picture loaded.
Closer this time.
The vest.
The wires.
The detonator.
My Isabella.
Wearing a bomb.
My heart cracked.
The final message appeared.
She dies.
The room was silent.
Everyone watching me.
Waiting.
Another text arrived.
You will go to the locker I told you about.
By yourself.
Inside you’ll find directions for what happens next.
More messages followed.
There will also be a phone inside.
That will be the only phone we use to communicate.
Leave your current phone behind after reading this.
My fingers tightened around the device.
I was pacing the length of the room like a caged animal.
Back and forth.
Back and forth.
My hands were clenched so tight my knuckles had turned white, the muscles in my jaw aching from how hard I was grinding my teeth. Every second that passed felt like another knife sliding under my ribs.
Across the room, James watched me with growing frustration.
“You cannot seriously be thinking of going alone,” he said.
I didn’t answer him at first. I just kept walking.
Because if I stopped moving, I was afraid the rage inside me might explode.
“He made it very clear,” I finally said, my voice rough. “I go alone.”
James let out a sharp breath.
“That psycho also strapped an explosive vest on her,” he snapped. “You really think the smartest move here is to follow his instructions like some obedient puppet?”
I stopped.
Slowly, I turned to face him.
“And you think,” I said quietly, “that I should gamble Isabella’s life on the chance he doesn’t find out?”
James stepped forward immediately.
“We wouldn’t be stupid about it,” he said. “Our guys can work quietly.. Surveillance, tracking—something. Anything is better than you walking into this blind.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
“Alexander—”
“No.”
My voice came out harder this time, echoing through the room.
Everyone fell silent.
I dragged a hand through my hair, my chest rising and falling as I fought to keep control of myself.
“He was very clear,” I said, forcing the words out. “If he even suspects I brought anyone with me… if he even thinks I involved the authorities…”
I swallowed, my throat tightening.
“He detonates the vest.”
James’ expression darkened.
“Or he kills you the moment you show up,” James shot back. “Have you thought about that? What exactly is your plan here, Alexander? You show up alone and what? He just hands Isabella back like a gift?”
I stared at him.
“I don’t know.”
The words felt like broken glass leaving my mouth.
James blinked at me like he couldn’t believe what he’d just heard.
“You don’t know?” he repeated.
“All I know,” I said, my voice dropping lower, rougher, “is that I’m not risking her life.”
James stepped closer, anger burning in his eyes.
“And what about yours?”
I gave a short, humorless laugh.
“My life?”
I shook my head slowly.
“I don’t care about my life.”
The room went still.
“I care about hers,” I continued. “If giving him my life is what it takes to get her back alive, then that’s exactly what I’ll do.”
James stared at me like I’d lost my mind.
“You’re serious,” he said quietly.
I didn’t answer.
Because we both knew I was.
James rubbed a hand over his face in frustration.
“This is insane,” he muttered. “You have resources, Alexander. You have people. You have an entire security team. We are not helpless.”
“And if he finds out?” I asked.
James hesitated.
I stepped closer to him.
“If he finds out,” I said quietly, “she dies.”
James didn’t have an answer for that.
The weight of it settled between us like a stone.
“You’re walking straight into his trap,” James finally said.
“Maybe.”
“And you’re fine with that?”
I met his eyes.
“If it keeps her alive.”
James shook his head slowly.
“Damn it, Alexander…You could die.”
My jaw tightened.
“I don’t care.”
Because the truth was simple.
There was no version of the world where Isabella died and I kept living in it.
I grabbed my jacket from the chair near the door.
James followed me.
“At least let the team track you from a distance.”
“No.”
“Alexander—”
“I said no.”
I turned back toward the room where the rest of my security team stood.
Every single one of them looked ready to follow me.
“No one follows me. No cars. No surveillance. No backup.”
“Sir—”
“If I see anyone behind me,” I continued coldly, “I will turn around and personally make sure every one of you regrets it.”
No one argued.
Because they could see in my face that I meant it.
I grabbed my jacket.
James caught my arm.
“Alex.”
I looked at him.
“You’re not thinking straight.”
“I’ve never been clearer.”
“Let us help you.”
I shook my head once.
“This is the only way she survives.”
I pulled my arm free.
And walked toward the door.
Just as I stepped into the hallway—
My phone buzzed again.
Another message.
Unknown number.
I opened it.
Download this app.
A link appeared beneath it.
Another message followed.
It’s encrypted. Messages delete themselves after a few seconds. It cannot be tracked.
My jaw tightened.
A third message appeared.
After you download it, you’ll receive instructions for the locker location.
Another.
Once you retrieve the phone inside the locker, you will throw your current phone into the ocean.
My fingers tightened around the device.
The final message came.
From that moment forward…
You communicate only through the new phone.
I stared at the screen.
Then I walked out the door.
Because the hunt had begun.
And one way or another—
Tonight would end in blood.