Chapter 67 Truths and Timers
Isabella — POV
“He wasn’t just some innocent man caught in the middle.”
Alexander’s voice had barely faded when another voice cut sharply through the silence.
“Actually… that part is true.”
Moretti.
I turned toward him slowly.
He looked almost amused.
Like this entire moment was nothing more than a story being told for his entertainment.
“Alexander isn’t lying about that part,” Moretti said, shrugging slightly. “Your father wasn’t as clean as you believe he was.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“No,” I whispered.
But Moretti kept talking.
“Most of the things he was involved in… he had chances to walk away from.”
He tilted his head slightly, studying me like a curious experiment.
“But money has a funny way of convincing people to stay.”
My heart pounded harder.
“To be fair,” he continued almost thoughtfully, “your father wasn’t completely free either.”
My chest tightened.
Every word felt like another crack splitting open the past I thought I understood.
Moretti sighed.
“Anyway,” he said, almost bored, “there’s no point pretending anymore.”
He looked between Alexander and me.
“I was planning to kill one of you tonight anyway. Figured the other one could watch.”
My heart dropped.
Moretti turned toward Alexander.
“Alright,” he said casually. “Let’s clear up the rest of the story.”
He smiled faintly.
“The person who kidnapped your mother ten years ago…”
He tapped his chest.
“That was me.”
Alexander’s entire body went still.
Moretti lifted his hands.
“I know, I know. I was young. Twenty-one years old. But I had ambition.”
His voice turned thoughtful.
“I’d heard rumors your mother was planning to go to the FBI.“She was planning to expose my father’s operations. She’d told your father she was done protecting his business. Done protecting my father’s business too.”
He smirked.
“She told him she’d rather die than let my father keep running his human trafficking operations.”
My stomach lurched.
“Your father beat the hell out of her to make her stop,” Moretti continued.
“But she didn’t back down.”
He leaned against a table, almost relaxed.
“So when my father finally trusted me with a few men and let me start running my own operations… I saw an opportunity.”
His eyes gleamed.
“I kidnapped her.”
The room felt colder.
“I figured I’d hold her for ransom,” he said. “Take some money. Take control of the port shipping routes.”
He shrugged again.
“Your father had no idea I was behind it. My father probably suspected… but he looked the other way.”
His smirk widened.
“I think he wanted that port under our control anyway.”
Moretti paced slowly.
“I planned everything carefully. Made it look like a different mafia family had taken her.”
He stopped in front of Alexander.
“But then something unexpected happened.”
His eyes darkened.
“Your father refused our demands.”
Alexander’s jaw tightened.
“I think he was secretly glad she was gone,” Moretti continued. “One less problem for him.”
Silence filled the warehouse.
“But then,” Moretti said, smiling faintly, “you showed up.”
He pointed at Alexander.
“You walked straight into our hands. Offered yourself in exchange for her.”
My chest tightened.
Alexander’s eyes never left him.
Moretti shrugged.
“Your father eventually paid some money.”
He waved a hand dismissively.
“But he never gave up the port.”
Then his smile sharpened.
“And the rest of the story… well.”
His gaze flicked to me.
“You already know. That wraps up the history lesson.”
He reached into his pocket.
“And since I’ve already had my revenge…”
My heart dropped as he pulled out a small black remote.
The control.
For the vest strapped to my chest.
Fear shot through me like electricity.
“Moretti—” Alexander began.
But Moretti pressed a button.
A loud electronic beep echoed from the vest on my chest.
My entire body froze.
Alexander’s face drained of color.
“No.”
Moretti smiled calmly.
“Ten minutes.”
My heart slammed violently against my ribs.
Ten minutes.
Ten minutes until the vest exploded.
Alexander stepped forward immediately.
“Please.”
His voice cracked.
The sound shattered something inside me.
“I did everything you asked,” he said.
“Please… let her go.”
Moretti didn’t even look moved.
“Kill me,” Alexander said hoarsely.
“Take my life.”
He swallowed hard.
“But let her live.”
Tears burned in my eyes.
I had never seen him like this.
Never.
The powerful man who controlled everything…
Was begging.
“For her,” he whispered.
“Please.”
Moretti looked bored.
He turned toward the door.
“Time to go.”
His men followed him immediately.
Alexander moved to stop him—
But Moretti lifted the remote again.
“Don’t.”
His finger hovered over the button.
“Or I end it right now.”
Alexander froze instantly.
Moretti smiled.
“You can stay here and watch the woman you love die.”
He glanced at the door.
“Or you can run.”
“Save yourself.”
Moretti paused, his cruel smile lingering as his gaze flicked between the two of us.
“But somehow,” he said softly, almost amused, “I don’t think you will.”
He lifted the remote slightly in his hand, his thumb resting lazily over the button.
“And don’t try to follow me,” he added.
His voice dropped into something darker.
“I swear to God, Alexander… I will press this.”
My stomach dropped.
“You’ll watch her die,” Moretti continued calmly. “You’ll try to save her… and there won’t be a damn thing you can do about it.”
His smile widened.
“I win.”
Then he turned and walked out.
The heavy warehouse door slammed shut behind him with a violent bang, the sound echoing through the massive empty space like a gunshot.
For a moment, the noise seemed to hang in the air.
Then everything went still.
Painfully still.
Silence filled the warehouse.
Just me.
And Alexander.
And the faint, mechanical ticking coming from the vest strapped to my chest.
Ten minutes.
The number circled through my head like a slow, relentless drumbeat.
Ten minutes until it exploded.
My eyes dropped to the wires tangled across my body.
Red.
Black.
Blue.
So many of them.
My hands trembled helplessly against the ropes binding my wrists.
Then slowly…
I lifted my head.
Alexander stood a few feet away from me.
Frozen.
His eyes locked onto the vest.
His chest rising and falling unevenly.
He looked like he couldn’t breathe.
For a moment neither of us spoke.
The only sound in the warehouse was the quiet ticking coming from the vest strapped to my chest.
Tick.
Tick.
Tick.
Alexander finally lifted his eyes from the wires.
They met mine.
And my heart shattered.
His eyes were filled with tears.
Not one or two.
His entire gaze was blurred with them.
I had never seen Alexander like that before.
Never.
He looked… broken.
Completely broken.
Like the man who always seemed so powerful, so untouchable, had suddenly been stripped of everything.
I swallowed hard.
“Alexander—”
But before I could finish, he started walking toward me.
Slowly.
One step.
Then another.
My heart panicked instantly.
“No,” I said quickly. “Alexander, stop.”
But he didn’t stop.
He kept walking toward me like nothing else in the world existed.
“Alexander,” I said again, my voice shaking.
“Stop. Please.”
He reached me anyway.
His hands came up slowly, almost hesitantly, like he was afraid I might disappear if he moved too fast.
Then he cupped my face.
His palms were warm against my cheeks.
And before I could say anything else—
He pulled me into him.
His forehead dropped against mine.
His shoulders trembled.
“I’m sorry.”
His voice cracked.
“I’m so sorry.”
Tears slipped down his face.
“I’m sorry for everything,” he whispered.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the truth.”
His breathing shook.
“I’m sorry I killed your father.”
The words came out like they were ripping him apart from the inside.
“I’m sorry I failed you.”
His voice broke completely.
“I’m sorry.”
My chest felt like it was collapsing.
Because Alexander Kingsley was crying.
Not quietly.
Not hiding it.
His shoulders were shaking.
His tears were falling against my face.
And he looked like a man who believed he had already lost everything.
I had never seen him this helpless.
This shattered.
My own tears poured down faster.
“Alexander…”
I lifted my hands as far as the ropes allowed and touched his face.
He leaned into the contact like he needed it just to stay standing.
“It’s okay,” I whispered through my tears.
He shook his head immediately.
“No.”
“Yes,” I said softly.
“I’m sorry too.”
He looked up at me quickly, confusion flashing through the pain in his eyes.
“You were right,” I continued.
My voice trembled.
“My dad probably didn’t tell me everything.”
Saying it hurt more than I expected.
“But I loved him so much…”
My throat tightened.
“I didn’t want to believe he could be involved in anything bad.”
Alexander closed his eyes.
“And I’m sorry,” I whispered.
“I’m sorry he didn’t help you when he saw you.”
The words felt heavy.
“I’m sorry he left you there.”
Alexander shook his head again quickly.
“No,” he said hoarsely. “Don’t say that.”
“I’m the one who should be apologizing.”
His voice was full of raw pain.
“I took him from you.”
I could barely see through my tears.
He glanced down suddenly.
At the vest.
His hands moved to the wires carefully.
Trying to understand them.
Trying to figure out how to remove it.
“Alexander—”
But he was already working.
Carefully lifting one wire.
The timer suddenly jumped forward.
9:03
8:03
My stomach dropped.
He froze.
His eyes narrowed.
Then he tried again.
The moment he touched another wire—
The numbers jumped again.
8:03
7:03
Alexander’s jaw clenched.
His voice turned cold.
“Son of a bitch.”
I realized it instantly.
“Every time you try to disable it…”
My voice shook.
“…it speeds up.”
He stared at the timer.
My heart began pounding wildly.
“Alexander,” I whispered.
He didn’t answer.
He was studying the vest.
Looking for something.
Anything.
“Alexander.”
He looked up at me.
“You need to go.”
His expression hardened immediately.
“No.”
“You need to leave,” I said desperately.
“Save yourself.”
“There is no saving myself without you,” he replied instantly.
Tears filled my eyes again.
“Please.”
He shook his head.
“Don’t ask me to do that.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“Alexander, please…”
I leaned forward as far as the ropes allowed and pressed my forehead to his.
“You need to live.”
“There is no life for me without you,” he said quietly.
My breath caught.
Tears slipped down my face again.
I lifted my hand and cupped his cheek.
His skin was warm beneath my fingers.
“Alexander…”
He looked at me like I was the only thing left in the world.
“I love you.”
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
His entire body froze.
For a moment he just stared at me.
Like he wasn’t sure he had heard correctly.
“You… what?”
“I love you,” I whispered again.
His breath shook.
Like the words had hit him harder than anything else that had happened tonight.
A tear slid down his cheek.
He pressed his forehead against mine again.
“God,” he whispered.
“You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear that.”
My chest tightened painfully.
“Then go,” I begged softly.
“Please go.”
He pulled back just enough to look into my eyes.
“There is no world where I walk out of here without you.”
My voice broke.
“Please…”
He shook his head slowly.
“There is no life for me without you.”
The timer continued ticking beside us.
Alexander reached up again and brushed my tears away.
“I love you,” he said softly.
“And I’m sorry for everything.”
He pressed his forehead to mine again.
“And if this is how it ends…”
His voice lowered.
“…then at least I get to spend the last minutes of my life with you.”
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