A DEBT WRITTEN IN BLOOD

The assassination attempt changed everything. The estate went into full lockdown. Armed guards were stationed at every door, and Dominic became a ghost, consumed by a ruthless hunt for the mole in his syndicate.

But he didn't shut me out. Instead, he pulled me deeper into his world.

A week after the break-in, my shoulder was finally out of the sling. I found Dominic in his war room—a high-tech surveillance center hidden beneath the estate. Screens covered the walls, displaying shipping routes, security feeds, and dossiers on rival families.

He looked exhausted, dark circles bruised beneath his eyes. He motioned for me to sit beside him.

"I found the rat," Dominic said, his voice devoid of emotion. "It was one of my lieutenants. Paid off by Carlo Moretti."

I swallowed hard. "What happened to him?"

Dominic looked at me, giving me a choice to look away. When I didn't, he answered, "He is no longer a problem. But before he died, he gave me something."

Dominic handed me a thick, manila folder. It was old, the edges frayed. My father's badge number was written on the front.

My breath hitched. I opened it with trembling fingers. Inside were police reports, coroner photos, and bank statements.

"Your father wasn't just investigating a cargo theft," Dominic explained, his voice softening. "He stumbled upon a human trafficking ring the Morettis were running out of the ports. He gathered enough evidence to put Carlo Moretti away for life. He was going to take it to the FBI the next morning."

Tears blurred my vision as I read my father's meticulous handwriting on the case notes. He knew he was in danger. He knew they were coming for him. Do the right thing, baby girl. Not the easy thing.

"Carlo ordered the hit," Dominic continued gently. "And the dirty cops in his precinct covered it up, claiming it was a mugging."

I closed the folder, a cold, hard knot of fury forming in my stomach. The grief that had weighed me down for twelve years crystallized into something sharper. "I want them to pay, Dominic. I want Carlo Moretti to rot."

Dominic reached out, taking my hand in his. "He will. I am going to tear his empire apart piece by piece, Lily. Not just for my family, but for yours. Will you stand by me?"

I looked at the fearsome mafia boss, the man who had ordered deaths, the man who kissed me with a desperation that stole my breath. He wasn't a hero. But he was my sword.