“Gunman Behind You” — I Save Mafia Boss in Seconds!

The rain hammered against the slate roof of the estate.

I didn't look at Leo. I looked at Adrian. His eyes were already on the drawing in my hands. The subtle shift in his jaw was the only indication that the earth had just opened up beneath us.

"Mia," Adrian said, his voice terrifyingly gentle. "Thank you for the picture. Go inside with Maria now. It's late."

A warm, older woman appeared in the doorway, gently ushering the little girl inside. The heavy oak doors clicked shut.

The silence on the porch was absolute.

Leo took half a step backward, his hand inching toward his jacket. "Adrian, I swear to God, I don't know why she drew that."

"She drew it because the man with the scar was here," Adrian said. He didn't raise his voice. He didn't move. But the air pressure on the porch seemed to drop, making it hard to breathe. "She said he came to see you, Leo."

"It's a mistake. She's a kid, she gets confused—"

"Marcus," Adrian said quietly.

Marcus moved faster than I thought a human being could. He pinned Leo against the stone pillar, wrenching Leo's arm behind his back and pulling his weapon from his holster in one fluid motion.

Leo groaned, his cheek pressed flat against the rough stone. "Adrian, please! Moretti sent him. He just wanted a layout of the restaurant. I didn't know he was going to make a hit tonight!"

"You let a Moretti soldier onto my property. Near my niece." Adrian stepped closer. The civilized veneer was gone. This was the man who ruled an empire. "Why, Leo?"

"Because of the debt!" Leo cried out, his voice cracking. "Moretti knows about the merger. He knows you're going to absorb his operations. He wanted leverage. He said if I gave him the girl's location—your waitress—he'd wipe my brother's gambling debt clean!"

I stepped back, wrapping my arms around myself. My life, my eighteen months of suffering, was just a bargaining chip in a game I didn't even know I was playing.

"You brought a Moretti hitman to Bellavere to kill an innocent woman," Adrian stated, the coldness in his tone absolute.

"He wasn't supposed to kill her!" Leo sobbed. "He was supposed to kidnap her! Take her to Moretti. She's the bait, Adrian! They know you don't like civilian casualties. They were going to use her to force you into a worse deal!"

Adrian turned away from Leo, his eyes finding mine. The realization hit us both at the exact same time.

If they wanted me alive for leverage, the man in the restaurant wouldn't have pulled a knife when the gun fell. He would have grabbed me.

"He was trying to stab me," I said, my voice trembling. "He wasn't trying to kidnap me."

Adrian’s gaze snapped back to Leo. "Moretti doesn't change plans without telling his insiders. Who gave the order to kill her?"

Leo looked terrified. "I don't know! I swear! The hitman, Silas, he got a call right before we left for the restaurant. He looked at his phone and laughed. He said, 'The ex wants her dead instead. Paid double.'"

My knees gave out.

I caught myself on the iron railing. David.

David didn't just put my name on his debt. He was actively trying to have me murdered to tie up his loose ends before Moretti's merger with Adrian.

Adrian looked at Marcus. "Take Leo to the basement. Call the cleaner. We are done here."

"Wait!" I yelled, stepping forward.

Marcus paused, glancing at his boss.

I walked up to Leo. My heart was pounding so hard it hurt my ribs, but my voice was steady. "Where is David?"

Leo swallowed hard, looking at Adrian for permission to speak. Adrian gave a curt nod.

"He's not hiding," Leo whispered. "He's managing Moretti's new club in Brooklyn. The Neon Rose."

I turned to Adrian. I wasn't the terrified waitress anymore. The anger that had been simmering for a year and a half finally boiled over.

"I want my life back," I said, my eyes locking onto his. "And I want him to pay."

Adrian looked at me for a long time. The corner of his mouth twitched upward in a dark, approving smile.

"Then let's go to Brooklyn," he said.

Before we could move toward the cars, Marcus's phone buzzed loudly in his pocket. He answered it, listening for three seconds before his face went entirely pale.