Chapter 4 - SINS OF THE FATHER
The next forty-eight hours were a blur of unimaginable luxury and suffocating anxiety. The Hamptons estate was beautiful, overlooking the crashing waves of the Atlantic, but to me, it was a high-tech prison. The children, however, were thrilled. Owen, Ivy, and Noah ran through the massive gardens, completely unaware that their father was currently in Manhattan, orchestrating a violent purge within one of the most powerful crime syndicates in the world.
I sat on the terrace, watching Marco play a gentle game of tag with the triplets. Despite being a hardened mafia enforcer, he was surprisingly good with children. My phone, a new encrypted device Sebastian had forced upon me, buzzed on the table. It was him.
"Maya." His voice was deep, exhausted, but thrumming with adrenaline.
"Are you... is it done?" I asked, my heart pounding in my chest.
"Elias is dealt with," Sebastian replied vaguely. I didn't press for details; in this life, ignorance was a shield. "My grandfather, however, is a more complicated matter. He has loyalists within the Five Families. When I confronted him about the letters and the threats against you, he didn't even deny it. He called you a weakness. He said the children were a liability that would make me soft."
"What did you do?" I whispered.
"I stripped him of his title. I took his seats on the council. He is under house arrest in the old Bronx compound." Sebastian sighed. "But he has allies. And they are not going to accept this transition of power quietly. He views the children as the root of my rebellion."
Panic seized my throat. "Sebastian, you promised they would be safe!"
"They are. The estate is locked down. I am returning tonight with an additional forty men. Do not let them out of your sight, Maya. Do not trust anyone who isn't Marco or myself."
The line went dead. I stared at the phone, a cold dread washing over me. I ran out to the lawn, scooping Noah into my arms and calling for Owen and Ivy. "Inside! We're going inside right now!"
Marco looked at me, his hand instantly dropping to the holster concealed under his jacket. "Ma'am? Is there a problem?"
"Sebastian said we need to lock down. Bring them in, Marco. Now."
As we hurried into the mansion, the heavy oak doors slamming shut behind us, I couldn't shake the feeling that the fortress wasn't as impenetrable as Sebastian believed. The Vale family had ruled the underworld for a century by being ruthless, cunning, and completely devoid of mercy. If the old patriarch wanted my children gone, he would find a way.
That night, a violent storm rolled in off the coast. Lightning flashed, illuminating the grand, empty hallways of the estate. I put the kids to bed in the master suite, refusing to let them sleep in the nursery. I sat in a chair by the door, wide awake, staring into the darkness.
May you like
At 2:00 AM, the lights flickered and died.
The backup generators, which should have kicked in instantly, remained silent. The estate was plunged into total darkness. My blood ran cold. The security system was down. The walls of Jericho had just been breached.
