Moretti, that’s too much—”
“Nonsense,” Isabella interrupted with a playful wag of her finger.
“A young girl carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders needs a proper home.
And I heard from Julian that you have a younger brother.
Liam, isn’t that right?”
Emma gasped softly, looking toward Vincent.
“How do you know about Liam?”
“When someone enters my inner circle, Miss Carter,” Vincent said calmly, taking a sip of black coffee, “I make it my business to know everything about them.
I know Liam has been battling severe asthma.
I have already contacted Dr.
Harrison, the top pediatric pulmonologist at Northwestern Memorial.
Liam will have an appointment with him tomorrow morning.”
Emma sat frozen.
For four long years, she had fought tooth and nail against eviction notices, collection agencies, and endless pharmacy bills, constantly living in fear of the day she wouldn’t have enough money to refill Liam’s prescription.
And within ten minutes, Vincent Moretti had erased every nightmare that had haunted her sleep.
“Thank you,” Emma choked out, pressing a hand to her mouth as tears finally escaped down her cheeks.
“You don’t know what this means to us.
Thank you.”
Vincent watched her quietly.
Beneath his impenetrable exterior, something shifted.
He was accustomed to people looking at him with greed, fear, or sycophantic flattery.
But in Emma’s eyes, there was only pure, unadulterated gratitude.
“You earned this, Emma,” Vincent said softly.
Chapter 10 – The Trap is Sprung
Emma’s heart dropped instantly.
“What is it?
What happened?”
Julian held up a tablet displaying a live security feed from St.
Jude’s Children’s Clinic.
“Ten minutes ago, an unauthorized vehicle pulled into the back alley of the clinic.
Two men posing as family transport agents bypassed the front desk and escorted Liam Carter out through the emergency exit.”
Emma jumped to her feet so fast her chair screeched against the marble floor.
“Liam?!
No!
No, that’s impossible!
He was supposed to be resting at home until his afternoon appointment!”
“His neighbor called an ambulance an hour ago because he had an acute asthma attack,” Julian reported rapidly.
“He was transported to the clinic.
But before our team could secure the perimeter, these men intercepted him.”
Emma’s phone began to vibrate violently in her pocket.
With shaking hands, she pulled it out.
An unknown number flashed on the screen.
She pressed answer and put it on speaker.
“Emma Carter?”
Victoria Sterling’s voice purred through the speaker, dripping with sickening triumph.
“Victoria!”
Emma screamed, her voice cracking with terror.
“Where is my brother?!
What did you do to Liam?!”
“He’s right here, darling,” Victoria laughed coldly.
In the background, the faint, wheezing sound of a child gasping for air could be heard, followed by a weak, terrified cry: “Emma!
Emma, help me!”
“Liam!”
Emma sobbed, clutching the phone against her ear.
“Victoria, please!
He can’t breathe without his machine!
Please don’t hurt him!”
“If you want your little brother to survive the hour, you will listen to me very carefully,” Victoria snarled, dropping the polite facade.
“You will come alone to Warehouse 42 at Pier 42 on the south docks.
No cops.
No Moretti bodyguards.
You will sign a sworn confession stating that you assaulted me at the gala, that you framed me, and that you are an extortionist.
If I see a single patrol car, I will throw his inhaler into Lake Michigan and leave him in the cold.”
The line went dead.
Emma stumbled backward, her vision blurring with panic.
“I have to go.
I have to save him—”
Before she could take another step, a strong, warm hand gripped her shoulder firmly.
Chapter 11 – The Confrontation at Pier 42
Rain had begun to lash against the industrial expanse of Pier 42, turning the gravel paths into slick, black mud.
Inside Warehouse 42, the air was damp and frigid.
Rusted shipping containers were stacked high into the shadowy rafters, while the sound of crashing waves echoed from just outside the corrugated steel walls.
In the center of the concrete floor, Liam sat tied to a wooden chair, his lips turning a faint shade of blue as he struggled for air.
Mack stood beside him, tossing a plastic medical inhaler up and down in his palm with a cruel grin.
Victoria Sterling paced impatiently near the open bay doors, checking her diamond wristwatch.
“Where is she?
She should have been here five minutes ago!”
“Relax, princess,” Mack chuckled.
“She’ll come.
A girl like that would crawl through broken glass for her kid brother.”
Suddenly, the deafening sound of multiple high-powered engines shattered the silence.
Before Victoria could react, the heavy warehouse doors were blown off their hinges with a concussive blast of shattering metal.
