Chapter 9 - The Chase in Little Italy|
Rain slicked the asphalt of Mulberry Street as the first light of dawn began to paint the sky in pale gray.
Isabella ran through the quiet streets, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. Behind her, the engine of the gray Mercedes roared as Franco pulled out of the alleyway, his headlights cutting through the dim light, searching the sidewalks.
She ducked into the narrow doorway of an old closed butcher shop, pressing her back flat against the cold glass, holding her breath.
The Mercedes rolled past slowly, its dark windows reflecting the streetlamps.
Isabella pulled out her phone. Her fingers were trembling so hard she could barely type.
She couldn't call the police; Uncle Sal owned half the precincts in lower Manhattan. She couldn't go to her family; it would put them in immediate danger.
There was only one person left who had the authority to stop Franco.
She dialed Dante’s private line.
It rang once.
"Isabella!" Dante’s voice came through the speaker, raw, frantic, and desperate. "Where are you?! Marco told me you left your apartment—"
"Dante! Franco is hunting me!" she gasped, watching the Mercedes turn the corner at the end of the block. "Uncle Sal sent him! He's trying to kill me!"
A heavy, terrifying silence fell over the line, followed by the sharp sound of glass shattering on Dante’s end.
"Where are you right now, Isabella?" Dante commanded, his voice dropping into a register of pure, unadulterated murder.
"Mulberry and Spring Street," she whispered. "I have the evidence, Dante. I know who took the necklace. It was Carlo!"
"Stay where you are," Dante growled, the roar of a high-performance engine suddenly exploding over the receiver. "I’m three minutes away. If Franco touches a single hair on your head, I will butcher him in the street."
The line disconnected.
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Isabella lowered her phone, looking down the avenue.
The gray Mercedes had stopped at the intersection. It was executing a slow U-turn, its headlights locking directly onto the doorway where she was hiding.
