Chapter 13 - The Night Someone Tried to Take Lily|
Dominic ordered us to leave the mansion before sunrise.
Not because he wanted us gone.
Because someone inside his own security network had been watching my daughter sleep.
Gabriel arranged a protected residence outside Greenwich, with a separate security team and vehicles that were not registered to the Moretti household.
For the first time in six years, I packed our belongings without knowing whether we would ever return.
Lily sat on the bed hugging her favorite stuffed rabbit.
“Mommy?”
“Yes, baby?”
“Are we going on vacation?”
I forced a smile.
“Something like that.”
“Can Ethan come?”
My chest tightened.
“Not right now.”
Her face fell.
“But he gets scared when he's alone.”
I kissed her forehead.
“I know, sweetheart.”
Downstairs, Dominic waited near the front entrance.
He wasn't wearing his usual expensive suit.
Instead, he wore a black sweater, dark trousers, and an expression that suggested he hadn't slept.
“Everything ready?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Thank you for arranging this.”
“Don't thank me.”
His gaze drifted toward Lily.
“She's in danger because of my family.”
Before I could answer, a woman wearing a medical uniform approached from the hallway.
“Excuse me. Dr. Harris requested a routine examination for the child before departure.”
I frowned.
“What examination?”
“Just a quick check, ma'am.”
The woman smiled at Lily.
“Come with me, sweetheart.”
Lily immediately hid behind my legs.
“I don't want to.”
The woman's smile tightened.
“It'll only take a minute.”
Something felt wrong.
Dr. Harris had already examined Lily the previous evening.
And nobody had mentioned another appointment.
“Which room?” I asked.
“The medical suite.”
I looked toward Dominic.
He was watching silently.
Then Lily whispered:
“Mommy, she smells like the kitchen.”
My skin prickled.
The woman reached for Lily's wrist.
I pulled my daughter back.
“Don't touch her.”
Everything happened quickly.
Gabriel stepped into the hallway.
The woman's expression changed.
She turned toward the service exit.
But two guards blocked her path.
Dominic moved in front of us.
“Who sent you?”
She said nothing.
“Name.”
Still nothing.
Gabriel checked her identification.
Then looked at Dominic.
“Fake credentials.”
Dominic's face turned cold.
The woman began crying.
“I was only supposed to take her to a car.”
My knees almost gave way.
“What car?” Dominic asked.
“A black SUV behind the greenhouse.”
Gabriel touched his radio.
Within seconds, security found the vehicle abandoned near the rear gates.
Its license plates were false.
Inside was a small pink backpack.
And a folded photograph of Lily.
Dominic stared at the photograph.
Then turned to me.
“I'm not letting them near her again.”
I swallowed.
“You can't promise that.”
His expression changed.
“No.”
He looked toward my daughter.
“But I can promise I won't stop trying.”
That was the first moment I understood something dangerous.
Dominic Moretti wasn't protecting Lily because she had saved Ethan.
May you like
He was beginning to care about her.
And perhaps, though neither of us dared acknowledge it, about me.
