Chapter 19 - The Day the Mafia King Chose His Children|
Dominic didn't shout when I told him about the phone call.
He simply reached for his own phone.
“Gabriel. Find Ethan.”
Within seconds, the entire security team was moving.
Ethan was still at the protected house, sitting beside Lily and watching a cartoon.
He was safe.
But someone had scheduled a medical transfer using credentials associated with his physician.
Gabriel immediately contacted Dr. Harris.
The doctor denied authorizing it.
Then he offered to come examine Ethan personally.
Dominic refused.
“Not until we verify every instruction independently.”
Dr. Harris sounded offended.
“Dominic, I've treated your son for years.”
“And that's why you'll understand why I'm being careful.”
For the first time, I heard suspicion in Dominic's voice when he spoke to the doctor.
Meanwhile, the investigators had located Owen Mercer.
Faced with security footage, recovered records, and evidence from the birthday cake, Owen began cooperating.
He admitted that Simon had instructed him to interfere with Ethan's food.
Celeste had helped him gain access to the kitchen.
Mrs. Hargrove had disabled the cameras under pressure.
But Owen claimed he hadn't known how severe Ethan's allergy was.
Whether that was true would be for investigators to determine.
By afternoon, Simon Voss had been detained before his private aircraft could depart.
Gabriel called Dominic with the news.
“They have him.”
Dominic stood beside the window.
“Is Ethan safe?”
“Yes.”
“Is Lily safe?”
“Yes.”
“Then let the investigators handle him.”
Gabriel seemed surprised.
“Boss?”
Dominic looked at me.
“I've spent my life believing fear was the only thing that kept people loyal.”
He paused.
“Look what that belief brought into my home.”
That evening, Jonah arrived to give a formal statement about Warehouse Seventeen.
He admitted his role in falsifying security records and agreed to cooperate with the investigation.
I watched him sign the documents.
Part of me still loved the man I remembered.
But the man standing before me was a stranger who had made terrible decisions.
When he approached, I kept my distance.
“Can I see Lily?”
“Not yet.”
He lowered his gaze.
“Mara, she's my daughter.”
“And she deserves the truth. But she also deserves stability.”
Jonah nodded slowly.
“I'll earn whatever place you're willing to let me have.”
For once, he didn't make a promise he couldn't keep.
Later, I found Dominic sitting beside Ethan's bed.
The boy was asleep.
Dominic brushed dark hair away from his forehead.
“I almost lost him,” he whispered.
I stood in the doorway.
“But you didn't.”
He looked up.
“Because of Lily.”
I smiled faintly.
“She's stubborn.”
“She gets that from her mother.”
Our eyes met.
For several seconds, neither of us spoke.
Then Dominic stood and approached me.
“Mara, I know I can't undo what happened.”
“No.”
“But I want you and Lily to feel safe. Even if that means leaving here forever.”
I looked at him.
“You'd let us go?”
His expression softened.
“You were never mine to keep.”
Something shifted inside my chest.
For six years, I'd known Dominic as a powerful employer.
Then as a terrified father.
Now I saw a man trying to become someone better than his reputation.
I reached for his hand.
He looked down at our joined fingers.
Neither of us moved closer.
Neither made promises.
But for the first time, the silence between us felt like the beginning of something hopeful.
Then his phone vibrated.
Gabriel had sent one final message.
Simon is cooperating. He says he wasn't the person who ordered Elena's disappearance.
Dominic stared at the screen.
May you like
A second message appeared.
He claims the person responsible is still inside your inner circle.
