Chapter 3 - The Switch at the River Gate
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My heart plummeted into my stomach as I threw the guard to the muddy ground.
“Where did they take her?” I roared.
The guard pointed frantically back toward the estate’s southern vineyard. “The old wine cellars! There’s an underground canal that leads directly to the lake! They boarded a speed boat ten minutes ago!”
I turned back to Marco and Bellini.
“They used the old drainage tunnels,” Bellini realized, his eyes wide. “The ones beneath the vineyard chapel.”
Without wasting another second, we sprinted back to the SUV. Marco flipped the vehicle around, sending gravel flying as we sped toward the lakefront docks at the southern edge of the Rossi territory.
As we rode in tense silence, my phone buzzed in my hand. An unknown number appeared on the screen.
I answered immediately. “If you hurt her, I will tear you apart piece by piece.”
A woman’s voice answered—raspy, cold, and dripping with bitter amusement.
“Hello, Adrian. You have your father’s temper. It’s a pity you didn't inherit his brains.”
“Sophia,” I hissed. “Put Grace on the phone.”
“Your sweet little wife is currently experiencing quite a bit of discomfort,” Sophia chuckled softly. “It seems the stress of being dragged through damp tunnels has triggered something. Her contractions started ten minutes ago.”
Cold panic flared through my veins like liquid ice.
“Name your price,” I begged, dropping all arrogance. “Take the ledger. Take the money. Take the entire estate. Just leave my wife and my child out of this.”
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“Meet me at the abandoned waterworks near the dam,” Sophia commanded coldly. “Come alone. If I see a single security car behind you, I’ll drop your precious pregnant wife into the deepest part of the reservoir.”
The line went dead.
