Chapter 4 - The Fortress in the Sky
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The ride to the Castellano penthouse was a blur of neon lights and heavy rain. My mind was racing a million miles an hour, bouncing between the terrifying reality of Jake’s return and the overwhelming, suffocating presence of Luca sitting beside me.
The SUV pulled into an underground parking garage secured by heavily armed guards. We took a private, biometric elevator directly to the top floor of a towering skyscraper in downtown Seattle.
When the doors opened, I gasped.
The penthouse was a sprawling masterpiece of glass, dark velvet, and polished marble. Floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the stormy city skyline. It was beautiful, but it felt like a gilded cage.
“Where is she?” I demanded, balancing awkwardly on my new crutches. “You said Dante was bringing her here.”
“They are five minutes away,” Luca assured me, helping me hobble toward a massive, plush sofa in the center of the living room. “Dante updated me while we were in the elevator. Mrs. Chen is with her. They are perfectly safe.”
I collapsed onto the sofa, the pain in my ankle throbbing in time with my racing heart. Luca walked over to a crystal decanter, poured a small glass of amber liquid, and handed it to me.
“Drink. It will calm your nerves,” he ordered softly.
I took a sip. The whiskey burned brilliantly down my throat, grounding me in the present moment.
A few minutes later, the heavy steel doors of the private elevator chimed.
I scrambled to stand up, ignoring the crutches.
The doors slid open, and Dante stepped out, holding a tiny, sleeping figure wrapped in a bright pink blanket. Behind him walked Mrs. Chen, my elderly neighbor and babysitter, looking completely terrified but unharmed.
“Emma!” I cried, hobbling forward on one good leg.
Dante gently transferred my three-year-old daughter into my arms. Emma blinked sleepily, her messy brown curls falling into her eyes. She smelled like baby shampoo and graham crackers.
“Mommy?” she mumbled, rubbing her eyes. “Where are we? It’s big.”
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“We’re at a friend’s house, baby,” I choked out, tears of absolute relief streaming down my face. I buried my face in her neck, holding her so tightly I was afraid she might disappear.
I looked up through my tears. Luca was standing near the fireplace, watching us. The cold, ruthless mafia boss had vanished. In his eyes, I saw a raw, unprotected emotion that absolutely terrified me—he was looking at us as if we belonged to him.
