Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

Stefano drove into the city with a heavy heart. With one hand, he had a death grip on the steering wheel. The other, he kept threaded with Roselia's, holding it over the console. He glanced at her a million times.

She was in shock and rightfully scared, but she was far more whole than she'd been nine days ago. He kept telling himself that it was because of him. He'd made a choice to whisk her away and hide her. It had been selfish and probably would piss off Diane and about ten other people, but it was done now, and he would never regret a moment of his time with her.

If he never got to see her again after this morning, he would have the memories of the last few days with her to last him a lifetime. He only prayed those same memories would be positive for her, too.

As they got closer to the office, he slowed down, not wanting to arrive. He needed to give Roselia information. He released her hand. "Open the glove compartment, sweetheart. The code is one zero two five."

She jerked her gaze to him. "My birthday?"

"Yes."

She opened the locked glovebox.

"There are two envelopes. I need the larger one. The other one is for you. Lock the box back up."

She did as he asked and then looked at him. After setting the legal-sized envelope on the console, she asked, "What is it?"

"It's all of my personal information. The key to my apartment. The passwords to my computer and phone. The codes to my safe and the gun boxes. All of them are your birthday. Most importantly, there is a key to my safe deposit box. It's filled with cash. All of it is clean. It's money I earned with the FBI before I was killed. It's been there for eighteen years. The bank information and details you'll need to access it are in that envelope. Put it in your purse. Don't let it out of your sight."

She started crying again. "Stefano, you're only going to be gone a few hours. They can't keep you. They can't. I'm not leaving here without you."

He grabbed her hand again. "You might not have a choice, sweetheart. I want you to trust Jagger Whitley. I will turn you over to his care. He will not let anything happen to you. Understand?"

"Jagger Whitley?"

"He's an FBI agent. I'm sure he's there waiting for me. I promise he'll take care of you."

She gripped his hand harder. Silent tears fell. He was surprised she had any left.

When he pulled into the parking lot and turned off the engine, she sat like a statue, not moving. "I'm not ready."

"I know, sweetheart." He leaned over, cupped her face, and kissed her before gripping her neck and holding her gaze. "It will be fine." He didn't believe that, but he wanted her to be strong. "Please take care of yourself. Do it for me."

This was the hardest thing Stefano had ever done. He'd thought he'd loved another long ago, but he'd been wrong. This woman he loved to the depths of his soul. Francesca had been an infatuation. She'd been rich and flirty and sexy. She'd been all good times and lies. Ironically, Stefano had dedicated almost half his life to avenging her murder, and it had led him to Roselia.

His heart was heavier at this moment than when Francesca had died. Far heavier because Roselia was his soulmate, and he was letting her down.

He forced himself to release her, grab his envelope, open the door, climb down from the SUV, and move round to her side. She was still sitting in her seat, seatbelt on, not moving.

Stefano leaned over her to unfasten the belt, but she grabbed him and stopped him from helping her out. "I can't do this."

"You can, sweetheart. I promise. You're strong. You can do this. You have to. I have to. I have to stop Santo. This is the only way."

She let out another sob that broke off another chunk of his heart before she finally let him lift her out of the car and set her on her feet. He made sure she had her purse across her shoulder and secured before he opened the side pocket and dropped his car keys inside.

She gasped. "Why…"

"Just in case. You'll need your belongings later. If anything happens to me, the car is yours."

She shook her head. "Stop talking like that."

He kissed her forehead, threaded his hand with hers, and led her toward whatever future was in store for him.

As he'd expected, more than half a dozen agents were waiting just inside the entrance. The only one he knew was Diane, but he was certain one of the others was Jagger and whoever else had been working on this case with him.

"Stefano, it's shocking to see you," Diane said as she extended a hand.

He shook it, keeping his other hand locked with Roselia's.

Diane shifted her attention to the frightened woman gripping his fingers. "You must be Roselia. We're so glad to see you."

Roselia sniffled. She couldn't stop crying, and he couldn't blame her. She'd been through hell, and he was making things worse.

A tall man with black hair and blue eyes stepped forward next, extending a hand. "Jagger Whitley. So nice to finally meet you." He gave him a firm shake and a slight smile before he turned to Roselia. "The other women are anxious to reunite with you. They've been so worried."

Another man behind Jagger held out a hand next. "I'm Damon Albertini. My girlfriend, Gemma Romano, Marigold, was the first woman rescued. I've been an FBI informant for ten years. Long story, but I believe everything I investigated is linked to everything in this case, too."

Stefano knew who Damon was. He'd done his homework.

Another agent held out a hand. "Boyd Lampros. I've been working closely on this case, too."

Diane motioned toward the hallway. "Let's go into the conference room."

Stefano's heart sank when she turned toward Roselia. "I have another room set up for you to reunite with the other women. They're waiting for you."

Roselia stiffened. "I'd rather stay with Stefano," she said in a stronger voice than he would have expected possible.

Diane smiled. "I know, but we need to talk to Stefano for a while first."

Roselia held his hand so tightly she had to be hurting herself. When they reached the conference room, he stopped and turned her to face him. "Go see the other women."

"I don't want to." She wrapped her arms around him.

He rubbed her back and kissed the top of her head. He didn't give a fuck what anyone thought. She needed him, and luckily, no one interrupted to rush him.

He lifted his gaze to search for Jagger. "I told her no matter what happens you would make sure she was safe and gets the help she needs."

Jagger gave a nod. "Absolutely. You have my word."

Stefano felt like he was prying her off him. It broke his heart. They didn't have any other choice. "I love you."

She let out another sob. "I love you, too." And then she bravely released him. One of the female agents smiled at her. "I'm Lauren Rawlings. If you'll follow me, ma'am."

Stefano watched her walk away, feeling like his life left him. When she reached the corner, she turned back one more time before disappearing.

Stefano fortified himself, drawing in a deep breath, and followed the others into the conference room.

"Coffee?" Jagger offered as he approached a drink cart.

"Thank you. Black." Stefano sat in the seat Diane indicated at the head of the table. It seemed odd, but he supposed it would allow everyone to see him. He set the envelope in front of him.

As soon as they were all settled around the table, coffees and waters in hand, he took a few sips and drew a deep breath.

"I don't even know where to start," Diane stated. "I'm not usually tongue-tied, but this is the most unusual case I've ever dealt with. I nearly fainted when I saw your name this morning."

Stefano nodded. "I knew that would be the case."

"Let's begin with introductions from everyone around the table. I assume, though you might not know them by their faces, you will recognize many of the names."

"Thank you."

Jagger gave a short wave. "Like I said, I'm Jagger Whitley. As you're well aware, I was the agent on the scene who picked up the second woman located, Oleander, whose name is Kalinda Spiers. It was unconventional and against just about every policy in the book, but I brought her to my home that night and rarely let her out of my sight since. She is my life."

Jagger glanced to the next man who had introduced himself as Damon. Damon cleared his throat. "Damon Albertini. You probably know my name. You seem to know a lot of things."

Stefano nodded. "I do. Gemma Romano is your girlfriend. Her entire family was murdered when she was taken. You bought her freedom."

Diane leaned forward, her hands wrapped around her mug of coffee. "I assume it's not a coincidence that you were undercover, working as a bodyguard for Gemma's mother, Francesca, eighteen years ago?"

"It's most definitely a coincidence, but you're right. It's all connected," Stefano informed them.

The man who had introduced himself as Boyd Lampros repeated his name and gave a nod.

Diane waved toward the next man. He introduced himself. "Axel Dunbrack. I was working undercover investigating suspected trafficking in a cult for the FBI in Wyoming when my current girlfriend was sold into the trafficking ring we're investigating. I spent eight months looking for her. When I found out about this case here in Denver, I came down to look at the pictures in hopes Nora would be found. She was Jasmine, but you know that. I've transferred to this office to help with the investigation."

Stefano nodded and turned his attention to the final man in the room. "You must be Roberto Moretti."

The man nodded. "I changed my name to Robert Suthers many years ago, taking my mother's maiden name, but yes. That's me."

"You own the chain of clubs called Roses and Thorns, and your father was friends with Damon's and Gemma's fathers. All three men were murdered."

Robert's brows went up. "You do know a lot."

"I didn't know about the tattoos and their connection to you until I saw the one on Roselia's thigh. But a lot snapped into place when I figured out the connection."

Diane spoke next. "I remember you well, Stefano. You were one of the brightest agents I've ever met—an amazingly skilled hacker. Tell us where you've been for eighteen years and why."

She was going to get right to the point. Not surprising. This was what he was here for. Stefano leaned his elbows on the table and folded his hands. For better or for worse, it was time to come clean. He would do this for Roselia and all the women past and future who might fall prey to Santo's trafficking venture.

"As you know, I was the undercover agent working as a bodyguard for Gemma's mother, Francesca. I was hard-working and devoted to the FBI, but I fell for Francesca and lost my way. We didn't know anything about trafficking back then. My job had been to gather intel on Gemma's father, Salinardi Romano. What I learned before my, uh, untimely death was that Salinardi was certainly the head of his own mob family. He was dealing drugs and arms, but I saw no evidence of human trafficking."

"What happened the day of the boating explosion?" Diane asked.

"I had gone out with Francesca like I always did. I was stuck to her like glue. Her husband was paying me to guard her because he knew someone wanted her dead. Luckily, he told me that very morning he suspected Antonio Santo was stalking her. Salinardi didn't tell me why, but after the explosion that took Francesca's life, I lost my mind. It wasn't one of my finest hours. Nor were the next eighteen years. My only goal was revenge."

Diane frowned. "You faked your death to avenge Francesca's murder?"

"Yes. I told you, it wasn't my finest hour. I've had a lot of those. I realize now I wasn't even in love with Francesca. I was enamored with her. We had good times together, but it wasn't love. That didn't really matter. She didn't deserve to die, and I set out to destroy Santo for having her murdered."

"Do you know for a fact he did?" Boyd asked.

"Yes. It took me three years to heal from my own wounds from the explosion, to get physically fit, develop a new identity, and then infiltrate Santo's inner circle. I started working for him fifteen years ago, climbed through the ranks, and became his right-hand man. I handled nearly everything of his. I did not, however, know anything about human trafficking. Santo kept that tight and separate from his financial dealings, which were my expertise."

Stefano glanced at Damon and then Robert. "I'm sure you've suspected he had both of your fathers killed, too, and you'd be right. It would seem that he either tried to talk all three of the other mob families into joining his venture, or they found out and turned him down. Either way, he couldn't tolerate the heads of those three families giving him the finger, so he took out Damon's father, Vincenzo Albertini, and Robert's father, Giordano Moretti, a week apart.

"Years before that, he'd had a confrontation with Gemma's father, Salinardi Romano, and murdered his wife as a warning. As I'm sure all of you know, especially Damon, the vengeful Santo was never pleased with Romano. As the ultimate final fuck you, he had the entire estate murdered and took Gemma prisoner. I have no idea how many people Santo trafficked over the years, but I believe that particular venture he set up with Jovani Russo began with Gemma."

"That is the story Russo tells," Jagger confirmed. "We've interviewed him dozens of times. I believe he's telling the truth when he says he had no idea who he was working for."

Stefano nodded. "I believe that also to be the case."

"What were you doing for fifteen years?" Diane asked, bringing them back on track.

Stefano slid the envelope he'd brought from his glove box across the table toward Diane. He smiled as he said, "Ruining him. I've gradually stolen the bulk of his wealth and moved it to offshore accounts."

Everyone gasped.

Stefano nodded toward the envelope. "All of the account information is in there. The man may be powerful, but he put far too much trust in his right-hand man. I was very close to finishing my task and walking away when Roselia was kidnapped."

"You were in a relationship with her?" Boyd asked.

"No. Not exactly. I was in love with her, but she was so young, and I was focused on my task. My life's work. Ruining Santo. I slept, ate, and breathed Santo's ruin. I was solely focused on revenge for a woman I hardly knew in retrospect. But I didn't care. It became a bit of a game. I was obsessed with taking down Denver's primary mob king."

"And then what would you have done?" Jagger asked.

"Does it matter now?" Stefano nodded toward the envelope in the middle of the table. He was giving them the account information. All of it. He'd never siphoned off a single dime.

Diane sighed and rubbed her forehead. "So what happened when Roselia vanished?"

"My entire world came to a halt. I shifted my focus. I would've left that very week, disappeared, never to be found. I had a fourth identity already set up. I never would've set foot in the United States again. But the moment I found out Santo had taken that sweet, innocent woman and sold her into slavery, I saw red. Taking him down financially no longer mattered to me. To be honest, taking him down at all didn't matter to me. I wanted to find Roselia."

"And she felt the same way about you?" Damon asked.

"Yes. Though I didn't know that until last week, but yes. When she disappeared, I started digging. I hacked into Santo's emails. I broke into every single file cabinet and drawer in that man's life, but he was clever about hiding his trafficking venture, even from me. It took months. Finally, he came to me one day and asked if I could program six dog chips to say Property of Roberto Moretti on them. I couldn't fathom what the fuck he intended to do with the chips, but in the back of my mind, I figured the man was just fucked up enough to plant them in humans."

"You knew who I was," Robert pointed out.

"Yes. I knew exactly who you were. So, I knew those chips were meant to be some kind of revenge. The man still had a hard-on for your father. You were living a clean life and making good money. I believe Santo stuck those chips in all the women as a safeguard. If anyone ever found one, Robert would be framed for the crime."

"Why didn't he come after me?" Damon asked. "He murdered my father, too. The same fucking week."

"You, he believed, were at least attempting to be a part of the mob scene. He'd known you were working for Salinardi Romano. He found it comical that you weren't at home when he wiped out all but Gemma, so he left you alone. The man is a weird sick fuck whose mind is not always logical."

"And he told you all of this?" Diane asked, brow furrowed.

"God, no. I discovered all this while tediously digging through emails every day of the week in search of the six women. I knew there had to be a trail—conversations, transactions, and actual sales. But I couldn't work on it during the day. I had to work on it late at night. I didn't sleep much for months."

Jagger drew in a breath. "So, you were watching those chips after they were set up?"

"Yes. It was wishful thinking. A serious longshot, but I set up the system to alert me if anyone ever tampered with one or unlocked it. I'd never been so fucking ecstatic in my life as I was the day you hacked those damn chips."

"Why didn't you come clean then?" Robert asked.

Stefano shook his head. "Too risky. I wasn't going anywhere until I found Roselia. My only hope was to keep my head down and continue the ruse. I was out of my mind when the other five had been located and Roselia was still out there somewhere."

"But you eventually found her," Jagger pointed out. "Last week, and then you left us hanging."

"No. She found me. She got her hands on a cell phone and dialed my number."

"I assume she's linked to the suicide victim found eight days ago in his home?" Diane asked.

"That's the one. Fucker was one very crazy bastard. I'm glad he won't clog the system with his prosecution. I'm equally glad Roselia won't have to sit in front of a jury and tell them what that motherfucker did to her. It would destroy her."

"We have an excellent counselor," Diane stated. "Dr. Carol Langston. She's working with all five of the women."

"Good. Roselia needs more than I can do for her." He stiffened as he spoke. He had no idea if he would be walking out of this room a free man. Probably not. His hands were not clean in all of this. He looked at everyone around the table. "I know you have a million more questions, and I'll gladly answer all of them. Just please promise me Roselia will be taken care of. Promise me you'll make sure she's safe."

He sat back as everyone around the table nodded their reassurances. That was the most important thing right now. Roselia. She would be devastated if he was arrested and then lost his trial and went to prison, but at least she would be alive. She was young. She had her entire life ahead of her.

His throat tightened as the next round of questions began. It was going to be a long day.