19. Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

Dominic

"You see, when I was young, we used to work out deals with people who didn't speak English," the old man next to me is saying. "That way, when they got caught, they couldn't tell the Feds anything about anything." He laughs like he's just made the best joke in the history of jokes.

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. His voice is loud, and he's been getting increasingly drunk while I've been sitting next to him at the Blackjack table.

I wouldn't normally put up with such inane conversation for a second, but this table at the center of the room is the best place in the casino to see what's going on at all of the exits and entrances.

I crane my neck to look around for Gianna. She had come out of the bathroom a while ago and I had shared a heated glance with her. I wanted nothing more than to take her sexy ass home and have fun with her.

Listening to this drunk old man chewing my ear off is not my idea of a good time.

I don't see her anywhere, and I start to feel a little worried. I look behind me at the bar and don't see her there either.

A sudden flash of silver color near the door catches my eye. I wonder if she's stepped outside for some reason. I had tried to impress upon her that this kind of thing is dangerous, but she didn't seem all that concerned. I can't decide if she's brave or na?ve that she isn't more concerned. It worries me, but leaving her alone at the rented house worries me as well.

"Excuse me," I say to the old man still chattering away at me. I hear his harrumphing about my rudeness, but he shuts up when I push my stack of chips at him before walking away from the table.

I hurry over to the back door by the men's room and step outside. I don't see anyone on the street, so I walk quickly down the side of the building toward the alley.

I scan the area, my eyes peeled for her bright silver dress. She should be incredibly visible out here as there are only industrial buildings and parked cars on this side of the casino.

I feel worry curling in my belly as I round the corner. I look behind me to see if there are any suspicious cars around with people sitting in them before I hear the sound of a car driving rapidly. I look down the street in time to see a black SUV swerve to avoid an oncoming car. I can't see in the backseat of the vehicle because of the tinted glass, but the driver seems to be fighting with someone inside.

Suddenly, I see Gianna poking her head into the front seat, grabbing at the wheel, and trying to wrestle with the driver.

Did the car belong to The Cobra? Was he in the back seat?

My heart flip flops in my chest as the car swerves wildly back and forth across the street. She's going to cause the car to crash, which could kill everyone inside.

I run into the street and stand there, wishing there was something I could do. Abruptly, the car rights itself and starts to drive in a straight line again. Gianna must have lost a hold of the wheel.

My blood runs cold as I see the SUV take the corner at a high rate of speed and vanish from sight. Our car is parked on the other side of the casino, so there won't be time for me to collect it and tail them.

I stand in the middle of the street feeling lost and hopeless. Vince has already made it clear that he doesn't have any intentions of helping me with this job.

He was already really angry about Gianna being in my life, and I lied to him about bringing her out here with me. He's likely to cut me off entirely if he finds out that I want help to get her back from some Atlantic City mob.

I drive a hand through my hair in frustration. I have very few connections in this world since I work alone. I've always liked it that way, but in this moment, I realize that it might have been a mistake.

Vince is my only point of contact besides my own employees, and I don't have any other mob connections that I can call in.

Except …

I feel physically ill thinking about the option that has just occurred to me. Can I honestly be thinking about calling Gianna's father and telling him that she's been kidnapped on my watch? The man will kill me. Her brother will kill me.

The thought of bringing down the entire Bianchi family on me doesn't sit well with me. And it might put Gianna in danger as well.

It sounded like The Cobra had a beef with Gianna's family as well. Telling them might lead to even more trouble.

I bite my lip. The only option I have that makes any sense is to call in my adoptive father. I look up at the sky, wishing that I was a religious person. I could really use some divine protection right now.

Sighing, I start walking toward my car and pull my phone out of my pocket.

"Vince?" I say as soon as the phone stops ringing.

"Yeah?" he asks me. He sounds distracted.

"I need your help."

"You brought her with you, didn't you?" he says to me and I wince. Apparently, the story I told Vince wasn't very convincing. Still, the fact that he knows that Gianna is why I'm calling saves us some time.

"I did."

Vince curses extensively in Italian. Then he says, "What happened?"

"The Cobra has her," I say. "Well, at least that's what I suspect."

"What have I told you about mixing pussy and work?" he says to me angrily.

"I know, I know," I say as I unlock my car and get inside. "Look, I have no idea what he will do to her. He has to know who she is and he probably knows that she's here with me if he kidnapped her. I need your help."

"I thought you worked alone," he throws back at me and I close my eyes for a moment. I had told him many times over the past few years that it was time for him to let me work exclusively on my own.

In many cases, it was much easier to track down a hit when you didn't have anyone else along for the ride. Gianna's kidnapping was a prime example of just how important it was to keep business and pleasure separate.

None of that mattered now, however. I would swallow my pride over and over again to help the woman that I loved.

"Vince, please," I say to him. "I love her. She's everything to me. And The Cobra is a very dangerous man."

"I did tell you to go to Atlantic City to take care of my job and nothing else."

I start the car and buckle my seatbelt. "You did."

Vince sighs loudly. I can practically hear him turning over his options in his mind. He doesn't like to do any work in person these days, but the fact remains that he's one of the best in the business. Vince has been at the head of a successful mafia family for more years that I've been alive.

There is no one better to help me get Gianna back.

"I'll come to help you on one condition," Vince finally says to me.

"Name it. I'll do anything," I say. I mean it. Gianna is more important to me than myself. I'll polish Vince's boots and work as his pool boy if that's what's required to get her to safety.

"You need to agree to become the head of the Romano family. I don't have any other children. You're like my only son. I've raised you and taught you well. I don't want all of this to be for nothing, and you know that the Romano legacy will outlive me."

I drive away from the casino, scanning the streets for signs of the black SUV that Gianna was in. I honestly don't want to find it, though.

The only way I'm going to catch up to them is if Gi has crashed the car somehow. The thought of her being injured or killed makes me feel like vomiting.

I turn over what Vince has asked of me, feeling anguished. The last thing I want to do is run a huge crime family. The thought of having to be responsible for so many people's lives makes me almost as scared as Gianna being in the hands of The Cobra.

However, as far as prices to pay for getting Vince's help in my moment of need, it's not that steep. And I can't help Gianna by myself.

"Okay," I say, turning a corner and then giving up. I need to head back to the beach house and regroup.

Vince's voice is full of satisfaction as he replies, "Excellent. I'll gather up the boys and be there as soon as possible."

"Hurry," I say to him, then hang up the phone.

I navigate the rest of the route to the beach house that I rented for Gianna and I with a heavy heart. Every moment that she's with The Cobra is one moment too many.

I feel incredibly helpless. I've never been in a position where I had to think about anyone but myself. It was easier that way. Heck, it would still be easier that way, but I also wouldn't have Gianna in my life.

I wonder how men in my line of work manage to have families and people that they care about in their lives. I have never felt fear like this in my entire life.

I have no idea what I will do if Gianna doesn't make it. Death feels preferable to me, versus having to hear that Gianna was hurt, let alone killed, all because of her connection to me.

I think about Gianna's parents and her brother. I really should tell them that she's in danger, but the more people that I tell about her kidnapping, the more likely she is to get hurt.

The Cobra has managed to keep their identity a secret for a long time now. If I call in even more people than Vince and his thugs, he might get scared and do something truly reckless.

I already expect The Cobra to reach out to me and tell me that he has Gianna in his hands. He will want to use her as a bargaining chip to get to Vince.

Everyone in the crime world knows who I answer to. Everyone also knows that if I'm in town, I've been brought in to take someone out.

I park the car outside the beach house and get out. I glance around casually to see if there's anything suspicious going on.

Since Gianna has been taken, it's possible that The Cobra and his people also know where we have been staying.

Nothing seems out of place, but I discretely draw the pistol from under my suit jacket and open the front door of the house with care. I carefully lean around the door and then slam it open, prepared for men to come rushing out to grab me or subdue me.

Nothing happens, so I shut the door behind me and move through the entire cottage, making sure that no one is hiding inside. It isn't a very big house, so there aren't many places to check.

Once I'm sure it's safe, I put away my gun and get out my laptop. I start doing some research into all of the various places where someone might hide shady business in plain sight.

I already know that the box factory was just a meeting place and that it doesn't belong to The Cobra. There have to be other places in Atlantic City, however, that would be ideal for someone to both live and work away from the public eye.

Just like Chicago, Atlantic City is an old place. There are lots and lots of old, derelict, or abandoned businesses and warehouses throughout the city.

I start to feel defeated as I scroll through the bad side of town, checking out images on Google Earth. Any of these abandoned buildings would make the perfect hideout for a gang of thugs to make and sell drugs.

Based on my brief acquaintance with the city, most of the police are on the take as well. It would be incredibly simple to get away with nearly anything here.

I shut the laptop and drop my head into my hands. I feel scared, worried, helpless, and angry, in equal measure. I start pacing around the small space inside the cottage. It will be hours before Vince is here, but I can't in good conscience make a move toward saving Gianna without his help.

Growling with anger, I decide to take a shower. I know that I smell like cigar smoke from my hours spent sitting at the Blackjack table. I turn on the water, and then realize that I'm out of body wash. I decide to go and see if my personal assistant packed any extra toiletries in the side pockets of the bags that they packed for the trip.

I dig through my suitcase and don't find anything. I decide it can't hurt to check out the bag I brought for Gianna as well.

I feel into the front of the bag and frown when I feel a small baggy with some rectangular items in it. I pull the objects out, and practically stop breathing.

The baggy in my hand contains three white and pink sticks. Pregnancy tests. I spread them apart inside the bag and saw that all three of them are positive.

"Oh my God," I say to myself. I notice in a distracted way that my hand is shaking. I draw in a steadying breath, trying to calm my racing heart. Why hadn't she told me? How long had she known?

I thought back. She and I had never once used protection. Most of our early encounters had be complete surprises that I hadn't planned.

She was so intoxicating that all of my good sense went right out the window as soon as I touched her. I had only thought of protection the one time, but she had assured me that she was on the pill.

Those things don't always work , I thought to myself. I slipped the baggy of tests back into the suitcase, feeling like the weight of the world was resting on my shoulders.

Gianna was in the hands of a dangerous man and she was pregnant with my child. I couldn't wait for Vince to show up now that I knew this. There was too much at stake.

I got up and turned off the shower. I went back to my laptop and went back to scanning the seedier part of town. I'd just start searching somewhere and figure it out from there. Maybe I could ask around to see if anyone knew where the worst element of the city hung out.

Suddenly, my phone pinged with a message. I yanked it off the table and unlocked it. The number wasn't saved in my phone.

You know who I have with me, the message said. You know what I'm capable of.

I stared at the phone for a moment, trying to decide how to handle this. The only option available to me was to play The Cobra's game.

I needed to get to Gianna and the baby as soon as possible or they might not make it out alive. I would have to act like I was giving up willingly.

I do , I sent back.

I tapped my fingers on the table impatiently, watching the three little dots jumping as The Cobra messaged me back.

As I waited, I thought about Gianna and I having a baby. Would it be dark-haired like me, or have her light brown hair and light green eyes?

My heart pinches in my chest at the thought of a little me running around. Would I be able to be a good dad to our child? It had just been my mother and I until I was nearly grown and Vince took me in. While Vince had been kind to me, he wasn't a conventional dad. No mob boss was.

Would I be able to take care of a baby and keep it safe? For that matter, could I keep Gianna safe? I hadn't done a very good job of either one thus far. I scraped a hand down my face in frustration.

Was this bastard sending me a novel? Why was he still typing?

I will give you an address. No guns. I have a proposition for you that I just know you'll love. It will make sure that Gianna is safe.

The three little dots showed back up, and then an address appeared below the message.

I'll be there, I sent back.

I slammed my laptop shut, then hesitated. I didn't want to put Gianna in danger, but I needed to tell Vince that I had a lead. It would probably be far too late by the time that he arrived, but at least he'd have a trail of breadcrumbs to follow.

I sent him a message saying I had a lead and was going to the address I had been provided via text. I told him that I would be there in about twenty minutes and that I understood if they were too late to help.

I saw that Vince was typing something back, but I had already wasted too much time. I locked my phone screen and raced out the door to get into my car.

I pulled out of the driveway with a squeal of tires, and drove much faster than the speed limit as I followed the navigation to the address I had been given.

I felt like every second that I was on the road was like a grain of sand slipping through the hourglass for Gianna.