10. Rescue Mission

CHAPTER 10

RESCUE MISSION

Damien Benedetti paced the length of his office, tension radiating from every line of his body. The room was filled with an uneasy mix of his own lieutenants and members of the Lombardi family, including Vivian herself. The air crackled with barely contained hostility and suspicion.

"We don't have time for this bullshit," Damien growled, slamming his fist on the desk. "Every second we waste arguing is another second Antonio is in Rizzo's hands."

Vivian's eyes flashed dangerously. "And whose fault is that, Benedetti? If you hadn't taken my son in the first place?—"

"Enough!" Damien roared, his control slipping. "You want to blame me? Fine. But right now, Antonio needs us. All of us."

The room fell silent, the weight of his words sinking in. Vivian's jaw clenched, but she gave a curt nod. "What's your plan?"

Damien took a deep breath, reining in his emotions. He couldn't afford to lose control, not now. Not when Antonio's life hung in the balance.

"We hit them hard and fast," he said, spreading a map of the city across his desk. "I've got intel on three possible locations where Rizzo might be holding Antonio. We'll split into teams, hit all three simultaneously."

As he outlined the details of the operation, Damien couldn't shake the gnawing fear in his gut. The image of Antonio, scared and alone, haunted him. He'd give anything to have his boy back in his arms, safe and whole.

Even if it meant Antonio might hate him forever.

Antonio tested the ropes binding his wrists for the hundredth time, wincing as the rough fibers bit into his already raw skin. The warehouse Rizzo was using as a hideout was damp and cold, the chill seeping into his bones.

But it wasn't the physical discomfort that bothered him most. It was the uncertainty, the fear of what might happen next. Would Damien come for him? Or had all of it—the tender moments, the passionate nights—been nothing but a lie?

The door creaked open, and Antonio tensed. Rizzo sauntered in, a cruel smile twisting his features.

"Comfortable, pretty boy?" he sneered, circling Antonio's chair like a shark scenting blood. "Don't worry, your stay with us won't be much longer. One way or another."

Antonio lifted his chin defiantly, refusing to show fear. "Fuck you," he spat. "When Damien gets here?—"

Rizzo's backhand caught him across the face, snapping his head to the side. "You think he's coming for you?" Rizzo laughed, the sound cold and mocking. "Wake up, kid. You're nothing but a pawn in his game. Always have been."

The words hit Antonio like a physical blow, playing on his deepest insecurities. But he pushed the doubt aside, focusing instead on the anger burning in his chest.

"You don't know shit about me and Damien," he snarled. "He'll come. And when he does, you're gonna wish you'd never been born."

Rizzo's eyes narrowed dangerously. He leaned in close, his breath hot on Antonio's cheek. "For your sake, boy, you better hope you're wrong. Because if Benedetti doesn't meet my demands..." His hand wrapped around Antonio's throat, squeezing just hard enough to make breathing difficult. "Well, let's just say I'll enjoy teaching you your place."

As Rizzo released him and strode out of the room, Antonio's mind raced. He needed to find a way out, and fast. Because as much as he wanted to believe Damien would come for him, he couldn't afford to stake his life on it.

It was time to take matters into his own hands.

Damien crouched in the shadows outside the warehouse, every muscle coiled tight with tension. The night air was thick with the promise of violence, the calm before the storm.

"Teams in position," Gina's voice crackled through his earpiece. "Awaiting your signal, boss."

Damien's hand tightened on his gun, the metal cool against his palm. This was it. The moment of truth.

"On my mark," he murmured, eyes fixed on the building where he prayed Antonio was being held. "Three... two... one... Go!"

The world exploded into chaos. Flash-bangs detonated, filling the air with smoke and disorienting noise. Damien surged forward with his team, kicking down the door and storming inside.

The next few minutes were a blur of gunfire and shouted orders. Damien moved with deadly precision, taking down Rizzo's men with ruthless efficiency. But with each room they cleared, each second that ticked by without finding Antonio, the fear in his gut grew.

Where was he? What if they were too late?

A scream of pain and rage cut through the din, coming from somewhere above them. Damien's heart leapt into his throat. He knew that voice.

"Antonio," he breathed, already moving towards the stairs. "Hold on, baby. I'm coming."

He took the steps two at a time, heedless of the danger. All that mattered was getting to Antonio, making sure he was safe.

The scene that greeted him on the upper floor made his blood run cold.

Antonio was there, alive but clearly worse for wear. His face was bruised, lip split and bleeding. But it was the fire in his eyes, the defiance in the set of his jaw, that made Damien's heart clench.

Rizzo had Antonio in a chokehold, a gun pressed to his temple. But even as Damien watched, Antonio drove his elbow back into Rizzo's solar plexus. The larger man wheezed, his grip loosening just enough for Antonio to slip free.

"You little shit," Rizzo snarled, raising his gun. "I'm gonna?—"

The crack of Damien's pistol drowned out the rest of Rizzo's threat. The mob boss crumpled, a neat hole between his eyes.

For a moment, the world seemed to hold its breath. Then Antonio's legs gave out, and Damien was there to catch him.

"I've got you," he murmured, gathering Antonio close. "I've got you, baby boy. You're safe now."

Antonio clung to him, trembling. "You came," he whispered, voice hoarse and disbelieving. "You really came for me."

Damien's arms tightened around him. "Always," he growled, pressing a fierce kiss to Antonio's temple. "I'll always come for you, Antonio. No matter what."

The tender moment was shattered by a shout from below. "Boss! We've got company! Looks like Rizzo called for backup!"

Damien cursed, already moving towards the exit with Antonio in his arms. "We need to go. Now."

But as they reached the stairs, a hail of gunfire erupted from below. Damien shoved Antonio behind him, returning fire even as he searched for another way out.

"There!" Antonio pointed to a window at the far end of the hallway. "Fire escape. We can make it if we run."

Damien nodded grimly. "Stay close to me. On three, we run. One... two... three!"

They sprinted down the hallway, bullets whizzing past their heads. Damien felt a sharp sting as one grazed his arm, but he ignored it, focused solely on getting Antonio to safety.

They burst through the window onto the fire escape, the cool night air a shock after the stuffy warehouse. Damien went first, helping Antonio down the rickety metal stairs.

They were almost to the bottom when a shot rang out, louder and closer than the others. Antonio cried out, stumbling. Damien's heart stopped as he saw the bloom of red spreading across Antonio's shirt.

"No," he breathed, gathering Antonio into his arms. "No, no, no. Stay with me, baby. Stay with me."

Antonio's eyes were glassy with pain, his breathing labored. "Damien," he gasped, fingers weakly grasping at Damien's shirt. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Shh, don't talk," Damien urged, already moving towards the waiting SUV where Gina was behind the wheel. "Just hold on. Please, Antonio. Hold on for me."

As they sped away from the warehouse, sirens wailing in the distance, Damien cradled Antonio's limp form against his chest. Blood seeped between his fingers as he applied pressure to the wound, each labored breath Antonio took a dagger to his heart.

"Don't you dare die on me, you brat," Damien growled, his voice rough with fear and desperation. "You hear me? That's an order from your Daddy."

Antonio's lips quirked in a weak smile, blood staining his teeth. "Still... not your... little boy," he wheezed, ever defiant even on the brink of unconsciousness.

Damien's chest tightened, a mix of exasperation and fierce love overwhelming him. "The hell you're not," he muttered, pressing harder on the wound. "And when you're better, I'm going to spank that sass right out of you."

The SUV screeched to a halt outside a private clinic Damien kept on retainer for situations just like this. He scooped Antonio into his arms, barking orders at the waiting medical team as he carried his precious cargo inside.

"GSW to the abdomen," he snapped, depositing Antonio on a gurney. "He's lost a lot of blood. Save him. Whatever it takes."

As the doctors rushed Antonio into surgery, Damien found himself alone in the sterile hallway, hands sticky with drying blood. His boy's blood. The weight of everything that had happened, everything he stood to lose, crashed down on him all at once.

He slumped against the wall, sliding down until he was sitting on the cold tile floor. For the first time in years, Damien Benedetti, the feared kingpin of Chicago's underworld, buried his face in his hands and wept.

Hours passed in a haze of anxiety and regret. Damien paced the waiting room like a caged tiger, snapping at anyone who dared approach him. When Vivian Lombardi arrived, her face pale with worry, he braced himself for a confrontation.

But instead of the vitriol he expected, Vivian merely looked at him with tired eyes. "How is he?" she asked softly.

"Still in surgery," Damien replied, running a hand through his disheveled hair. "They... they said it's touch and go."

Vivian nodded, sinking into a nearby chair. For a long moment, neither spoke, the weight of shared fear and guilt hanging heavy between them.

Finally, Vivian broke the silence. "I saw how you looked at him," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "When you carried him in. I've never seen you like that before."

Damien's jaw clenched, emotion threatening to overwhelm him again. "I love him," he admitted, the words feeling like they were torn from his very soul. "God help me, I love that mouthy little brat more than anything in this world."

To his surprise, Vivian's lips curved in a small, sad smile. "I know," she said. "And I think... I think he loves you too."

Before Damien could respond, the door burst open and the lead surgeon emerged, looking exhausted but relieved. "He's stable," the doctor announced. "It was touch and go for a while, but he's a fighter. With rest and proper care, he should make a full recovery."

The tension in the room eased, replaced by a collective sigh of relief. Damien felt like he could breathe for the first time since Antonio had been taken.

"Can I see him?" he asked, already moving towards the door.

The doctor nodded. "Briefly. He's still unconscious, but?—"

Damien didn't wait to hear the rest, pushing past into the recovery room. His breath caught at the sight of Antonio, pale and small in the hospital bed, hooked up to various machines. But he was alive. Breathing. Fighting.

Damien approached the bed on unsteady legs, reaching out to gently brush a stray curl from Antonio's forehead. "Hey, baby boy," he murmured, voice thick with emotion. "You did so good. So brave for Daddy. Now you just rest and get better, okay? Because we've got a lot to talk about when you wake up."

He leaned down, pressing a tender kiss to Antonio's lips. "I love you," he whispered against Antonio's skin. "I love you so much, my fierce little brat. And I swear, I'm never letting you go again."

As if in response, Antonio's fingers twitched, curling weakly around Damien's hand. Damien's heart leapt, hope blooming in his chest.

But they weren't out of the woods yet. Antonio still had a long recovery ahead, and there were countless loose ends to tie up. The fallout from the rescue operation, the power vacuum left by Rizzo's death, the lingering tensions between the Benedetti and Lombardi families...

And most importantly, the uncertain future of his relationship with Antonio. Would the younger man forgive him for the lies and manipulation? Could they build something real, something lasting, from the ashes of their tumultuous beginnings?

As Damien settled into the chair by Antonio's bedside, prepared to keep vigil for as long as it took, he knew one thing for certain:

Whatever challenges lay ahead, he would face them head-on. For Antonio. For the love that had changed everything.

The game had shifted, the stakes higher than ever before. But Damien was all in, ready to risk it all for the chance at a future with the bratty, beautiful boy who had stolen his heart.

Now, he just had to wait for Antonio to wake up and decide if he was willing to take that chance too.