I Touched New York’s Most Feared Mafia Boss to Wipe Blood From His Face… Minutes Later, He Ordered His Men to Bring Me to His Mansion Alive

Kitchen door. Fifteen minutes. Don't make a sound.

I stared at it until the words blurred.

Trust the bodyguard.

The same man who had given Silas my location. The same man who had watched me being dragged into a van.

The same man whose daughter was being held hostage.

I had every reason to distrust him.

But I had one reason to listen.

Marcus had never pretended that he was innocent.

He had admitted what he did and told me why.

At the bottom of the note was a final line.

Your father is in the west cellar. Your mother is being moved tonight.

I rose from the chair.

Fifteen minutes later, a guard appeared outside the door. He carried a plastic tray with a bottle of water and a sandwich.

I waited until he turned away.

Then I struck the bottle against the edge of the table, breaking the plastic lid into a jagged strip. It wasn't much of a weapon, but fear had made me desperate enough to try.

When the guard opened the door, I rushed past him.

He grabbed my sleeve.

I twisted, drove the sharp edge of the plastic into his forearm, and ran.

He cursed behind me.

I reached the kitchen, shoved open the back door, and stumbled into the rain.

Marcus was waiting beside a dark SUV.

He caught my elbow before I fell.

“Move!”

We sprinted toward the vehicle as shouting erupted behind us.

Marcus opened the passenger door, but before I climbed inside, I spun around.

“Where's my father?”

“West cellar. I'm getting him.”

“Then I'm coming with you.”

“Lily, we don't have time.”

“Then stop wasting it arguing.”

For a moment, he stared at me.

Then he nodded.

We slipped through a side entrance and descended a narrow staircase. The air grew colder as we approached the cellar.

Marcus opened a steel door.

Inside, my father sat bound to a chair.

His head lifted at the sound.

For a moment, he looked confused.

Then his eyes widened.

“Lily?”

I rushed toward him.

“Oh, God.”

I dropped to my knees and embraced him, sobbing into his shoulder. He smelled of dust and sweat, but beneath it was something familiar, something I had carried inside my memories for fifteen years.

My father was real.

He was alive.

“I thought you were dead,” I whispered.

“I know, sweetheart.”

He held my face between his hands.

“I am so sorry.”

I pulled back.

“Why didn't you come home?”

His eyes filled.

“Because I believed it was the only way to keep you safe.”

“Everyone keeps saying that!”

My voice broke.

“Everyone keeps deciding what I can survive!”

He lowered his head.

“You're right.”

The simple admission undid me more than any excuse could have.

Marcus cut the ropes.

“We need to leave. Silas knows we're moving.”

My father struggled to stand. I helped him toward the stairs while Marcus covered the corridor.

Then we heard footsteps above us.

A guard appeared at the landing.

He raised his weapon.

Marcus fired first.

The guard fell backward, his gun clattering across the floor.

“Go!” Marcus shouted.

We ran through the kitchen and out into the rain. Marcus shoved us into the SUV and started the engine just as headlights appeared at the end of the driveway.

A black sedan accelerated toward us.

Marcus floored the gas.

The SUV burst through the open gate, bounced across the road, and tore into the darkness.

Only when the house disappeared behind us did I turn toward the driver.

“Why are you helping me?”

Marcus kept his eyes on the road.

“Because my daughter is still in Silas's hands.”

I froze.

“You came back for us because of her?”

“I came back because I finally understood that Silas would never stop.”

His voice cracked.

“He promised me she'd be safe if I obeyed him. But tonight, I overheard him ordering someone to move her after midnight. He never intended to let either of you leave.”

I looked at my father.

He had gone pale.

“Daniel?” Marcus asked. “Do you know where the ledger is?”

My father swallowed.

“Yes.”

“Where?”

My father's gaze moved toward me.

“Inside the music box.”

“I know that,” I said. “But where is it?”

He hesitated.

Then he reached into the lining of his coat and pulled out a small brass key.

“This opens a second compartment beneath the music mechanism. The real evidence is inside.”

I stared at the key.

“Why didn't you tell me before?”

“Because the ledger isn't just a list of names.”

He looked toward the rear window.

“It contains evidence of murders, bribery, blackmail, and the identities of men who still work for Silas. If it becomes public, powerful people will fall. Some of them are dangerous enough to start a war to keep it hidden.”

Marcus turned a corner.

The SUV's tires hissed on wet pavement.

My father gripped my hand.

“Lily, there's something else you need to know.”

“What?”

“The man who ordered your mother's disappearance wasn't Silas.”

I stared at him.

“Then who was it?”

My father's face crumpled.

“The person who helped Silas kill Dominic's father was someone Dominic trusted more than anyone else.”

“Who?”

He looked toward the driver.