Aria couldn't breathe.
The video replayed again and again in her mind. Nico and Nino, tied to chairs. Blindfolded. Crying. And then… him.
David.
Her past crashing through the present like a bomb. She hadn't seen him since the night she ran. He wasn't just her ex. He was her worst mistake. The kind of man who smiled while lying, who kissed your hand and broke your ribs the same night. He was a monster in a suit. Charming to the world, deadly behind closed doors.
And now he had her children.
Luciano stood across the room, frozen. The fire in the hearth behind him crackled softly, but everything else was quiet. Too quiet.
"I thought he was dead," Aria whispered.
Luciano's voice was low. "We all did."
"Why didn't you tell me he was involved?"
"I didn't know."
"You're lying."
Luciano's eyes darkened. "I swear to you, Aria. I knew about Alessandro. I knew about Anton. But David? He was off the map. Last I heard, he got caught up with the Colombians and vanished. No one's heard his name in five years."
She shook her head. "Then how the hell did he find my boys?"
Luciano's fists clenched. "Because someone gave him access."
Matteo walked in then, phone in hand. His expression was tight.
"We traced the signal that sent the video. It came from a burner phone. Location shows somewhere outside Boston."
Luciano turned. "Any more footage from the house?"
"No. Security's been wiped clean from the inside."
Aria grabbed Matteo's arm. "What about the boys? Are they okay? Is there sound?"
He hesitated. "Just the video. No audio."
Luciano looked ready to tear the place apart. "Send a team. Full surveillance. I want that house on lockdown, and I want eyes on every exit."
Matteo nodded and left.
Aria stood in the center of the room, shaking.
Luciano stepped toward her. "We'll get them back."
"You can't promise that."
"I can."
"You don't know him, Luca," she whispered. "You don't know what he's capable of. He once left me locked in a room for two days because I smiled at a waiter. He doesn't feel things the way normal people do. He doesn't stop."
Luciano's voice was cold steel. "Then neither will I."
For the next hour, the estate turned into a war zone. Phones rang. Plans formed. Weapons checked. Men in black suits flooded the halls, each one handpicked by Luciano himself.
Aria paced the hallway, heart pounding. All she wanted was her sons. Nothing else mattered. Not the mansion. Not the lies. Not even Luciano's loyalty.
Just Nico and Nino.
Then her phone buzzed again.
Blocked number.
She answered immediately. "Where are they?"
David's voice came through, calm and cruel. "Hello, darling. Miss me?"
"Don't play with me."
"Still have that sharp tongue, I see. You always did like to bark when you were afraid."
"You've made your point. What do you want?"
He laughed softly. "I think you know. Come alone. No guards. No boyfriend. Just you."
"Where?"
"You'll know soon. And Aria..., if I see a tail, I start cutting."
The line went dead.
She turned to Luciano. "He wants me to come alone."
"No."
"I have to."
"You're not walking into that trap."
"He said if he sees backup, he'll hurt them. Or worse."
Luciano grabbed her arms. "You don't negotiate with someone like him."
"I'm not negotiating. I'm distracting."
Luciano stared at her.
"I go in. You follow at a distance. Track my location. You'll get the boys out."
"Aria...!"
"They're my sons, Luca. I'm not letting that monster raise a finger to them. Not again."
He hesitated.
Then nodded once.
They moved fast.
Luciano gave her a tiny tracker to wear behind her ear. "If anything happens, if you feel unsafe, you press this button. It'll send an alert."
She tucked it in without a word.
Ten minutes later, she received another message.
Come to the old shipping docks in Eastport. Alone. 3 PM. No mistakes.
The docks were two hours away. Aria left first, driving an old sedan that Matteo gave her. Luciano and his team followed behind in black motorcycles, staying three blocks behind.
The road stretched long and quiet, broken only by trees and abandoned factories.
When she finally pulled up to the docks, the air smelled like rust and salt. Boats bobbed quietly in the distance. The whole place felt forgotten. Broken.
David was waiting near the main warehouse.
He smiled as she approached.
Same crooked grin. Same expensive coat. Same cruel eyes.
"Aria. You look good. Motherhood suits you."
She stood still, staring. "Where are they?"
He stepped closer. "You didn't say hello."
"I asked you a question."
He raised a brow. "They're fine. For now."
She wanted to lunge at him. Scratch his face. Scream. But she didn't. She had to be smart.
"You don't want them," she said carefully. "You never did."
"No. But I want you. And I want to see that smug bastard bleed. You picked him over me."
"I ran because you almost killed me."
He tilted his head. "You ran because you're weak."
Suddenly, he lifted a phone and snapped his fingers.
Two men dragged Nico and Nino out of the warehouse. Their eyes were wide. Hands still tied.
Aria bit down on her scream.
David smiled. "One wrong move, and they drown."
"You're insane."
"No. I'm hurt."
He pulled out a small remote from his pocket.
"One button," he said. "And the platform under them drops into the water."
Aria stepped forward. "Let them go. I'm here."
"Beg."
"What?"
"Beg me."
She didn't move.
David's eyes narrowed. "Beg me like you did the night you left. On your knees. Maybe then I'll think about it."
Tears welled in her eyes. But she didn't move.
"You haven't changed," she said quietly. "You're still small."
He raised the remote.
A shot rang out.
David jerked, the remote flying from his hand.
Luciano appeared from behind the shipping crates, gun raised, eyes full of fire.
The guards turned.
Chaos exploded.
Gunfire.
Screams.
Smoke.
Luciano dove toward the boys, cutting the ropes and pulling them close.
Aria ran to them, wrapping them in her arms.
But something was wrong.
David was gone.
Disappeared.
In the chaos, he vanished like a ghost.
Luciano searched every inch of the docks, but there was no sign of him.
No blood.
No trail.
Nothing.
Back at the estate, the boys were finally safe. Clean. Fed.
But Aria couldn't sleep.
Luciano stood outside her door, watching the moon.
"He got away," he said quietly.
She nodded. "He always does."
Luciano looked at her then. "I'm going to find him."
"I know."
"And I'm going to kill him."
She didn't stop him.
But deep down, she knew something else.
David wasn't running.
He was planning.
And he had one last move left to make.
The next morning, a package arrived at the estate.
Aria opened it slowly.
Inside was a white envelope.
No note.
No message.
Just a photograph.
It was her.
Sleeping.
From the night before.
In her bed.
And written on the back in red ink:
You think the docks were the end?
Darling… I've just begun.