The scent of vodka wafted through the air as I stood by the window, gazing out at the concrete landscape. My fingers absently tapped against the half-filled glass in my hand, my expression blank and untradable. I heard the door open, and familiar footsteps approached me.
The newcomer cleared their throat and halted a couple of paces behind me. “Boss,” he said, his deep voice cutting through the silence. “We’ve found her location.”
My eyes squinted, and my jaw tightened even though I didn’t turn in his direction. I felt my blood boil, and a pang of rage coiled within me. “Where is she?” I questioned, my tone low and even.
“A countryside in Montana,” he replied.
A wicked smirk tugged at the corners of my lips, and I took another sip of my vodka. “Montana, eh?” I buried a hand in my pocket, a sense of satisfaction coursing through me. She went that far—from the busy and fast-paced life of Chicago—just to get away from me.
She was about to learn the hard way that no one, absolutely no one, could hide from me.
“Ready the men,” I instructed. “We’re going to Montana.”
“Yes, Boss,” he replied, his hasty footsteps receding.
I lifted the glass to my lips and inhaled the scent of its contents, my mind reeling with the possible outcome of this long-awaited confrontation.
Seven months. That was how long she’d stayed hidden. Seven fucking months. As pissed off I was, I couldn’t deny the fact that she’d done a great job at hiding. But all of that was over now; I’d sought her out, and I’d finally found her. There was nowhere else to run to. Today was the day I brought her home, and I wouldn’t let her slip through my fingers again. Never.
Minutes later, I was already in the car, speeding through the busy streets, my men following up behind me. The journey to her location was long, not just in distance, but in the slow drag of time, every second stretching thin with impatience and rising tension. The city lights blurred past, but all I could feel was the weight of each mile between them.
My mind was on the target, my imagination running wild with thoughts of what I’d do to her once I saw her again. I hadn’t really given it much thought, and right now, I anticipated the look on her face—the shock, the surprise, and, most importantly, the fear.
I pulled up outside her small cottage, tires squealing, dust rising into the air. I stepped out of the vehicle, my men behind me as I headed toward the front door. With a powerful kick, I knocked the wooden door down and barged into the living room. From the entrance, my eyes scanned the cozy interior, but there was no sign of life in here.
However, I noticed the throw pillows scattered across the couch. A mug sat on the coffee table, a blanket draped over the armrest. A drawer hung open, its contents spilling across the floor. The air was thick with the scent of something warm—tea, maybe—but the silence was deafening.
“Check upstairs,” I ordered, walking over to the teacup on the table.
A couple of men rushed up the steps, their heavy footsteps pounding against the floorboard.
I halted by the window, gazing out at the golden fields swaying under the soft breeze. Although the place was empty, I could still smell her signature scent lingering in the air.
She was here. That was for sure.
Judging by the looks of things, she’d left in a hurry; perhaps someone had tipped her off that I was coming. Alessia was on the run again. My lips curled into a shallow grin, intrigued by her determination to evade me.
“Sir,” one of my men called my attention. “We’ve searched everywhere in the house. She’s not here.”
I turned around to meet his gaze, and for just a moment, my gaze shifted to the cup of tea on the table. Without a word, I headed toward the piece of furniture and picked up the cup, lifting it to my face. It was still a bit warm. This only meant one thing: It hadn’t been long.
“Spread out. Find her,” I ordered, my voice deep and husky. “She can’t have gone far.”
“Boss,” Andrei called, rushing up to me. “You might wanna see this,” he said, extending an iPad displaying a blurry image of a woman in a car. “I tampered with the CCTV cameras in the streets, and look who I found driving up the highway.”
My eyes squinted at the woman in the aerial photo. The shot was taken from an angle that captured her face as she looked out the window in the driver’s seat.
It was her. It was my Alessia.
“We have her exact location, sir,” Andrei added, his tone laced with conviction. “She’s heading out of town.”
“Good job.” I patted his shoulder and raised my head. “Now, let’s go hunting.”
The engine growled beneath me as I tightened my grip on the wheel. My convoy fanned out behind me in synchronized formation. The landscape blurred past—trees, fences, distant barns—swept aside by the speed of their pursuit. I leaned forward slightly, eyes narrowed behind tinted windows, scanning the stretch of road ahead.
Then I saw it, the same vehicle from the footage Andrei had shown me. It darted along the two-lane highway like a wounded animal running from a predator. It was her. It was Alessia. I was sure of it.
My expression darkened, and I slammed on the accelerator, the engine roaring as I surged forward. The speedometer needle climbed to three digits, and my grip tightened around the steering wheel. Despite the howling wind, my focus was unshakeable, eyes on the target—the prize.
Within seconds, my car pulled alongside hers, our windows nearly level. I glanced in her direction, glaring at her pale features, eyes wide with alarm. Fear was evident in her gaze, and her breath hitched. She had one hand gripping the steering wheel and the other on her belly.
Our eyes locked.
My gaze was cold steel—unforgiving and unreadable. However, something savage burned beneath the surface. Hers was pure panic, fear laced with a flicker of disbelief. I watched her lips tremble slightly, eyes misting. She tore her gaze off mine and slammed her foot on the gas, her car lunging forward.
A sly smirk played on my lips, but I didn’t blink. I let her believe, for a moment, that she could escape again. That hope could exist. That freedom was within reach.
As her vehicle accelerated onward, I gave the signal—a slight nod to the man in the SUV beside me.
He nodded back and stuck his gun out the window, aimed the barrel upward, and then squeezed the trigger. A bullet rang out, tearing through the air, a warning. But she still didn’t stop. He looked at me again and nodded. This time, he aimed at her vehicle, and with one precise shot, he fired. The gunshot shattered through the air and met its mark.
I could almost hear her screams as her vehicle jolted hard, the rear tire bursting in a spray of rubber and sparks. The vehicle spun violently, screeching as it spun out of control. She struggled with the wheel against the momentum, her vehicle skidding off the road. Its tires screeched loudly before slamming into a street lamp with a sickening thud.
The impact crumpled the car’s hood, steam rising from it as one headlight flickered out.
I eased my vehicle to a halt just a few yards ahead, and the rest of my convoy closed in around me. Quietly, I stepped out of the car, my footsteps slow and deliberate as I adjusted the cuffs of my shirt.
The wreckage was just ahead, and seconds later, I stood across from it, watching her with a blank expression.
Her head was slightly bleeding at the side, her hands wrapped protectively over her belly. Weakly, she turned to face me, fear and anxiety flickering in her gaze. I glared at her, my jaw tightening as I pondered what to do to her. She swallowed hard, her chest rising and falling in sheer terror. There was nowhere else to go. The chase was over, and she’d been caught.
Without a word, she pushed the door open and struggled to step out of the vehicle. The moment both her feet touched the ground and she straightened, my expression darkened, and my eyes widened slightly. Her stomach was huge and swollen. She was…pregnant?
My scowl deepened, forming creases between my furrowed brows as I tried to process this shocking revelation. A mix of confusion and fury surged through me as I took slow, menacing steps forward. Had another man touched her? How dare she give what was mine to someone else?
I felt an incredible amount of rage sprinting across my whole body. It was a blend of jealousy and anger. And at this point, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do to her.
Her chest heaved with rapid breaths as I halted before her, my fury growing by the second. I looked down at the roundness of her belly, then met her gaze again, my face contorted into a frown. My hand snapped out, gripping her jawline as I leaned in, eyes boring into hers. “You’re pregnant?” I questioned, my tone dripping with venom.
She struggled to nod beneath my grasp, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Who’s the father? Who’s responsible for this?” I asked, my blood boiling in my veins.
She was silent, her eyes blinking rapidly.
“Answer me!” I thundered, tightening my grip on her jaw.
She trembled, her body jerking in response to my sudden bellow. Alessia mumbled something inaudible, so I loosened my grasp, watching her closely. “You,” she said, her voice faint and gentle. “You’re responsible.”
My brows drew together, eyes squinting as I pulled away by a fraction, processing what she was claiming.
“The baby in my womb is yours, Nik,” she added, wiping her tears.
A storm brewed within me—rage, disbelief, and something even more sinister. My eyes roamed her body, taking in the slightest details to validate her claim. Of course, there was only so much that my gaze could ascertain, but from the looks of things, there was a possibility that she was telling the truth.
I was no expert in pregnancy-related issues, but I’d say that the growth of her belly should be around a few months—six, seven, maybe, which was also around the same time she slipped through my fingers.
“Mine?” I raised my brows in question, clenching my fingers into fists. “You ran away with my child in your womb?”
She steeled herself, her body stiffening with fear. The fury that burned inside me was almost spiraling out of control as a million thoughts overlapped in my head. But as angry as I was at her, I couldn’t deny the fact that this revelation had changed everything.
Now, I was forced to take drastic measures. Alessia had no idea what she’d done, no idea what awaited her. I had warned her of what would happen if she defied me, but she went ahead and did as she pleased. It was my turn to do as I pleased, and she definitely was not going to like what I had in store for her.
