Chapter 6 - THE CONFESSION IN THE CELLAR
|
The sub-cellar beneath the Moretti estate was carved from solid bedrock, completely soundproof and freezing cold.
Luca descended the concrete stairs, his heavy dress shoes clicking rhythmically against the stone steps.
Matteo pushed open the reinforced steel door, revealing a dimly lit dungeon illuminated by a single overhead bulb.
Vanessa was tied securely to a wooden chair in the corner, her expensive silk robe torn and stained with soot.
Her mascara was completely ruined, running down her pale cheeks in jagged black streaks.
Opposite her, strapped to a heavy iron pillar, was the driver of the gray sedan, bruised, bloodied, and panting heavily.
On a metal tray between them sat Sophia's navy blue school shoes, soaked with muddy rainwater.
"Luca! Please!" Vanessa shrieked the second she saw her husband step into the harsh light.
"This brute kidnapped me from the stairs! Tell your men to untie me this instant!"
Luca ignored her completely, walking over to the metal tray and picking up his daughter's tiny shoes.
He stroked the wet leather with his thumb, feeling the deep ache of a father's protective fury.
Then, he walked over to the bleeding man tied to the iron pillar.
"State your name, your rank, and who gave the order," Luca said, his voice flat, devoid of rage or mercy.
The man spit a mouthful of crimson onto the concrete floor and looked up with a broken sneer.
"Carlo... Carlo Russo... nephew of Don Julian Russo," the man coughed out weakly.
"And who gave you the signal to intercept my daughter outside St. Catherine's?" Luca asked.
Carlo slowly turned his bruised face toward the corner, nodding his chin directly at Vanessa.
"Your loving wife," Carlo whispered, his voice trembling with genuine fear of Luca's reputation.
"Shut up! He's lying! He wants to destroy us!" Vanessa screamed hysterically, thrashing against the thick ropes.
Luca didn't even blink; he simply raised his left hand, and Matteo placed a cold iron crowbar into his grip.
"Explain the entire operation, Carlo, and I might allow you to leave this cellar in an ambulance instead of a body bag."
Carlo took a ragged breath, coughing against the tight ropes binding his chest.
"Vanessa contacted Julian three weeks ago through an encrypted prepaid burner phone."
"She offered Julian the internal security codes to the Moretti perimeter gates in exchange for five million dollars and safe passage to Milan."
"The kidnapping of the girl was supposed to force you into surrendering the South Side shipping docks without firing a shot."
"Vanessa took the shoes so Sophia couldn't run fast, and canceled the driver so the girl would be forced to walk down Elm Avenue alone."
"I was supposed to pull over, offer her a ride out of the rain, and bring her to Julian's warehouse."
"What were Julian's orders once the docks were officially transferred to the Russo family?" Luca asked quietly.
Carlo looked down at the floor, unable to meet Luca's terrifying, dead gaze.
"Julian ordered me to execute the child and dump her body in Lake Michigan so there would be no surviving heirs."
A deafening silence fell over the cold stone room, so thick that Vanessa's frantic whimpering sounded like a siren.
May you like
Luca dropped the crowbar onto the floor with a terrifying, hollow clatter.
He slowly turned toward Vanessa, his dark eyes burning with an ancient, unforgiving vengeance.
