Chapter 79 The Price of a Mother

Chapter 79 The Price of a Mother
Marco stood at the hospital reception desk. He straightened his leather jacket and tried to look like a normal person. He hated hospitals; they always smelled too clean, and the lights were always too bright. Behind the desk, a nurse with silver glasses looked at him.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Yeah. I’m here for Mrs. Bradford," he said, forcing a smile. "Her son, Alexander, sent me. He’s stuck at work, so he asked me to pick her up and settle the bill."

The nurse didn't smile back. She looked at her computer screen and then back at him. She noticed the scar on his knuckle and the way he shifted his feet. 

"Mr. Alexander said he would come himself. I need to verify this."

"He’s busy," Marco snapped. His patience was already thinning. "Just let me take her."

"I’m sorry, sir. That is not our policy." She picked up the desk phone and dialed Alexander’s number. She waited as Marco watched her, his heart pounding in his chest. The line just kept ringing. No one picked up. The nurse hung up and shook her head. "I can't get through. I cannot release a patient to a stranger without a confirmation."

Marco’s face darkened. He felt the heat of anger rising in his neck. "Listen to me, lady. I’m not a stranger. I’m his friend. I’ll call him right now, and you can talk to him. How’s that?"

He stepped away from the desk and pulled out his own phone. He dialed the warehouse.

"Put that dog on the phone," Marco hissed when his partner answered. "The nurse won't let the old lady go. Make him talk. And tell him if he messes this up, I’ll start with his fingers."



At the warehouse, the air was cold and damp. Alexander was slumped against a metal pole, his hands tied tight behind his back. His face was a mess of bruises and dried blood. One of the guards grabbed him by the hair and yanked his head back.

"Wake up, lover boy," the guard laughed. He held the phone to Alexander's ear. "Your friend at the hospital needs a favor. You’re going to tell the nurse that Marco is your brother. Or your best friend. I don't care. Just make her believe you. If you don't, we’ll kill your mother before she even gets to the car."

Alexander choked on a mouthful of blood. He looked at the phone. He could hear the muffled sounds of the hospital in the background.

"Do it," the guard whispered, pressing the phone harder against his bruised cheek.

The nurse’s voice came through. "Alexander? Is that you? There is a man here to pick up your mother."

Alexander took a shaky breath. He closed his eyes. "Yes," he rasped. His voice was thin, but he forced it to sound steady. "It’s me. I’m... I’m tied up at a big meeting. Marco is my very good friend. He’s taking her home for me. Please. Let her go with him."

"Are you alright, Alexander? You sound strange."

"I’m fine," he said, his voice breaking. "Just a long day. Please. Let her go."

The nurse sighed. "Alright. If you’re sure. I’ll process the papers now."

The guard pulled the phone away and hit the end button. He punched Alexander in the stomach, making him gasp for air. "Good boy. See? That wasn't so hard."

An hour later, a van pulled up to the warehouse. The back doors opened, and Marco jumped out. He reached inside and grabbed Alexander’s mother by the arm. She looked frail, her skin pale, and she was shaking.

"Where is Alexander?" she asked, her voice trembling. "Who are you, people? This isn't my house."

"Shut up, old woman," Marco growled, shoving her forward. She stumbled, her knees hitting the gravel.

"Please," she cried. "I’m sick. I need my medicine."

Marco didn't care. He kicked her lightly in the side to make her move faster. "Get inside!"

They dragged her into the warehouse. Alexander’s eyes flew open when he heard the scuffling of feet. When he saw his mother, he fell apart.

"Mama!" he yelled, struggling against his ropes. The rough hemp cut deep into his wrists, drawing fresh blood. "Leave her alone! She’s sick! Hit me! Kill me! Just let her go!"

"Stop moving, Alex," Marco said, walking over to him. He watched as the other men tied the old woman to a chair just three feet away from her son. "Boss wants you to watch, to see what happens when you touch things that don't belong to you."

His mother looked at his bruised, broken face and let out a piercing scream. Alexander pulled at his bindings until his shoulders felt like they were about to pop, but it was no use. He was trapped. He could only watch as they slapped his mother to keep her quiet.



Valeria paced the floor of her room. She hadn't slept. She couldn't eat. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Alexander’s face. She knew the clock was ticking. If she didn't get help now, Alexander was a dead man.

She picked up a burner phone. Her fingers shook as she typed out a message to Luca.

Meet me tonight. Willow Creek Airbnb. Room 4. Come alone, unless you want your sister to die in the arms of a monster.

She hit send and dropped the phone on the bed.

At the Damiano estate, Luca stood in the foyer with Salvatore. They had just come back from the office, and Luca was still fuming about the merger papers.

"I’m telling you, Father," he said, trying to convince his father. "Lorenzo is trying to rob us. He’s moving money into his own name. It’s a scam."

"He is family, Luca," Salvatore said, though he looked tired. "He is Isabella’s husband."

"He is a snake," Luca shot back.

His phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and read the text. His blood turned to ice. ...unless you want your sister to die.

His face went completely blank as he hid the screen from his father. He felt a hot, burning rage in his veins, but he forced himself to stay calm.

"Who is it?" Salvatore asked.

"Just work, nothing important." He tucked the phone away and looked at his father. "When was the last time you actually spoke to Isabella? Not through Lorenzo. Not a text. When did you hear her voice?"

Salvatore frowned. "The gala, I suppose. Why?"

"That was days ago," Luca said, his voice low and dangerous. "You left your daughter in the arms of a man who wants to steal everything we own. Don't you think that's a long time to go without a word?"

"Don't speak about him like that!" Salvatore shouted, pointing a finger at Luca, but his face went red. He began to cough. It was a harsh, rattling sound that shook his whole chest.

"Father!" Luca stepped forward, but Bianca was already coming down the stairs.

"What happened?" Bianca asked, rushing to Salvatore’s side. She put an arm around him. "Come, Father. You need your bed. Luca, stop upsetting him!"

Luca didn't argue. He watched Bianca lead his father up the stairs. It was the perfect distraction. He turned and ran for the door. He jumped into his car and sped away, his mind racing.

Who sent the text? Was it Lorenzo playing a game? Or was it someone else?

He drove to the address. Willow Creek was a quiet area on the edge of the city. He found the Airbnb and parked his car. He walked up to the door and knocked.

No answer.

He knocked again, louder this time. "Open up!" he hissed.

He waited, his hand moving to the small of his back, where he kept his gun. 

Slowly, the door creaked open.

Luca stepped forward, his eyes narrowed. He looked at the person standing in the dim hallway light and stopped breathing. 

"No," he whispered. The word was barely a breath. "It can't be."

He looked at the face he had seen in his dreams every night for months. 

"Valeria?"

Valeria stood there, her eyes red from crying. She looked at him with a mix of love and agony. "Luca."

Luca stayed frozen in the doorway. He didn't move. He didn't speak. He just stared at the woman he thought was gone from his life forever.