Chapter 45 Chapter 45
Damien’s POV
I found her in her room, curled up on the bed with her knees drawn to her chest, her good arm wrapped around herself protectively.
She was crying, silent tears streaming down her face, and the sight of it made something in my chest twist painfully.
“Hailey,” I said softly from the doorway.
She looked up, her eyes red and swollen, and I saw the fear and hurt written all over her face.
“I’m sorry,” I said, stepping into the room and closing the door behind me. “I’m sorry you had to witness that. I’m sorry for what Sophia said. And I’m sorry that my family has put you through this hell.”
“Are you?” she asked, her voice hollow. “Because it feels like I’m drowning, and everyone around me is just watching.”
I moved closer, sitting on the edge of the bed. “I promise you, I will bring justice for what happened today. The people who tried to kill you, they will pay.”
“How?” Hailey challenged, sitting up to face me. “By killing them? By sending your men to murder a whole bunch of people? Because that makes me complicit, Damien. That makes me a murderer too, indirectly.”
The words hit harder than I expected. I opened my mouth to argue, to explain that this was how my world worked, that justice in this life came with blood.
But I couldn’t find the words.
Because she was right.
Every action I took to protect her, every person I eliminated, it all stained her hands too. Whether she pulled the trigger or not.
I sat there in silence, unable to respond.
Before the tension could stretch any further, my phone buzzed. Vincent’s name flashed on the screen.
“I need to take this,” I said quietly.
I answered. “What is it?”
“Boss, I’m downstairs with Lorenzo and some of the elders,” Vincent said. “We need to discuss what happened today. The attack. The response. It’s urgent.”
I glanced at Hailey, torn between staying with her and handling the business that couldn’t wait.
“I’ll be down in a moment,” I said and hung up.
I stood to leave, but Hailey’s voice stopped me at the door.
“Damien,” she said quietly. “Is it true?”
I turned back to face her. “Is what true?”
“What Sophia said,” she continued, her voice barely above a whisper. “Am I really just a replacement for your first wife?”
The question hung in the air between us, heavy and painful.
Elena. My first wife. Sophia’s mother. The woman I’d loved with everything I had, who’d stood by me through the darkest years of building my empire.
I’d loved her deeply, completely. And when she died, something inside me had died with her.
Until Hailey.
Hailey had rekindled something I thought was permanently extinguished. She’d brought light back into my life, warmth where there had only been cold efficiency.
But was she a replacement?
Could anyone ever truly replace Elena?
I stared at Hailey, at her tear-stained face and vulnerable eyes, and I knew she deserved an answer.
But I couldn’t give her one.
Not yet. Not when I hadn’t figured it out myself.
Without saying a word, I turned and walked out, closing the door softly behind me.
Downstairs, Lorenzo, Vincent, and three of the family elders were gathered in my office. Maps were spread across the desk, marked with locations and names.
“Boss,” Lorenzo said the moment I entered. “We’ve identified all the gangs involved in today’s attack. The Black Vultures were the ones who made the move, but they had backup from two other Morelli-aligned families.”
He pointed to several marked locations on the map. “These are their safe houses, their meeting points, their supply routes. We have everything we need to strike back.”
I studied the map, my mind already calculating angles of attack, potential casualties, the message we’d send.
“Rally everyone,” I said, my voice cold and decisive. “We move tonight. I want every single person involved in today’s attack eliminated. No survivors. No mercy.”
“Understood, boss,” Lorenzo said with a grim nod.
“I’ll coordinate with the other captains,” Vincent offered. “Make sure everyone’s in position.”
“No,” I said. “I need you here. Someone needs to stay and make sure my household is secure while I’m out there. My mother, Sophia, and Hailey, they all need protection.”
Vincent hesitated for just a fraction of a second, then nodded. “Of course, boss. I’ll make sure everything’s locked down.”
“Good,” I said. “Lorenzo, let’s move. The night’s going to be long.”
As we filed out of the office, I noticed Vincent pull out his phone to make a call, presumably to coordinate the security arrangements.
But something caught my eye.
It wasn’t his usual phone. It was a second device, one he’d been keeping hidden under his shirt, camouflaged against his body.
My steps slowed as I watched him, careful not to let him see me observing.
Vincent glanced around, making sure no one was watching, then quickly typed something and slipped the phone back under his shirt.
A cold knot of suspicion formed in my gut.
Why would Vincent need a second phone? One he kept hidden even from me?
I filed the observation, my mind already churning with possibilities I didn’t want to consider.