Nobody had touched Alessandro Moretti while he slept in twenty years and walked away without consequences, yet my three-year-old daughter climbed onto his chest like he was a pillow. What terrified me wasn't that New York's most feared crime boss opened his eyes beneath her, but that Lily smiled and revealed the name of the man who had warned me never to tell Alessandro the truth.

Richard Miller let out a pathetic, strangled gasp, stumbling backward against the hood of the sedan, his face turning as white as a sheet.

“M-Moretti?!” Julian Donati yelled, his hands flying to the grip of his automatic weapon. “Kill him!”

Before Julian’s mercenaries could raise their rifles, the dark upper catwalks of the warehouse erupted with blinding tactical lights.

“POLICE! FEDERAL AGENTS! DROP YOUR WEAPONS!”

Dozens of heavily armed FBI SWAT officers and Alessandro’s personal security team rained down from the rafters, lasers painting the chests of Julian’s mercenaries.

Alessandro had not just planned a mob hit; he had coordinated with the Federal Organized Crime Task Force, presenting the ironclad digital evidence harvested from Carlo’s files to dismantle the entire Donati syndicate in one legal and tactical strike.

Gunfire shattered the silence of the warehouse.

Julian’s mercenaries tried to fight back, but they were cut down within seconds by the overwhelming tactical superiority of the joint task force. Julian was tackled to the concrete by two FBI agents, screaming in rage as steel handcuffs snapped around his wrists.

Richard Miller scrambled frantically toward a side exit door, weeping in sheer terror, trying to crawl over stacked wooden pallets.

A heavy boot slammed down onto Richard’s back, pinning him violently to the floor.

Richard turned his head, looking up through tear-filled eyes.

Alessandro stood over him like an absolute titan, his dark eyes burning with cold, righteous fury.

“Please! Please, Alessandro!” Richard begged, crying pathetically, his nose bleeding against the concrete. “It wasn't my idea! Donati made me do it! He threatened to kill me! I was just trying to protect myself!”

“You set up your own wife, Richard,” Alessandro said, his voice dropping into an icy, terrifying whisper that made Richard shake uncontrollably. “You left your three-year-old daughter to be murdered by monsters so you could run away with blood money.”

“I’m sorry! I’ll give the money back! I’ll leave the country and never come back!” Richard sobbed, clutching Alessandro’s boot. “Just let me go! Please!”

Alessandro slowly knelt down, grabbing Richard by the front of his shirt and hauling him up until their faces were inches apart.

“If you ever come near Grace again,” Alessandro growled softly, every word laced with lethal promise, “if you ever breathe her name, or try to see my daughter again... I will make sure you spend the rest of your life in a dark hole where no one will ever hear you scream. Do you understand me?”

“Yes! Yes! I promise! I swear to God!” Richard screamed, weeping uncontrollably.

Alessandro shoved him back onto the floor, wiping his hands disgustedly on a handkerchief. Two FBI agents stepped forward, grabbing Richard by his arms and dragging him away toward the waiting prisoner transport vans.

Marco stepped up beside Alessandro, holstering his weapon. “Task force cleared the perimeter, boss. Donati, his inner circle, and all their accounts are completely seized. The threat is gone.”