Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 78192 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78192 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 391(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
“Yuki.” There’s heartache in Ryo’s voice as he stares at me. “Don’t ask me to let you go. I can’t do that.”
“Then come with me,” I whisper. “Don’t make me choose between you and Augusto. Please.”
Chapter 25
Augusto
“What the fuck happened, Rocco?” I bark over the phone.
“Mrs. Vitale’s been taken. I heard her scream, and when I got to the front door, Aldo was unconscious, and a white van sped away. I tried to catch up to them, but they disappeared.”
The blow to my heart and fucking soul is more crippling than when I got the news that Riccardo had been shot. I stagger a step backward, shaking my head as the shock flays me raw. “No,” I hiss as the world is ripped from under my feet.
“I’m sorry, boss. I just got back to the house from trying to find the van,” Rocco says, “I see Aldo’s conscious. Let me ask him what happened.”
“Give him the fucking phone,” I growl, my entire body shaking as I fear for Yuki’s life.
It takes seconds too long before I hear Aldo say, “Hey, boss. It was an Asian guy. He wore a delivery uniform and had the groceries Mrs. Vitale ordered.”
“How the fuck did he get past you?” I shout, rage burning through me like an uncontrollable wildfire.
“I was caught off guard.”
“You better stay out of my way until I find my wife,” I growl.
I end the call and begin to run out of the warehouse while dialing Rosie’s number.
“Augusto!” I hear Lorenzo shout from behind me. “What’s wrong?”
I indicate for him to come with me, and when Rosie answers, I say, “Someone kidnapped Yuki from my house. They are driving a white van. Find her.”
“Jesus,” she gasps, and I hear her typing like crazy. “Give me a few minutes to access any CCTV cameras near your place.”
We end the call, and when I reach the SUV, I slam my fist against the roof, shouting, “Fuuuuuck!”
“What happened?” Lorenzo asks as he catches up to me, worry etched deep into his face.
I meet his eyes, and as it hits me square in the chest that I might lose Yuki, I can only gasp through the pain it causes before I groan, “They have Yuki.” I suck in a desperate breath, pressing my hand to my chest. “The fuckers have my wife.”
His face goes slack with shock. “Christ, Augusto.” He grabs hold of my shoulder and locks eyes with me. “We’re going to get her back. Have you called Rosie?”
“Yes. She’s hacking the CCTV cameras around my house.”
I glance over all the warehouses, feeling fucking powerless as I try to think of what I can do to get my wife back.
They have my little shapeshifter.
Jesus.
As my mind races to come up with a plan, I realize what Yuki means to me.
I love her.
My eyes drift shut from the intense emotion surging through me.
I love her more than I’ve ever loved anything.
When I open my eyes again, everything inside me stills so I can focus on finding my wife, and opening the SUV’s door, I get in. “Let’s go, Lorenzo.”
He runs around the front of the vehicle and climbs in behind the steering wheel. “Where are we going?”
“Home to gather all the men. I want them ready for war the instant Rosie finds out where Yuki was taken.” As Lorenzo steers us away from the warehouse, I dial Dad’s number.
“Hi, son.”
“I need you, Uncle Milo, and Uncle Marcello. Yuki’s been kidnapped. Come to my house with any men you can spare.”
I hear Dad suck in a deep breath, then he growls, “On my way.”
Lorenzo sends out an alert to all our men, then focuses on the road again, which feels twice as long before we reach my house.
Dad and my uncles are already waiting for us, armed to the teeth.
When my eyes land on Aldo, who has an ice pack pressed to the side of his head, my temper flares dangerously high.
“Sorry, boss,” he says as I stalk toward him, and when he realizes he fucked up for a second time today by not listening to me, fear flits over his face.
Pulling my arm back, I punch the shit out of him, and as he goes down, I follow.
I grab hold of his shirt and slam my fist into his face until Dad hauls me off of him.
“That’s enough, son. We need to find Yuki.”
As Rocco helps Aldo up, I growl, “Get him out of my fucking sight.”
I stalk into the house and go straight for the whiskey, pouring myself a finger and tossing it down my throat.
Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I dial Rosie’s number while I walk to the foyer, prowling up and down to burn some of the restless energy surging through my body.
“Hey, I’m still tracking the van,” she tells me immediately when she answers the call.