My gut twisted.
Could she be…?
The more I thought about it, the more the pieces snapped into place—and the more terrified I became.
Sabrina was moving back home?
…
Sabrina Marcellus. Her family basically ran Las Vegas the way the Valez ruled New York—but with more power, more reach, and a hell of a lot more teeth.
But Sabrina never flaunted any of it. She wasn’t like those women.
Yes, we were all born into blood and rules and quiet wars of the mafia world. Most of us wore it like armor. Used love like a currency. Traded hearts for power.
But Sabrina?
When I met her, she was working at an animal rescue. Not for show. Not for optics. She was kneeling on dirty concrete, bandaging a dog’s mangled leg while the rest of the city partied in designer suits.
Even when we were together—when I should’ve been another asset, another move on a chessboard—she treated me like a man. Not a Valez. Not a mafia heir. Just… me.
And I ruined it.
I ruined her.
The woman who once held my heart like it was the most fragile, precious thing in the world… was leaving.
And she was taking our daughter with her.
I thought of her eyes, her smile. The way she held me like I wasn’t made of violence and secrets. I thought of Elly—our baby girl, her laugh, the way she looked up to me like I was her whole world.
I made up my mind.
“You can drop me here,” I told the driver.
He looked confused, but I was already out the door. The roadblocks were backed for miles. Christmas Eve traffic, impossible. If I had any shot of making it to them in time, I’d have to run.
Two miles.
I could run.
So I did.
