"Dad…"

"Hm?"

"Did you read my book? Please don't read my book," Angela said, her heart drumming in her chest as they exited the restaurant and waited at the sidewalk for the car to arrive.

Her father laughed, slapping his thigh in amusement. She didn't find it funny, but apparently, her father did. All she could think about were the hot and steamy scenes in her books that his daughter shouldn't know about. She didn't want her father thinking she enjoyed all those things. That's just awkward.

Charlie didn't answer, the smile on his face so wide as he waved goodbye and got into the backseat of his Town Car.

"Dad!" She stomped her foot like a child, annoyed at her father's slyness, wanting to die in embarrassment at the thought of him reading her books. He didn't say no, but he didn't say yes either. Her father could just be teasing her, but she could only ask him again next time—that is if she would even be brave enough to ask again..

She hissed, folding her arms across her chest as she watched his car drive away. Oliver draped an arm around her shoulder. His voice had a hint of playfulness when he told her, "I'm only going to say this once because it's fucking awkward talking about this with my baby sister… But Niccolo knows his moves… I gotta say, I learned a thing or two and had one of the best nights with a date a year ago."

Blood rushed to her face, and she wanted to hurl. "God, no. Let's not… Don't put that in my head. I don't want to picture my brother." She made gagging noises, and the two of them laughed while trying to smack each other's heads for finding it gross.

"You heading somewhere? I'll drop you off." Oliver pulled her back to the crook of his shoulder, purposely putting his weight on her like an annoying brother.

She elbowed him and failed as he swiftly avoided the hit. "You know… I was thinking about it. I want to buy a property."

"You want to move again? Damn. How about a trailer? You can just park it anywhere you want—new place every week." He threw his head back and laughed.

"I'm serious! I want my own place. Not an apartment. Like a house. I thought I could stay longer in my current pad but… What happened last month really freaked me out."

He squeezed her shoulder. "I understand. Tell you what, I'll help you look and we'll go hunting together. You free tomorrow?"

"I'll visit the orphanage with Nina in the morning, but I'm available in the afternoon. Can you drop me off at the library? I have research to do." The two got in Oliver's car and joined the traffic.

The thought about tomorrow being Saturday reminded her of Gabby. The feeling of dread curled around her chest. She wondered how everyone was doing in New York. If the De Lucas were successful, Gabby wouldn't get married tomorrow. Angela began to feel restless, and so she checked her phone, realizing that the only texts she received were all junk and nothing from Gael.

She stared at his phone number, contemplating if she should contact him, and before she could stop herself, she hit the call button and pressed the phone to her ear. Her heart drummed in her chest, and she had to put a hand over it to steel herself.

The voice of a female operator grated her ear, informing her that the number couldn't be reached. Letting out a shaky breath, she brushed her worries off her head and decided to text him instead. 'I'm sure he's just working,' she told herself.

[ Angela: I just had brunch with my dad and Oli. Learned a lot about my mom...and my dad, surprisingly. I'm so happy we finally talked about stuff truthfully. It's liberating. I hope everything is going well on your end. Take care. ]

She waited but didn't receive a response from him. It wasn't until the evening that Gael finally replied to her text.

[ Gael: I'm so happy for you, Angel. Don't worry about us here. Have fun with your family. ]

***

Brooklyn, New York City

The De Lucas had been receiving updates from one of their soldiers regarding Don Mario and Lauretta who were still in the hospital in Pennsylvania every couple of hours since their "accident". Lauretta already woke up, bruised but alive, while Don Mario was still unconscious.

Alessandro De Luca believed that his daughter, Gabriella, was taken by the Morellis. They had searched the hospital and didn't find her anywhere. The security cameras lost her after she got off the elevator into the basement parking, which was strange because that wasn't where she was supposed to go. The feed inside the elevator showed that she was looking at her phone, but the quality was too crappy to see what was on her screen, so they had no idea if someone had contacted her.

Only one car left the basement parking around the time she disappeared, and it was a rental vehicle. They had already checked the rental company and the car rented was under a fake name with a fake I.D. No evidence was left inside the vehicle either.

It had been twenty-four hours, and there was still no sign of Gabby. The De Lucas began combing the entire city and also prepared for an attack in Chicago. Gabriella was smart. If she was kidnapped, she would leave crumbs for them to follow. She just wasn't the kind of person to leave without informing at least one. However, they just knew she was there even though they didn't find any trace.

Gael, Giovanni, their lieutenants, a few soldiers, and Alessandro gathered up at the Bunk. Most of them were hyped to gear up for an all-out war. Blueprints of the Morellis' properties were on every surface of the office as they strategized.

Gael had been so preoccupied since the night before, worrying about his sister. He had received a message from Angela at noon, and he was tempted to call her when he noticed it a minute ago, but that won't do either of them any good. He couldn't possibly tell her what was happening right now. It wasn't about keeping her in the loop. It was about keeping her safe as he was almost certain that she would fly back to New York if she found out.

As much as he wanted to see her so badly, Angela was safe in Mayne at the moment—far away from all this. Jino died, and now Gabriella was missing. He wouldn't be able to forgive himself if something happened to Angela because of their war with the Morellis.

A ringing sound floated in the air. None of them noticed it right away as they were too busy. It wasn't until the fifth ring that Alessandro's voice boomed in the office, "Someone get that phone!"

His loud voice startled everyone. Rick, who was the nearest to the desk, noticed that it was the landline ringing. "Don… It's the house phone."

Alessandro snapped his head, his brows drawn in bafflement. Only very few people called that phone. His jaw tightened as he picked it up, and the room fell silent. "Pronto."

"Papa…"

"Gabby! Mio Dio! Are you okay?"

Gael and Giovanni were instantly on Alessandro's side. Giovanni pressed the speaker button so everyone could hear the conversation.

"I'm safe. I'm okay, Papa." Her voice was calm and controlled.

"I'll come get you. Tell me where you are."

There were a few beats of silence before she spoke again. "No… Papa, it's over. Don't come for me. I'm not coming back home."

"What the hell are you talking about, Gab?" Gael couldn't stop himself from interrupting. His hands turned cold.

"I… I married Mariano. I'm going to stay in Chicago from now on. It's the only way to stop this war."

"What???" Alessandro slammed his fist on the desk, making many of the guards jump. "There's no need to get married! The order has been revoked!"

"So I've heard." She sighed. "But Papa, they were going to hurt you anyway. Marino was preparing his men to attack us tomorrow. The only way to stop them was if Mariano became the Don, so the soldiers followed his orders and not his father's."

Confusion danced in Alessandro's eyes. It was as if his daughter was speaking gibberish. "What do you mean?"

"Mariano made a blood oath with his grandfather. He becomes the new Don of Chicago if he gets married. Mariano now controls the Morellis."

Alessandro clenched his hand into a fist, his entire body shaking with fury. "It doesn't matter who their leader is. They're the enemies, Gabriella! They will come after us as they always have for many years. That Mariano tricked you—"

"Papa." Gabriella cut in. "Do you think so little of me? I'm your daughter. You should know I'm not a pushover. I've seen the contract, and I've made my decision to save our family. Unlike his father and grandfather, Mariano doesn't hold a grudge against our family, so he's not after you. We got married this afternoon. He's put Marino in a cell, and their soldiers bow down to him now. It's over, Papa."