*unedited. If you see mistakes, please comment them*

I got some men to clean up the mess I made of the leech who had been draining my soul. I couldn't stand the sight of her any longer without my lip curling in distaste. It was the words I always preached but found the most difficult to follow that were beating up my mind and suffocating my thoughts... trust no one.

It wasn't just Rosalinda. It was also a man who I allowed to rise up in the ranks of my business. He fooled me with his intelligence, his ruthlessness, and by lying about sharing the same agenda as both me and Adriano. He swore that Viktor had once killed his family and that he would stop at nothing to return the favor. He wore tears on his face as he voiced the code of omertà like he could say it for the rest of his life and never get tired of it. I was fooled by the sincerity and brilliance he shared as he helped my business bring in over one-hundred-million a year. I was fucking fooled.

No matter how many times I looked at myself in the mirror and voiced how no one in this world could be trusted... No matter how many times I advised Little Red that everyone was only after information, power, and wealth... I was always there—trusting. I was always the fool.

Maybe it was something I got from my mother. It could even be the worst trait I obtained from my father. Whatever it was, I wanted it gone. I wanted it gone so the feeling of emptiness wasn't so apparent in the middle of my chest. It wasn't something I felt since my mother left me. Now, it returned and it was an ache I could no longer bare.

My hands were tied. My options were running low. I couldn't even trust my own fucking reflection. Reyna was still gone and in the hands of a man I most despised. If I didn't find her soon, I was worried of what might happen to her.

I pulled out my phone and dialed Alessandro's number. Alessandro rose to become the boss to a very powerful crime organization. He was smart, but most of all, he moved silently. There was a way he easily slipped into cracks, slowly eroding rock until it broke away without no one suspecting a thing.

It didn't take long for him to answer.

"Venturi," he greeted me.

"I need to speak to you about something. I request that you come immediately," I said. We had only seen each other a few hours ago, but I only hoped he understood my need for urgency.

My eyes darted over to the front door where Adriano walked into the room. He took in the sight of me on the couch looking disheveled before his gaze dropped to the gun in my hand. He eyed me concerningly.

"It just so happens to be your lucky day—I am free this evening. I should be there in about an hour or so," Alessandro informed me. "See you then."

He hung up the phone without another word.

As soon as I placed my phone back into my pocket, I stood up from the couch.

"I heard about what happened to Rosalinda," Adriano said, taking reluctant steps closer to me. He buried his hands into his pockets as his gaze never left me. I wasn't sure if he was concerned for me or himself.

"That's what happens to traitors," I spoke.

"I know you don't have much faith in me, but whether you like it or not, you can't find her on your own. I gave you my word when I was a child and I meant it. You're my brother, Saint. You're all I have left," he said, his eyes locking onto mine as he tried to shove every bit of truth into them.

I've known Adriano since I was nothing but a child. I knew when he was lying and I knew when he was telling the truth. I blamed it on intuition. As he stood before me, declaring his loyalty, I could tell he meant every word.

Unlike Giovanni's story, I was there to witness Adriano's family's' death. I was forced to listen to him cry throughout the night as a teenager, begging for his little brother and father. I was there through every waking moment of Giovanni's grief. Even when hatred for Viktor poured through his blood, I was there.

"My only concern is getting Reyna. I'll worry about the rest later," I told him.

He nodded his head understandingly. No other words were shed as we allowed silence to sit with us, hug us, and push us toward feeling what could not be spoken.

Moments passed, it didn't take long for one of my men to inform me of the arrival of Alessandro. After my acceptance, they allowed him in. Two of my guards followed behind him into the room.

"Venturi," he greeted. I only just noticed he was alone.

"Rubino," I returned.

Turning to Adriano, I said, "check on Leo for me. I was informed he was in surgery but he wasn't too stable. Let me know how he's doing and if they think he'll live."

Adriano nodded and exited but not before greeting Alessandro with a nod. Adriano shut the door behind, leaving the two of us and my guards.

"Fix is a drink," I ordered of the guards.

He gave a curt nod before disappearing down a hallway into my bar. Alessandro made himself at home as he sat down on my white leather sofa. He folded one leg over the opposite knee and leaned back in the seat.

"You seemed as though the situation was urgent," Alessandro said.

My guard returned with two glasses of rum on the rocks. He handed one to Alessandro who took it from his hands careful not to spill it. He then walked over to me and handed me the other glass.

"It is," I told him.

"What can I do for you?"

"How much do you know about Viktor Popov?" I asked him. His eyes narrowed at the mention of his name. He then sat up a bit, suddenly intrigued by our conversation.

"I take it that you're looking for him," Alessandro said.

"I am. I need to find him as soon as possible. I'm not talking about next month, or next week, or tomorrow. I need to find him now," I explained.

"I'm curious... why are you looking for Viktor?" he questioned. I debated telling him, but if he was honest about needing her help, it may be in his best interest to assist me as much as he can.

"He took Red and severely injured one of my men. I need her back," I answered honestly.

Alessandro raised a brow. "I am sorry to hear that." He placed his glass to his lips and took a small sip. "I'll be willing to tell you everything I know about Viktor only if you're willing to do the same. I'll even go as far as helping you find her, but she must help me find my mother. That's the only deal I'm willing to make," he declared.

"You've got yourself a deal," I said.

He nodded his head and returned to leaning back in his seat.

"Viktor Popov Jr. and Lucille Popov took over their father's business after his death of natural causes. The Popov's are known for their huge trafficking ring that is available to people from all around the world. They own brothels, clubs, escort services, hotels, and distribute girls of all ages to buyers and sometimes even pornography. Some of these things occur across the internet—the dark internet. While most of it occurs right here in Chicago. There's brothels, clubs, auctions almost everywhere, and the wealthiest of the wealthy people attend. From what I know, Viktor doesn't disclose his identity, but his sister on the other hand—Lucille—I've met her. And so have you... and so have your second-in-command considering he married her," Alessandro stated, narrowing his eyes at me. "Your turn."

I went on to explain what we gathered so far about Viktor. I told him how it was actually my third-in-command, and about the house, and how Lucille pretended to be someone else so she could marry Adriano. Not only that, but i even explained everything about Rosalinda—Viktor's true mother. I told him about Reyna and the message she got from Viktor himself leading up to her being stolen right from the palm of my hand. All that I left out was what Viktor had done to my family.

"Hmm," Alessandro hummed. He took another sip of his drink. It was only then that I noticed I hadn't drunk any of mine. I sat it down on the glass end-table, ignoring the clank it made.

"Why are you so intrigued with Viktor anyway?" I asked curiously.

"My father worked for the first Viktor a long time ago," he stated before downing back the rest of his drink and setting it down on the end-table beside him. "He killed him."

"No retaliation?" I wondered. He seemed to gather more information about Viktor than I had, yet he had never made any attempts of revenge.

"Why do you think I fought so hard to get to where I am now, Venturi?" he asked rhetorically.

I only stared at him. He was still a mystery but some things began to make sense.

"As mentioned, I know Lucille. She happens to be quite fond of me. I'll give her a call and tell her that a friend of mine is interested in buying. She'll tell me the location of a brothel, and we can only hope it's the one Red is at," he informed me, standing up from his seat and buttoning the last button of his suit.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone, but before he could begin to dial Lucille's number, his phone rang.

"Excuse me," he muttered, walking across the room and placing his phone on his ear.

"Natalia," he spoke into the phone before disappearing down the hall until he was no longer in hearing range.

Natalia Costello, daughter to the previous mob boss, Nico Costello, before he was ruthlessly murdered by Alessandro himself. I only met her once at one of Tino's charity events and I could tell she hated it there. I once heard that she loved having fun. Rumors spread about how she would flash her breasts at the guards for laughs and party until the sun came up. I wasn't sure how much of it was true since Natalia was more talked about for being wild than for her accomplishments as a doctor.

Not too long after, Alessandro walked back into the room. He slid his phone into his pocket.

"I talked to Lucille. It appears that Viktor is hosting an auction tonight at an underground club. Now that we both know what Viktor looks like, we may find him. If we find him, you'll get Red and I'll get to kill him. I'll call my men, and I'd suggest you to do the same. It may get messy," he explained.

I stood up from the couch. "...I want to kill him."

Omg thank you all so much for 180k followers! I love you all so so much. Not to mention, this story almost has 3 million reads! I can't believe how much we've grown. Thank you guys for the support, truly. You all are my motivation, and I'm not sure what I would do without you.

Happy Valentines Day! Here's my gift to you because we're together now!

Questions: What do you think about Alessandro and Natalia? Do you think this plan will work?