Chapter 68: Baby Come Back, You Can Blame It All On Me

[Maddy’s POV]

The surveillance room in the basement of La Reale is silent except for Caterina’s ragged breathing. The blue glow from the monitors casts ghastly shadows across our faces as we stare at the blank screen where, moments ago, Luna’s “gift” had played out in high definition.

I’ve seen violence. I’ve ordered it, facilitated it, even participated in it. But this... this was something else entirely.

My stomach churns as I try to erase the images from my mind. Adam on a bed, screaming as those women took turns with him. His damaged hands twitching uselessly as they violated him. The blood pouring from his mouth when they extracted his front tooth with rusty pliers. The way he sobbed until his voice gave out.

Lara sits frozen in the corner, her iPad forgotten on her lap. For once, there’s no manic gleam in her eyes, no inappropriate joke on her lips. She looks shell-shocked, her face drained of all color.

“This is my fault,” Caterina whispers again, her voice cracking. She kneels on the floor where she collapsed after watching the tooth extraction, her perfect blonde hair hanging in lank strands around her face. “This is my fault.”

I’ve never seen her like this before. Caterina De Luca, the woman who once had a rival skinned alive for insulting her mother, is broken. Her crimson eyes, usually so sharp and predatory, are vacant with shock and horror.

“Boss,” I start, my voice sounding strangely hollow in the silent room. “We need to…”

“I SHOULD HAVE PROTECTED HIM!” she screams, slamming her fist into the concrete floor with such force that blood spatters across the gray surface. “He trusted me! I was supposed to keep him safe!”

Her scream jolts Lara out of her stupor. She blinks rapidly, looking around as if suddenly remembering where she is.

“We’ll get him back,” Lara says, her usual manic energy subdued into something almost normal. “We’ll find that crazy bitch and…”

“And what?” Caterina’s head snaps up, her eyes suddenly focusing with terrifying intensity. “What will we do, Lara? Kill her? Torture her? None of that will undo what she’s done to him!”

She staggers to her feet, swaying slightly before steadying herself against the control panel. Her fingers leave bloody smears on the polished surface.

“Every second he’s with her,” Caterina continues, her voice dropping to a deadly whisper, “is another second of pain I can never take away from him. Another second where he’s wondering why I haven’t saved him yet.”

Lara just stares at Caterina, her mouth slightly open but no words coming out. For once, the redhead seems completely at a loss.

Caterina’s eyes dart around the room like a cornered animal’s. Her normally perfect appearance is completely undone. Blood smeared across her knuckles, her white suit stained and torn. She looks unhinged in a way I’ve never witnessed before, not even during the worst crises of her career.

“Once I get him back, I’m done,” she says suddenly, her voice eerily calm compared to her wild appearance. “I’m leaving the game. All of it. The casino, the trafficking, the drugs, it’s over.” She runs her bloodied fingers through her disheveled hair, leaving crimson streaks. “I’m taking him on a vacation that will never end.”

The silence that follows is deafening. Lara and I exchange glances, neither of us sure how to respond to what amounts to the most powerful woman in Boston announcing her retirement in the middle of a personal catastrophe.

“Boss,” I finally manage, my voice gentle as if talking to someone on a ledge, “maybe we should focus on finding Adam first, and then…”

“I’ve already decided,” Caterina cuts me off, her crimson eyes suddenly clear and focused despite her manic state. “I’ve been playing with fire for too long, Maddy. I thought I could have it all, the empire, the power, and him. But I was wrong.” Her voice catches. “I was so fucking wrong.”

She pushes herself away from the control panel, leaving bloody handprints in her wake. With newfound determination, she straightens her ruined suit jacket.

“But what about Valentina?” Lara blurts out, her manic energy returning as she jumps to her feet. “They fucking killed her! On live TV! We can’t just walk away from that!”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” Caterina whirls on Lara, her bloodied fist slamming into the wall beside the redhead’s head. “Look around you! This isn’t about Valentina anymore!”

The room falls deadly silent as Caterina’s ragged breathing fills the space between us. Her crimson eyes burn with such intensity that Lara actually shrinks back against the wall.

“Don’t you get it?” Caterina continues, her voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. “Luna and Isabella teamed up because they hate ME. Not Valentina. ME.”

She pushes away from the wall, pacing like a caged tiger. “Luna came to me ten years ago begging for help with her pathetic little operation. You know what I did? I fucking gutted her supply chain and laughed while she bled out financially.” A bitter laugh escapes her. “And Isabella? That bitch has never forgiven me for what I had Lara do to her precious daughter when they tried stepping onto our territory.”

Lara’s eyes widen slightly at the mention of her handiwork.

“This isn’t about family honor or business,” Caterina continues, her voice cracking with emotion. “This is personal. They’re using Adam to destroy me because they know he’s the only thing I truly care about.”

I watch as Caterina sinks back to her knees, her bloodied hands covering her face. Her shoulders shake with silent sobs that gradually grow louder until they’re tearing through her body like physical pain.

“It’s my fault,” she wails, rocking back and forth. “I did this to him. I brought him into this life. I should have known better. I should have protected him better.”

Her cries echo through the surveillance room, bouncing off the concrete walls like a twisted chorus.

Lara looks over at me. “Where’s Claire right now?” she asks, her voice uncharacteristically quiet.

I stare at her blankly. “Who gives a fuck?”

*****

[Claire’s POV]

I’m humming softly as I make my way through the warehouse, following the directions Luna texted me. The industrial building is eerily quiet except for the sound of my sensible flats against the concrete floor and my own voice echoing off the metal walls.

“I’m gonna find my hubby. Gonna hold him tight,” I sing under my breath

. “Gonna grab some afternoon delight...”

My fingers tap against my thigh in rhythm with the tune as I approach the heavy metal door at the end of the corridor. Luna’s text had been cryptic but exciting. She’d finally gotten Adam away from that psychopath Caterina. My Adam was coming home where he belonged.

“My motto’s always been when it’s right, it’s right. Why wait until the middle of a cold, dark night?”

I reach for the handle, excitement building in my chest. After all this time, after all the fear and waiting and planning, I’d finally have my husband back. We could start over, far away from Boston and all its monsters.

“When everything’s a little clearer in the light of day, and we know the night is always gonna be here any…”

The words die in my throat as I push open the door, and a wall of stench hits me. Sweat, bodily fluids, and something metallic that makes my stomach turn. The smell of sex and violence so thick I can practically taste it.

“Oh my God,” I gag, one hand flying to cover my nose and mouth.

The room before me is dimly lit, but I can make out enough to wish I couldn’t. A bare mattress stained with substances I don’t want to identify. Chains hanging from a support beam. Discarded syringes and bloody tools scattered across a metal table.

And in the center of it all, Adam curled into a fetal position on the filthy mattress. His body is covered in bruises, dried blood caked around his mouth where his front top tooth is visibly missing. His wrists are raw and bloody from restraints, and his eyes... his eyes are open but empty, staring at nothing.

“Adam,” I whisper, my voice breaking on his name.

He doesn’t respond. Doesn’t even blink.

A movement in the corner draws my attention. Luna steps out of the shadows, followed by a tall, muscular woman I don’t recognize. The woman’s dark eyes never leave Adam, watching him with an intensity that makes my skin crawl.

“What did you do to him?” I gasp, horror flooding through me as I take in Adam’s broken state. His vacant stare, his missing tooth, his battered body, this isn’t what I agreed to.

Luna shrugs that terrible Hawaiian shirt making her look even more unhinged in the dim warehouse light. “Oh, that,” she says casually, waving her hand dismissively. “That’s just to upset Caterina. A little damage to break her spirit before I break her body.”

My stomach lurches. I’d wanted Adam back, yes. I’d been willing to help Luna locate Caterina, track her movements, even tell her about the race in Monza. But this... this wasn’t part of our deal.

“This wasn’t what we agreed to,” I whisper, my voice shaking. “You said you’d just take him from her, not... not this.”

The muscular woman steps closer to Adam, placing a possessive hand on his shoulder. He doesn’t even flinch at her touch, just continues staring at nothing.

“Plans change,” Luna says with that terrifying smile. “Besides, he’s alive, isn’t he? That’s more than I can say for Valentina De Luca.”

A cold realization washes over me. I need to get Adam out of here immediately, no matter what. Luna isn’t just a rival businesswoman with a grudge. She’s a monster who killed someone on international television.

I force myself to nod, swallowing down my revulsion. “Okay, well, I’ll be taking him then.” I try to keep my voice steady and professional, like this is just a business transaction being completed.

Luna’s smile widens, showing too many teeth. “About that,” she says, her voice dropping to a dangerous purr. “There’s been a slight change of plans.”

My heart sinks as the other woman steps forward, her muscular frame blocking my path to Adam. She reaches behind her back and pulls out a massive wrench, the metal gleaming dully in the warehouse’s dim light.

“You see, Claire,” Luna continues, circling me like a shark, “you’re my only loose end. And I recently discovered something very interesting about you.”

I take an instinctive step backward. “What are you talking about?”

“Three of my girls,” Luna says, her voice hardening. “They paid you thirty thousand dollars to fuck your husband. And then they ended up dead.”

Ice floods my veins. “I didn’t kill them,” I protest, my voice rising in panic. “I swear I didn’t! It was Lara!”

Luna shrugs, her Hawaiian shirt rippling with the movement. “I don’t care.”

Before I can react, the strong woman swings the wrench. Pain explodes through my skull as metal connects with bone. The warehouse tilts sideways, concrete rushing up to meet me as darkness swallows everything.

A/N: