Lahat ng Kabanata ng My Runaway Mafia Groom Wants Me Back: Kabanata 31 - Kabanata 40

(Emmeline) The gun feels like it weighs a thousand pounds in my trembling hands.Signora Vescari stands there, perfectly composed, watching me with those cold, calculating eyes. She knows I'm not a killer. She can see it written all over my face.But she mentioned Jackson.She really shouldn’t have threatened my son.My finger tightens on the trigger.I don’t like guns. I’ve never even fired one before, but what are my options?This woman is a stone-cold killer and she will come after everyone I love if I don’t act now."Don't be foolish, dear," she says softly. "You're not built for this kind of-"I pull the trigger.The shot rings out, deafening in the confined space. The recoil jerks my arms up, and I stumble backward, ears ringing.The bullet embeds itself in the wall behind her, at least two feet wide of its mark.Signora Vescari doesn't even flinch. Instead, she throws back her head and laughs. A sound like broken glass."Oh, my dear girl," she says, wiping tears from her eyes.

(Asher)"Bruce!" I bark into my earpiece. "Get to Elias. Now!"I don't wait for his response. I'm already moving, sprinting toward the house as gunfire erupts around me.Nothing matters except getting to her.The ivy-covered trellis on the east side of the house is my only shot.I holster my gun and start climbing, using the thick vines and decorative stonework as handholds.In my earpiece, I can hear Bruce shouting orders, coordinating the extraction of Elias.I have to trust that he'll get him out alive.Right now, Emmeline is my only priority.The trellis groans under my weight as I climb.Second floor. Third floor. The terrace is just above me now.I can hear voices. The guards talking to someone. Signora Vescari, probably."The boss wants her alive. For now."My blood turns to ice and I climb faster.CaterinaI've been playing the perfect captive for twenty minutes now, sitting in this ornate chair while Signora Vescari's men decide what to do with me.But I wasn't raised in a cr

(Emmeline) Jackson's scared voice keeps replaying in my mind. I'm scared, Mommy."Emmeline, you need to sit down," Elias says from his chair, his face still pale but his voice steady. "Wearing a groove in the concrete won't help Jackson.""Don't tell me what will help my son," I snap, whirling to face him.I grab my jacket again, heading for the door, but Asher moves faster than I expect.His hand closes around my wrist, gentle but firm."Where exactly do you think you're going?" he asks."To find him.""Where? The Vescari own half of New York. They could have him anywhere.""Then I'll search all of New York!""And get yourself killed in the process."His dark eyes are intense, desperate. "That won't help Jackson either."I try to pull away, but he won't let go. "Let me go, Asher.""Not until you listen to reason.""Reason?" I laugh, but there's no humor in it."They have my baby. There is no reason anymore.""There has to be. Because if we go in blind, we'll all die. Including Jacks

(Emmeline) We lost contact with Bruce several minutes ago."Remember the plan," Asher says quietly beside me. "We get close, assess the situation, then signal the others."But all I can think about is Jackson.My baby is on that floating fortress, scared and alone, and every instinct I have is screaming at me to tear the place apart until I find him.Jackson is standing near the front of the yacht, his small hand gripping the railing. Even from this distance, I can see how terrified he is."Jackson," I breathe.Almost immediately, we're met by two guards who help us aboard. Keeping their guns trained on us the entire time.We're escorted across the deck, and I have to fight every maternal instinct I have not to run toward the bow where Jackson is standing.He sees me and his face lights up with hope and terror."Mommy!" he calls out, taking a step forward."Stay where you are, bambino," comes a cold voice from behind him.I turn to see Signora Vescari emerge from the yacht's interior

(Emmeline) The sound of Jackson hitting the water cuts through me like a blade.Every maternal instinct I've ever had explodes into pure terror as I see my baby disappear over the yacht's railing."Jackson!" I scream.Elias is bleeding behind the sofa, trying to return fire with his good arm.Glass crunches under my feet as I scramble toward the door where Jackson went over, but one of Signora Vescari's men blocks my path."Nobody moves!" he shouts, swinging his gun toward me.I don't think. I don't hesitate. I grab a heavy crystal ashtray from the side table and hurl it at his head with all the fury of a mother whose child is drowning.He staggers, and I run.The yacht's deck is slick with spray, and I nearly slip as I reach the railing.Below me, the dark water churns white in the yacht's wake, and I can barely make out two figures struggling in the distance.Asher has Jackson.I can see them both, but they're getting farther away as the yacht continues to speed through the water.