Page 10 of Bound in Obsession
I pause, watching the reaction. Pride flashes across their faces. Grins. Nods. A couple of them even look damn near gleeful.
“The ransom demands will go out under Sienna Caruso’s name, as planned,” I continue. “But we’re going to tell the family we took two girls.”
The room shifts. Confused glances bounce around the table.
One of my captains, Enzo, leans forward. “Two girls? Boss… we only have one, right?”
“Yeah, we only have one girl,” I say, leaning forward, elbows on the table, keeping my expression unreadable. “But a second Caruso daughter is missing too. By now, Massimo has realized both girls are gone. Let him assume we have them both. It gives us more leverage. He’ll bleed faster if he thinks we’re holding two of his daughters. Make him more desperate. More willing to give us what we want.”
The men exchange glances, then slowly nod. Enzo leans back, stroking his chin. “Makes sense. More pressure on the old man.”
“Good,” I continue. “We use her. We squeeze Caruso. And when we’re done, Gallo will lose his shipping alliance and we take the docks.”
Marco glances at me sideways, but he doesn’t say a word. He knows me well enough to keep his mouth shut in front of the others.
“I want every man on high alert. Tighten security around the estate, double the perimeter patrols, no one gets within a mile without us knowing. The Gallos and Caruso won’t take this lying down. Especially Andrea Gallo. That prick is going to come looking for blood. Be ready.”
The room murmurs in agreement. Then Vito, one of my captains, speaks up from the far end of the table. “We could just eliminate the bride. Send Massimo her head. That would destabilize him a lot faster and weaken him.”
Dead silence falls over the room.
I slowly turn my head toward him. “If you, or anyone else in this room, touches a single hair on her head without my direct permission,” I say, voice low and deadly calm, “I will break every bone in your hands, one by one, while you’re still breathing. Then I’ll cut out your tongue so you can never make another stupid fucking suggestion again. After that, I’ll keep you alivejust long enough for you to watch me feed the rest of you to the dogs. Am I making myself perfectly clear?”
Vito goes pale. He swallows hard. “Yes, boss. Crystal clear.”
Every man at the table straightens instantly. “Anyone else have brilliant ideas?”
No one speaks. I let the silence stretch for two full seconds before I continue. “Good. Now, on to the rest. Marco, I want updated routes for the next three shipments rerouted through our secondary docks by tomorrow night. Luca, increase surveillance on the Gallo warehouses, every movement, every truck, every conversation. I want to know when Gallo takes a piss.
“The rest of you, tighten our alliances with the smaller families. Spread the word quietly that the Port Syndicate is about to own the East Coast shipping lanes. Understood?”
A chorus of “Yes, Boss” ripples through the room.
I push back from the table and stand. “Dismissed.”
Chairs scrape as the men rise quickly and file out. Marco stays seated, watching me with that sharp, knowing look he’s had since we were kids running the streets together.
I don’t acknowledge him, because right now I’m still trying to figure out why the thought of anyone putting a hand on EleonoraCaruso made something dark and possessive flare up in my chest.
The second we’re alone, he leans back in his chair. “Alright. What the fuck is going on?”
I exhale through my nose and drag a hand through my hair. “We got the wrong sister.”
Marco blinks. “What? How do you mean?”
“I didn’t know until I took the veil off a few minutes ago. She was wearing the full wedding dress, the veil, everything. We went in for the bride, so we grabbed her. Turns out it’s Eleonora, Caruso’s second daughter, not Sienna.”
Marco stares at me like I just told him I burned down one of our own warehouses. “How the?—?”
“They switched,” I cut in. “Sienna didn’t want to marry Andrea. She’s in love with some guy. So the sisters swapped places so Sienna could run off with him into the sunset. Eleonora walked in as the bride instead.”
Marco lets out a low whistle. “None of this makes sense. So Sienna’s on the run with her boyfriend right now?”
“Yeah.”
He rubs his jaw, thinking. “And you’re still planning to let Caruso and Gallo think we have her?”
“It gives us more leverage,” I say. “Andrea personally wanted Sienna. She’s the one he chose. Having her, or at least making them believe we do, hurts them more.”
