Chapter 1 - The Sanctuary of MorettiThe cold January wind whipped through the shattered doorwa
y of Norah’s apartment, carrying with it the smell of exhaust, salt, and impending rain.
Gabriel didn't wait for her permission. He stepped past her, picked up the crying eight-month-old from the playpen with surprising ease, and tucked the child against his chest. Leo’s screams shrank into hiccuping sobs the moment his tiny cheek rested against the soft wool of Gabriel’s lapel.
"Pack a bag," Gabriel commanded, his voice steady as iron. "Ten minutes."
Norah scrambled up from the floor, her knees trembling. "What? Where are you taking us?"
"Somewhere Tommy's debts can't touch you," Gabriel said without looking at her, his big hand supporting Leo’s back with practiced care. "The men coming here aren't interested in collecting money. They deal in flesh and leverage. If they find you here tonight, they’ll use you to force Tommy out of hiding. Or they'll kill you to prove a point."
"Boss," Dante interjected from the doorway, his eyes fixed on the dark corridor outside. "We have company coming up the alley. Five minutes max."
Norah didn't argue. Survival instincts born of months of neglect kicked into overdrive. She grabbed a battered canvas duffel bag from the closet and shoved in everything she could find for Leo: baby formula, clean diapers, three warm onesies, his favorite stuffed rabbit, and her worn copy of his medical records. For herself, she packed a single change of clothes, her secondhand winter coat, and the silver locket her late mother had given her.
"I'm ready," she gasped out, slinging the duffel over her shoulder.
Gabriel gave a single, sharp nod. "Dante, secure the hall. Marco, take the bag."
They moved out of the building through the rear fire escape, avoiding the front lobby where shadowy figures were already kicking in the main entryway doors. Below in the snow-dusted alley stood two sleek, bulletproof black SUVs, their engines idling silently in the dark.
Gabriel placed Norah into the plush leather back seat of the lead vehicle, then slid in beside her, holding Leo throughout the transition. The doors slammed shut with a heavy, airtight thunk, sealing out the freezing Chicago night.
As the SUV surged forward into the city traffic, Norah collapsed back against the leather, her breathing ragged. She looked over at the man beside her—the most feared mafia don in the city, holding her baby while staring out the tinted window with a expression carved from marble.
"Why are you doing this?" Norah whispered, her hand instinctively reaching out to hover over Leo's toes. "You said Tommy owes you two hundred thousand dollars. I'm useless to you."
Gabriel turned his dark eyes toward her. The amber glow of the passing streetlights illuminated the sharp contours of his face and the faint silver in his hair.
"Thomas Bennett is a rat," Gabriel said quietly. "He dragged a mother and an innocent child into a war he started. In my world, we kill men like him. But we do not let women and children pay for a coward's sins."
"And when you find Tommy?"
"Then Tommy pays," Gabriel said, his tone dropping into a icy register that left no doubt about her husband's fate. "Until then, you stay under my roof."
Thirty minutes later, the convoy pulled through grand iron gates into the secluded estate of Moretti Manor in Riverwoods. Surrounded by towering pines and high security fences, the limestone mansion looked like a fortress frozen in time.
Gabriel carried Leo inside, leading Norah through a vast marble entryway into a warm, wood-paneled suite on the second floor. The room had a king-sized bed, a fire crackling in the hearth, a crib made of polished cherry wood, and an adjoining private bath.
"You'll stay here," Gabriel said, setting Leo carefully down on the soft duvet. "The room is secured. There are guards on every floor. My housekeeper, Mrs. Rossi, will bring you food and whatever supplies the boy needs."
Norah looked around the luxurious space, feeling entirely out of place in her scuffed sneakers and worn sweatpants. "Gabriel... I don't know how to repay you for this."
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Gabriel paused at the door, his dark gaze lingering on her soft, tear-stained face, then down to her curvy frame, taking in the raw vulnerability and quiet resilience in her eyes.
"You don't repay me, Norah," he said softly. "You just keep your son safe."
