Chapter 3 - Shadows of the Past
A week into her stay at the estate, the outside world invaded the sanctuary.
Norah was sitting in the sunroom watching Leo crawl across a plush oriental rug when the heavy double doors were pushed open. Dante walked in, followed by Gabriel and three armed guards. Gabriel’s face was dark, set into an expression of murderous coldness that made Norah’s blood run cold.
"Dante, secure the perimeter," Gabriel ordered, his voice clipped. "Nobody enters or leaves without my direct authorization."
"What happened?" Norah asked, standing up instinctively and gathering Leo into her arms.
Gabriel walked over to her, his movements tense. "We found Thomas."
Norah’s breath hitched. "Where?"
"He was picked up at a underground poker den in West Town," Gabriel said, stopping inches away from her. "He didn't just steal from me, Norah. He stole three hundred thousand dollars from Viktor Radrenko."
The name sent a chill down Norah’s spine. Even someone as removed from the crime world as she was had heard of Radrenko—the ruthless leader of the Russian Bratva operating out of North Chicago.
"Tommy tried to trade information to pay off his debt," Gabriel continued, his voice dropping into a dark register. "He told Radrenko where you were. He claimed you had access to my private ledger."
Norah gasped, horror washing over her. "He... he sold me out? Again?"
"He tried to," Gabriel said, reaching out to lay a reassuring hand on her shoulder. His grip was warm, solid, and protective. "My men intercepted the message before Radrenko could act on it. Thomas is currently in our holding facility at the docks."
Norah felt a tear slip down her cheek, burning hot against her skin. "I gave that man four years of my life. I went hungry so he could gamble. I begged for his child's life... and he sold us to monsters."
Gabriel’s hand moved from her shoulder to the back of her neck, his thumb gently wiping away the tear on her cheekbone. The touch was fiercely possessive.
"He will never hurt you again, Norah," Gabriel swore softly, his dark eyes burning into hers. "I give you my word."
"What are you going to do to him?" she whispered.
Gabriel didn't answer immediately. His fingers lingered against her skin, feeling the wild fluttering of her pulse. "That depends on what you want."
Norah blinked in shock. "What I want?"
"He is your husband," Gabriel said coldly. "He abandoned you and your son to die. If you want me to let him rot in a cell, I will. If you want me to put him on a train out of Illinois with nothing but the clothes on his back, I will. If you want him gone permanently... I will handle that too."
Norah looked down at little Leo, who was happily chewing on his toy rabbit, completely unaware that his biological father had offered him up as collateral to a mob boss.
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"I don't want his blood on my hands," Norah said, her voice rising with a newfound, fierce strength. "And I don't want him anywhere near my son. Strip him of everything he took from us. Make him sign the divorce papers and relinquish all parental rights to Leo. Then make him disappear from our lives forever."
Gabriel offered a slow, approving nod. "Consider it done."
