The Mafia Boss Came Home Early — And Heard The Three Daughters Who Hadn't Spoken In 14 Months Singing In The Kitchen With Their Housekeeper

The foyer went completely silent except for the crackle of burning wood and the howling storm outside.

Mia was sobbing softly into Elena’s shoulder, her little hands clutching Elena’s hair. Valentina and Lucia were trembling violently, their small faces pale with absolute terror.

Elena stood on the balcony, the sharp edge of Frankie’s steel knife pressed against her skin, drawing a tiny bead of crimson blood.

She didn't look at the knife. She didn't look at Frankie.

She looked straight down at Dominic.

Her dark eyes held no fear. They held a clear, powerful message: Do what you have to do. Save the girls.

Dominic felt a wave of terrifying, ancient power surge through his veins—the fierce, unstoppable instinct of a father protecting his pride.

"Frankie," Dominic said, his voice eerily quiet, floating through the grand foyer like a death sentence. "Look at my eyes."

Frankie hesitated, his eyes flicking down toward the don.

In that half-second of distraction, Elena acted.

Using the self-defense technique her father had taught her as a girl, Elena slammed her elbow backward with all her strength into Frankie’s ribs.

Frankie gasped in pain, his balance shifting backward.

Elena grabbed his wrist, twisting it away from her throat, and shoved Mia behind her. "RUN!" Elena screamed to the girls. "RUN TO THE PANIC ROOM!"

BANG!

A single gunshot echoed through the high-ceilinged foyer.

Dominic had fired from fifty feet away. The bullet struck Frankie square between the eyes before he could recover his footing. He collapsed backward over the polished balustrade, tumbling down to the marble floor below like a ragdoll.

"KILL HIM!" Salvatore screamed to his men.

All hell broke loose in the foyer.

Dominic dove forward onto the marble floor, rolling behind a heavy leather armchair as bullets chewed through the plaster walls. He fired three rapid shots—BANG! BANG! BANG!—taking down two of Salvatore’s corrupt guards.

Arthur appeared on the upper balcony, wielding a tactical shotgun, firing down at the remaining Valenti invaders near the front entrance, driving them back into the storm outside.

Elena grabbed Lucia, Valentina, and Mia, ushering them down the secure back hallway toward the private study where the hidden panic room door stood open.

Salvatore, realizing his ambush was collapsing, charged down the side corridor toward the study, raising his heavy revolver to eliminate the girls before fleeing.

"SALVATORE!"

Dominic burst out from the grand foyer like an enraged lion.

He tackled Salvatore from behind, sending both men crashing through the glass doors of the library.

Books, shattered glass, and broken furniture flew across the carpet as the two grown men tumbled across the room.

Salvatore swung his heavy revolver, striking Dominic across the jaw, cutting his cheek wide open. Dominic growled, grabbing Salvatore’s wrist, slamming it repeatedly against the sharp edge of the oak desk until the revolver clattered out of his hand.

Dominic delivered a devastating right hook to Salvatore’s jaw, followed by a heavy knee to his stomach, pinning his former underboss to the floor.

Dominic pressed his forearms against Salvatore’s throat, cutting off his air supply completely.

Salvatore gasped, his face turning purple, his eyes bulging as he clawed desperately at Dominic’s arms. "Dominic... please... twenty years..."

"You threatened my daughters, Salvatore," Dominic whispered, his gray eyes cold and pitch-black with righteous wrath. "You threatened Elena. There is no mercy for you in this world."

Dominic twisted his forearms with a swift, powerful motion.