Page 58 of Sinful Wrath

I had eyes on her at all times and yet somehow, she still found a way out.

Glancing around the room, my eyes land on the window, and my stomach sinks.

That’s how.

And she’s probably been doing it this whole time.

I’m such an idiot to think I could trust her. She had me completely wrapped around her little finger this entire time, giving me just enough control to think that I had the upper hand when really, it was hers all along.

I storm across the room and peer outside. There’s nothing but a tiny iron balcony, barely a foot wide, with atwenty foot drop to the ground. There is also no fire escape attached to my property. It’s the main reason why I didn’t bother locking the damn windows in the first place.

But then my eyes flick across to neighboring property and spot the fire escape that zig zags down the side of the red bricks and curse under my breath.

It’s at least a five-foot jump between the window and the neighbors fire escape. It’s risky, but not impossible, which describes Lucia’s thinking perfectly.

Yet again, I have underestimated the mafia brat, and I’m going to be the one to suffer the consequences.

“Fuck!” I slam my fist into the window frame.

It’s not enough to split the skin, but it will no doubt leave a bruise. But that will be the least of my worries.

I had one job to do.

Keep Lucia safe.

And yet again, I have failed.

There are a thousand different places she could be in the city, and that doesn’t include the hundreds of places that Alfonzo Morano could have taken her.

Who knows what state she could be in right now, but I can’t risk calling my brothers or any of my bodyguards for backup. Ultimately they work for the bratva, and their loyalty will always be to Alexei first.

And if my oldest brother caught wind of what Lucia has been doing under my nose, there’s no way in hell he would ever trust me again.

I have to search for her alone and pray that I get to her before someone else does.

Most of the owners of the high end clubs in the city have at one point been on my family’s payroll which means they owe me favors.

As I fire up my G Wagon and begin the drive overto Tribeca, I start to make my way down the contacts in my phone and get each and every one of these guys looking for Lucia.

I wish I had gotten the contact details for her close friends. Perhaps I could have even paid one of them off in exchange for information.

I know these kinds of chicks—they’re superficial as hell, with not a loyal bone in their body.

But I don’t have time to dwell on that now.

Every second that Lucia is out of my sight is a second closer to Alfonzo getting his hands on her, and I’m not about to let that happen.

One hour turns into two, which turns into three, and I’m no closer to finding her, and I’m running out of options.

“Sorry, Koslov. I’ve not seen her,” the owner ofVisiontells me. “But the place is starting to empty out, so I’ll let you know if she suddenly appears. You know how these chicks are, come to one of the top clubs in the city just to hide out in the restrooms all fucking night. She’ll turn up.”

“I appreciate it, Rocco,” I reply before hanging up.

He was my last contact, but I can’t let him be my last hope.

I decide to head back to the townhouse.

Lucia knows that I tend to get up around five in the morning, which is only an hour away. If she truly has been sneaking out this entire time, then she must be getting in before then as every morning for the past week I’ve been bringing her coffee around six before I head to the office, and she’s always been tucked up in bed, sound asleep.