The Ones Who Saved Us

Chapter 32

Antonio's POV

Alessandro, Elijah, and I were at our business headquarters. We had spent half the day looking for Ava and her friends, who had disappeared from school without a trace. Our men plus the Emilio and Matteo were all over the city looking for them with no success, and with each minute that passed by without any sign of my daughter, panic grew in me.

After everything I had seen Ava endure at Demetri's and Damon's hand, I couldn't help but worry for my little girl. My mind jumped to the worst theories imaginable of where she could be. Images of Ava with a bloodied back, with knives sticking out of her limb, with unwanted hands touching her body played before my eyes.

I clenched my eyes shut and tried to shake these unsettling pictures away, ignore the gnawing feeling in my stomach, but it didn't work. No matter how long it had been since I had been out of Demetri's captivity, I would always be damaged.

Damaged goods, Demetri used to mock.

I wasn't weak, but I wasn't as strong as I should've been in situations like this. When you were in a Mafia family, you were raised not to show emotion when your loved ones were in danger, instead to focus all your energy into saving your family and your way of life rather than grieving prematurely.

But Demetri had changed me. When my boys, Emilio and Matteo, were taken from me, I had acted calmly. I had given my men orders. I had consoled Alessia and my boys. But I definitely hadn't found myself being the one who needed the reassuring.

Ava had gone missing at 11:30 this morning, and we hadn't known until 12:30 when the school had called us informing us that my darling girl never showed up to fourth period. At first, we had hoped that maybe she left home because she wasn't feeling well, but that didn't explain why she hadn't called us or why every time we called her, it went straight to voicemail.

It was now 4:30 in the afternoon. Ava had been missing for five hours, and no one knew where she was. And I felt sick to my stomach.

A hand on my shoulder caused me to stiffen. I blinked my eyes open, only to be met by my concerned son. Alessandro sat down next to me and said, "Don't worry, Dad. I'm sure she'll show up soon."

Alessandro's words did nothing to reassure me, not when she could be anywhere with any of our enemies who would use her to hurt us.

"I appreciate your lies, Sandro, but you don't know that. Hell, Cameron could've gotten her, and we don't know it yet."

Alessandro shook his head, his fists turning a ghostly white as he tightened them. "Please don't say that. And anyways, I'm sure he would've sent us a message by now if he did get her. At least that's what Demetri did."

"He's right," Elijah agreed.

"No," I said, running a hand through my hair. "You two are just saying that to make yourselves feel better. We all know that Ava would never do something like this. Not willingly at least."

Before my sons could respond, the sound of my phone ringing sounded through the office. Lifting the screen to my phase, I ran a hand over my face.

"Teddy," I muttered.

Ever since Ava had gone missing, Teddy had been calling me every thirty minutes to check if we had found his sister. Leo was staying with him and had been trying to take his mind off of the events of today, but it obviously wasn't working.

Picking up the call, I said, "Teds—"

"Did you find her yet?" Teddy asked, cutting me off. "Dad, it's been five hours. Ava wouldn't leave me without saying where she was going. Dad, you have to find her. If she's hurt—"