The Mafia's Missing Triplets

Chapter Thirty

Third Person POV

...the sight that greeted them was one ripped straight from a horror movie. Vladimir, a man who should be six feet under, was very much alive, and stood tall in the center of the open warehouse room. Lily, limp and pale, was held against him, a gleaming knife digging into her stomach. A pool of blood stained the worn concrete floor beneath them.

A collective gasp ripped through the air. The room, moments ago a cacophony of violence, fell eerily silent. All eyes were glued to the horrifying tableau. Ashlynn and Sage's blood ran cold. Tears welled in their eyes, blurring the image before them. This could not be happening. Not Lily. A primal scream threatened to erupt from their throats, but they choked it back, a desperate need for action overriding the raw fear.

Across the room, Natalya gasped, a hand flying to her throat. Her face contorted in a mixture of horror and disbelief. Nicholas, beside her and despite trying his best to hide it, paled, his fists clenching so hard his knuckles turned white. The revelation hung heavy in the air - a suffocating weight of disbelief and shock.

"Natalya, my love," Vladimir's voice was a sickening drawl, breaking the silence. "Surprised to see me?"

Natalya's voice, when it finally came, was a strangled whisper. "Vladimir? But...but you are dead. I killed you."

A cruel smile stretched across Vladimir's face. "Clever Natalia. Almost. You see, that fool you killed, that you mercilessly stabbed and shot at, was not me. You thought that you could get rid of me that easily, that you were rid of me forever?"He ran his hand through Lily's limp hair, a cruel caress. "But death isn't so easy to cheat, is it?, that was just a very convincing stunt double."

Natalya's eyes narrowed, a storm brewing within them. "So you set it all up. The attack, the kidnapping...just to lure me out?"

He chuckled, a chilling sound that echoed through the warehouse. "Indeed I did. And now," he gestured towards Lily with the knife, "I have the ultimate bargaining chip."

Natalya, fueled by a rage hotter than any inferno, lunged forward. Nicholas Visto, ever the protector, reacted instinctively, grabbing his mother and pulling her back. "Do not be reckless, Mama," he growled, his voice strained with the need to control his own anger.

Vladimir's laughter died down, replaced by a cruel smile. "Such a shame," he drawled, his eyes flicking towards Natalya, "you missed me the first time around. Perhaps this time you'll have better luck." He gestured with the knife pointed at Lily's stomach.

Rage, raw and primal, surged through the entire room. The momentary pause shattered into a renewed cacophony of shouts and threats. Ashton Russo roared, charging forward only to be stopped by his own sons, their faces grim.

"You can not just run forward Ashton!" Jackson Greco's voice cut through Ashton Russo's threats and shouts. "This is a delicate situation."

"Delicate? My daughter is bleeding!" Ashton bellowed, his voice hoarse with emotion.

Nicholas stepped forward, his voice a low growl. "We will get her back, Mr Russo. But we need to think clearly."

A tense silence descended upon the room again. The air crackled with unspoken threats and simmering rage. The three Mafia families, a force to be reckoned with when united, were now paralyzed by the precarious situation. One wrong move could spell disaster for Lily.

~~~

Breaking the silence, Alessandro Greco stepped forward, his voice a steady counterpoint to the surrounding chaos that was once amongst them. "Let the girl go, Vladimir," he said, his words deceptively calm. "This can all be settled without further bloodshed."

Vladimir let out a snort of derision. "Bloodshed? You call this bloodshed? This is just a little family dispute. But you are right, Greco," he continued, his eyes gleaming with a manic glint and lips curling into a smile. "Perhaps we can settle this without more... inconveniences."

Vladimir's smile widened. "Oh, but first, just a little reminder of the consequences of betrayal. My dear, dear Anastasia darling, here, refused to cooperate." He dug the tip of the knife deeper into her stomach, eliciting a whimper from a very very pale looking Lily.

A collective surge of anger rippled through the room. Ashlynn and Sage, their faces contorted in a mix of rage and fear, exchanged a desperate glance. They could not stand by and watch their sister get hurt any further. But any action they took could be a death sentence for Lily.

~~~

The only sound was Lily's shallow gasps for breath. Ashlynn and Sage, their faces hardened with resolve, stared daggers at Vladimir, a man whom they have never even heard off. They would not let him win. They would not let him hurt Lily.

"What do you want, Vladimir?" Natalya's voice was cold, laced with a dangerous edge.

Vladimir's smile widened. "Ah, Natalia, ever the pragmatist. You see, I have some unfinished business with you. " He glanced at Ashton, his eyes held a look of derangement, everyone was fearing for Lily's safety. "And what do you mean, my daughter, She...Is...Mine, I do not care if you and that bitch, Natalya, got married after I left, but you do not get to claim my daughter, you know, I always knew something was going on between the two of you, now it is just confirmed"

Ashton's face contorted in a mixture of anger and confusion. Anger, because his daughter is currently hurt, she is bleeding and he knows that he can not just pull her into his arm, where it is safe, because, he knows, that if he so much as tries to grab Lily, 'he knows' that Vladimir could hurt her more, and confused, because of what Vladimir just said and that Lily was his daughter.

"Vladimir, I do not know nor do I care about what you think, but what I do care about is that you currently have My daughter, you are currently holdin. My daughter in your disgusting hands, you are currently holding My bleeding daughter in your hands, please just let her go, she did nothing wrong"

"Just stop trying to claim my daughter, Ashton, I know I left her when she was young but I did not have a choice, but you knew that right, you knew she was going to try and kill me, but you were ok with it because it meant that you got your hands on my daughter"

Ashlynn and Sage, confused and terrified, tried their best to stand as still as possible, as they watched their younger sister, their other triplet,the only other person,besides each other, that was with them from birth, their little Lil, bleed from her stomach, their desperation growing with each passing minute. Every second felt like an eternity with the knife pressed against Lily's stomach.

Ashlynn, whispering to her brothers. "We can not just stand here. We need to get Lily to a doctor."

Sage, his voice raw with emotion, agreed. "Ash is right she is losing too much blood."

Luke, surprising both Ashlynn and Sage , spoke, is words bringing them an odd sense of comfort, "We will get her in time, do not worry, we will save her"

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Until we meet again my lov, which is hopefully after next week, if not we're about to fight, but I'll keep you all posted, as soon as I know more.

I love you all
Haves an anonymous week
Anonymouzwish
Mwah
❤❤