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- E R O S - M A R C O - R I C C I -
The car couldn't move fast enough. The moment Grant's call ended, a sense of dread washed over me like a cold wave. I continuously gave orders into my phone to my men, my voice a deadly growl that brooked no argument.
I could feel my heart hammering in my chest, each beat a violent reminder of how much time I was wasting.
Grant's call had ended abruptly, and every second that ticked by felt like another nail in the coffin of my control. My grip on the dashboard was so tight my knuckles had turned bone-white.
Arturo kept glancing at me, his jaw set and his eyes full of silent questions. He didn't ask them though, he knew better.
"Drive faster." I pressed and Arturo didn't argue as he slammed his foot on the gas and sped up.
When we finally pulled up to the apartment, the scene that greeted us was one from my worst nightmares. The front door was wide open, the wood splintered from being forced. I could feel my pulse thrumming in my ears as I stormed inside, Arturo right behind me.
The first thing I noticed was the silence—the kind that felt like the calm before a storm. The place was in ruins.
My eyes darted to the centre of the room where Grant lay sprawled on the floor, his own blood seeping into the carpet in dark, accusing pools. He looked up at me with half-lidded eyes, pain etched into every line on his face.
"Grant," I hissed, getting down on my haunches beside him to check his pulse which was barely there, "Where the fuck did they take her?"
Grant's eyelids fluttered, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"They... Russians," He choked out, "T-they took her, Mr. Ricci... I-I tried to—"
"Save your strength," Arturo said, pressing a cloth to Grant's wound, trying to staunch the bleeding, "Help's on the way."
I couldn't focus on Grant anymore. My vision tunnelled, fury narrowing my world down to a pinpoint.
Emerald was gone, taken from me.
The anger inside me threatened to rip me apart as I stood up, trembling with rage, and turned my attention to the wreckage around me and blood roared in my ears.
They dared—those bastards dared to touch her. The walls seemed to close in on me, suffocating me with their silence, and I knew if I didn't do something, I'd explode right here.
"Search the place!" I roared at my men who'd followed us in, "I want every goddamn clue they left behind. I don't care if you have to tear down the walls—find me something, anything!"
