Dwayne's emotions went into a tailspin as the hair at the back of his neck stood on end.
Did he find McKenzie and Jasmine?
Was it Olivia?
Were they injured?
Were they...?
He couldn't even bring himself to say the word.
Richard spoke through clenched teeth. "I tried to rescue Olivia from the brothel but we bounced up some of Matteo's men in the process, my leg was fucked up in the process and we lost her."
"Fuck! Richard! Are you serious?" Dwayne had to force himself to breathe. "Are you in the hospital? I swear, if anything happens to her…" Dwayne's eyes blazed. "Do you know where he's keeping her this time?"
This was the first time Dwayne regretted taking Matteo's case. It was beginning to cost him dearly. With Olivia still in his clutches and possibly his daughter, Dwayne knew the only way to get them back might be to snuff the life out of Matteo.
Dwayne couldn't believe such dark thoughts crossed his mind as he pulled into Mr. Bertarelli's driveway. But, there was no other way to deal with a man like Matteo.
"I'm home but I've got my boys working round the clock. Word has it that she's at his home. I'm trying to get one of my guys to infiltrate Matteo's guards so we can get eyes on her," Richard explained.
Silence lingered between the two men as Dwayne struggled to regain control of his emotions.
Why would Matteo take Olivia back to his house and not the brothel Richard had taken her from? Or another brothel? What changed? Did Matteo know that Olivia was his sister?
Fuck!
Dwayne felt as though he was slipping into an abyss, one that he couldn't escape from.
"Dwayne, did you just call to find out about Olivia or did you have something else to say?" Richard prompted, jolting Dwayne from the corners of his mind.
"Do you remember when I told you that Zee was pregnant when we left school?" Dwayne asked, his voice cracking.
"Yup, but seeing that she only has Jasmine, I assumed she got rid of the other child," Richard replied.
"No, she kept her. And she showed up at my office today. But, she was taken away. We know for a fact that it wasn't by the police. I just pulled into my boss' driveway to figure out what to do next since he was there when everything happened." Dwayne's voice broke at the end of the sentence as tears threatened to roll down his cheeks.
"Shit! Do you think it was Matteo?"
"Who else could it be? This is just another way for him to ensure that I win his case."
"But if you didn't know about your daughter, how did Matteo find out?"
"He probably dug into my past to find something to hold over me."
It was the only possible thing he could think of.
"If that's the case we're royally fucked! If he knows about your daughter, then he knows who McKenzie and Jasmine are. Adding more pawns into his game. FUCK!" Richard took a few deep breaths before he continued. "Any word on McKenzie or Jasmine?"
Dwayne exhaled deeply. "I've been searching for her but with no luck," he admitted, choosing not to mention that he was searching with Yellows.
"I need to find them," Dwayne continued, suddenly feeling mentally drained.
"I'll press my boys for more information on McKenzie and Jasmine, and I'll find out if Matteo really has your daughter. Don't worry, D, we'll find them, all of them. After this, we're leaving this God forsaken country!" Richard declared.
"I'll call you back as soon as I'm done talking to Mr. Bertarelli," Dwayne replied as he switched off the engine.
"Take care man."
The line went dead.
Dwayne sat there for a few minutes trying to compose himself. Then, he stuffed his phone into the pocket of his jeans and hopped out of the truck
As he approached the front door, it swung open, revealing Mr. Bertarelli.
"Let's talk by the truck, shall we?" Mr. Bertarelli suggested, stepping outside to greet Dwayne.
As they walked the short distance to the truck, Mr. Bertarelli turned to face Dwayne.
"I'm sorry that we have to do this out here, but Sharon is at home, and you know how I don't like to bring work home," he explained.
"I understand," Dwayne replied, leaning against his truck with his arms crossed over his chest.
"I just thought you'd like to know that the security guards that Kiara attacked have been discharged from the hospital. And with a hefty sum, they agreed not to press charges," Mr. Bertarelli informed.
Dwayne breathed a sigh of relief; at least that was one less thing he had to worry about.
"Do you think Matteo could've taken her?" Dwayne asked.
"Why would Matteo want to kidnap your daughter?" Mr. Bertarelli questioned.
"To ensure that I keep him out of jail," Dwayne replied.
Mr. Bertarelli rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "If Matteo wants you to focus on his case, then kidnapping your daughter wouldn't be in his best interest."
Dwayne shook his head. "I don't think this is the case here, because he already has my sister."
Mr. Bertarelli's eyes widened. "Are you sure?"
"Yes," Dwayne said, "I got the news from a trusted source that she's currently being held at his house."
Just then, a jeep screeched to a halt in front of the house, and Enzo, Mr. Bertarelli's son, hopped out. He marched straight to his father, his face filled with anger. Dwayne had never met Enzo because he was away on duty as a Navy SEAL, but Mr. Bertarelli spoke about him proudly and had a picture of him on his desk.
"Dad! How could you not tell me that Matteo Leone has Alessia!" Enzo's eyes darkened as he glared at his father.
Dwayne was shocked; this was the first time he had heard of this. Alessia and Mrs. Beratalli frequented the office, and Alessia had just celebrated her twenty-fifth birthday.
"Mr. Bertarelli, is this the reason why you wanted me to take on Matteo's case, because Alessia was kidnapped?" Dwayne asked, some of the pieces finally falling into place.
Enzo looked at Dwayne as though he just realized he was standing there.
"And who are you?" Enzo asked.
"An employee of your dad's," Dwayne replied, keeping his focus on Mr. Bertarelli. "Mr. Bertarelli, sir, please answer the question. Am I working on Matteo's case because he kidnapped Alessia?" Dwayne pressed.
Dwayne watched as Mr. Bertarelli's shoulders slumped, already knowing the answer. Mr. Bertarelli glanced at the door before speaking.
"Enzo, your mother can't know about this. It'll break her heart if she finds out." Mr. Bertarelli's voice cracked. "I've had a gambling problem for years. She even threatened to leave me if I didn't stop. I did stop for a few months, but then she went out of town and I had just lost my brother. I went to destress and I racked up an insane amount at Matteo's club."
"Dad, get to the point. Why does he have Alessia?" Enzo interjected angrily.
"Matteo has a court case coming up, and his last lawyer couldn't get him off. I hadn't been able to pay back Matteo all of his money, and he told me if I got him off, my debt would be settled. But then he kidnapped Alessia as collateral to make sure my firm won the case. I couldn't focus on working on the case, so I passed it on to Dwayne. Your mother thinks Alessia is on a cruise having the time of her life."
Before Dwayne knew what he was doing, he felt his fist connect with Mr. Bertarelli's face. If it wasn't for Dwayne's truck that held him in place, Mr. Bertarelli would've fallen to the floor.
"You son of a bitch!" Dwayne yelled, his rage boiling over.
He was about to lunge at Mr. Bertarelli again when Enzo stood between them and pushed Dwayne back. "Keep your hands off my father!"
"Your father is a piece of shit!" Dwayne cried, pointing at Mr. Bertarelli. "And you're here trying to tell me that Matteo wouldn't be the person who kidnapped my daughter! He already has my sister, and I swear if anything happens to either one of them, I will kill you!"
"How dare you threaten my father?" Enzo shouted.
"And why the fuck shouldn't I? Matteo has my sister and my daughter!"
"You didn't have to take the case! You could've walked away! It's your fault Matteo has them like it's Dad's fault…"
He never finished the sentence.
Dwayne's fist rocketed forward, smashing into Enzo's jaw. Enzo stumbled, dazed, but only for a moment. Then he lunged.
Like a freight train, Enzo barreled into Dwayne, slamming him against the side of the truck. Dwayne's head snapped back with the impact, but he gritted his teeth and drove his elbow into Enzo's ribs. Enzo grunted and retaliated with a savage hook that sent Dwayne reeling.
Blood sprayed from Dwayne's split lip as he wiped it with the back of his hand, his eyes burning. He rushed forward, tackling Enzo to the ground. The two men rolled across the driveway in a tangle of fists and fury, dust and gravel grinding into their skin.
Enzo got the upper hand, mounting Dwayne and unleashing a flurry of blows. Dwayne twisted, taking one punch to the cheek, another to the temple, but then he bucked his hips and flipped Enzo off him, scrambling to his feet.
"You think you're the only one hurting?" Enzo spat, blood streaming from his nose. "My sister is locked away like some fucking bargaining chip!"
Dwayne didn't answer. He exploded forward, shoulder-checking Enzo into the hood of the truck. Metal groaned beneath the impact.
"Your father let this happen," Dwayne growled. "And now we're all paying the price!"
Enzo roared and slammed his forehead into Dwayne's face. Stars exploded in Dwayne's vision as he stumbled back. Enzo didn't let up, he landed a brutal uppercut to Dwayne's gut, doubling him over. Then a knee to the ribs. Another punch. Another. Dwayne collapsed to one knee, coughing up blood.
As Enzo raised his arm for one final blow…
Tyres screeched and a car door slammed open. Gallows and Yellows hopped out.
"Back the fuck off!" Yellows barked, gun leveled at Enzo's chest.
But Enzo, rage-blind, didn't stop. He turned toward Dwayne again and a defeaning bang split the air. Enzo cried out, clutching his upper arm as blood poured between his fingers.
"The next one's through your skull," Yellows said calmly, his eyes locked onto Enzo. "Back the fuck off."
Enzo stood frozen, panting, pain twisting his features. Finally, he stumbled back, glaring murderously at Yellows before Mr. Bertarelli rushed forward to drag him toward the house.
Dwayne groaned, pushing himself off the ground, one hand pressed to his ribs. Blood dripped from his nose, mixing with the sweat and dirt smeared across his face.
Yellows stepped beside him, lowering the gun.
"What the fuck was that about?" he asked, his voice was quieter now.
Dwayne didn't look at him. His eyes were locked on the house, on the closed door where Enzo and Mr. Bertarelli had disappeared.
"Matteo has Bertarelli's daughter," he rasped, every word soaked in venom. "And I'm pretty damn sure he's got Kiara too. Oh, and Olivia? I called Richard and he told me she's holed up in Matteo's damn house."
Yellows' brows furrowed. "His house? That's a strange choice for a hostage situation, don't you think?"
"I'm done," Dwayne muttered, staggering toward the driver's side of his truck. "Fuck Bertarelli. And fuck Matteo's case."
Yellows followed. "As much as I'm liking this 'new' Dwayne, there's no way you can go up against Matteo alone and win. You're walking into a death trap, Dwayne. You need to think this through."
"I'm done playing it safe," Dwayne declared, "I'm going after Matteo, consequences be damned."
He climbed into the truck and slammed the door shut. The engine roared to life and before Yellows could say anything else, Dwayne tore down the street, vengeance burning in his wake.