The Mafia Boss saw the bruise beneath his maid’s concealer—and the question he asked next made her realize he already knew she was hiding something.

Elena slowly backed away, her mind frantically calculating her distance from the main street. But behind her, two more dark figures stepped out from the shadows, blocking her only exit.

She was trapped.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Elena said, trying to keep her voice steady, hiding her hands inside the pockets of her oversized coat. "My name is not Vance. I'm just a hotel employee taking a break."

Sophia let out a dark, mocking laugh that echoed off the damp alley walls. "Please, darling. Don't insult my intelligence. I knew your father. DA Vance was a righteous, arrogant fool who thought he could clean up this city. He died for that mistake—and he left you with his little black book."

Sophia stepped closer, the sharp scent of heavy floral perfume overpowering the smell of wet garbage and rain.

"Where is the ledger, Elena?" Sophia demanded, her voice dropping its playful edge, turning sharp and lethal. "Give it to me, and I might let you live. I might even let that precious little four-year-old bastard girl of yours grow up."

Elena felt as if a physical blade had been driven into her chest. The world spun violently around her.

They knew. They knew about Lily.

"She has nothing to do with this!" Elena spat, her fear instantly transforming into raw, blinding maternal rage. "Leave her out of this!"

"Then give me the book!" Sophia hissed, stepping directly into Elena’s face. "Your father hid the encrypted drive before his car caught fire. We know he gave you the key code. Where is it?!"

"I don't have it!" Elena yelled. "I don't have the drive! I don't have the code!"

"Liar," Sophia sneered. She raised her hand, signaling her enforcers. "Grab her. We’ll take her to the warehouse down by the river. By tomorrow morning, she’ll be begging to tell us where her daughter is buried."

The two men stepped forward, their thick hands reaching out to grab Elena’s arms.

Elena didn't wait to be captured. She pulled one of the glass bottles of pediatric cough medicine from her pocket and slammed it hard across the face of the first man.

CRASH!

The glass shattered, spraying sticky syrup and blood across the man's eyes. He screamed in pain, clutching his face. Elena kicked the second man hard in the kneecap, turning to bolt toward the hotel service entrance.

"Get her!" Sophia screamed in rage.

Elena slammed her shoulder against the metal service door, bursting back into the warm, brightly lit interior of the hotel kitchen. The cooks and dishwashers gasped in surprise as she sprinted past them, discarding her heavy coat and throwing herself up the service stairs.

She needed to reach Damian.

It was a suicidal risk—if Damian found out who she really was, he might kill her himself. But right now, Damian Cross was the only monster powerful enough to tear Sophia Moretti to pieces.

She burst through the pantry doors back into the VIP lounge, her hair disheveled, her apron torn, her chest heaving as she fought for oxygen.

The lounge was in absolute chaos.

Shouts were ringing out. Guests were backing away toward the exits as armed men exchanged tense, low-voiced threats near the center of the room.

The mahogany doors of the private conference room flew open.

Damian stepped out. He was holding a sleek black suppressed pistol in his right hand. His face was a terrifying portrait of absolute, cold fury. Behind him, two of his guards were dragging out the bloody body of the international broker he had been negotiating with.

"It was a setup!" one of Damian's guards yelled over the noise. "The Morettis bought the broker!"

Damian’s silver eyes scanned the chaotic room with deadly efficiency—and then his gaze landed on Elena.

He saw her torn apron. He saw the sweat on her forehead. He saw the terror in her wide eyes.

And then he saw Sophia Moretti step through the service door behind her, flanked by three armed enforcers.

"Damian Cross," Sophia called out loudly, her voice echoing over the hushed crowd, a cruel smile on her lips as she raised a pearl-handled revolver. "What a pleasant surprise to find your missing maid running into my arms."