Like I gave her strength.
I smiled encouragingly. Still staring into my eyes, she gave a small nod.
Fuck yeah!
I wanted to scream, throw my hands in the air and jump. She did it!
Holding my fist against my pressed lips, I cleared my throat, but the emotions were overflowing.
“I will be in my office. Enjoy your day with Maddie. She will take good care of you,” I said.
She nodded again. This time, it was impossible to hold the smile.
Giving Maddie a nod, I walked out of the room. Taking my phone out of my pocket, I called the one person I knew would be able to help me.
“What is it?” the voice answered.
“Nina, I need you in my office in an hour.”
“I’ll be there,” she replied. I hung up before she could say anything else.
Nikolay and Viktor were already waiting for me outside of my office. I nodded at them, and they followed me inside.
“What are Isaak and Lyov doing?” I asked.
“The businesses are running smoothly. Surprisingly. It looks like they haven’t lost their touch yet,” Viktor grumbled.
“That’s good.” I nodded. I knew they would keep everything in line.
“The women at the clubs?”
“With Alberto out of the country and his men hiding, we have full control over the clubs. Even the ones that belong to him. Under strict orders from Lyov, the women are being treated fairly,” Nikolay replied.
“Those who have been abused intensively are under care,” Viktor added. “If only we had Alberto in our hands. He’s the only fucking problem now.”
“Any news from him?” I questioned, sitting back against my chair.
They shook their heads mutely.
“I need answers!” I bellowed. “The information from the Black Club members led us to a dead end. It brought us nothing.”
They said Alberto was hiding in Canada. By the time my men reached there, he was already gone.
Alberto was smart. He never stayed in one place. He moved every few days and left no tracks behind. It was almost impossible to track him down.
“We are doing everything we can, Alessio,” Viktor muttered. He ran his hand over his face in frustration. “But don’t forget. We might be powerful, but he is just as powerful. He has connections everywhere. When a Mafia man wants to go off grid, it is impossible to find him. You know that better than anyone. Lyov and Isaak pulled it off. You did it too once.”
“I don’t care who he is or what he’s doing. All I know is that as long as he is alive, Ayla and the baby are not safe. I need him dead. I need his blood on my hands. Until then, I won’t rest,” I growled dangerously.
“We aren’t stopping until we find him. Mark said he has some information too. I’m going there tomorrow. We’ll see what he has and how it can help us,” Nikolay added.
“Good,” I muttered.
“What do you want to do with Artur and Enzo?” Viktor asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
At the mention of Artur, a sudden surge of fury coursed through me. I held the table tightly until my knuckled turned white.
“Keep them alive,” I gritted out. “I need them alive until Alberto is found.”
Viktor shook his head. “Are you sure? Artur is practically dead. So is Enzo.”
“I don’t care how you do it. I need them alive. When Alberto is found, I will finish them all together. Like a little family reunion. I’m sure they will like it,” I growled.
Taking a deep breath, I released the table from my grasp. “After all, I’m not done with them yet. They haven’t spilled enough blood. Their pain is not even half of what Ayla has had to go through.”
I looked directly at Viktor. “By the time I’m done with them, they won’t even be able to beg me to kill them. Not even if they wanted to.”
I saw Viktor raise an eyebrow at me, and he smiled almost sadistically. “Now that’s what I like to hear. I almost thought you were going soft. Looks like I was mistaken. You are still a crazy fucker.”
I shook my head at his stupid assumption. “I will always be one.”
Before he could say anything else, I changed the topic. I didn’t want to be reminded of who I was. Of what I had done.
I was a monster. I have killed without any remorse. I didn’t care.
What always worried me was…what would Ayla think of me? When she found out what I had done to get to her?
“Is there anything else?” I asked quickly, trying to clear my thoughts.
Nikolay nodded and spoke of all the things I had missed while taking care of Ayla. Lyov and Isaak had been able to take care of things I had almost ruined.
Nikolay paused when there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” I called out, already knowing who it was.