Chapter 7 - The Geneva Trail
Twenty-four hours later, a thick blanket of snow was falling softly over the mountains surrounding Geneva, Switzerland.
A sleek black Mercedes van wound its way up the private alpine road leading to the Saint Augustine Clinic—a ultra-exclusive, fortress-like medical facility perched high above Lake Geneva.
Inside the van, Matteo was reviewing satellite blueprints of the facility on a tablet screen, while Liana sat beside him, holding a satellite phone connected to the estate back in Illinois.
"How is Nico?" Liana asked anxiously into the receiver.
"He's doing wonderful, Miss Liana," Edna, the housekeeper, reported warmly over the encrypted line. "He drank his whole bottle, and he’s resting in the nursery with three guards outside the door. He’s safe."
Liana let out a long, relieved breath. "Thank you, Edna. Keep him safe."
She hung up the phone and looked over at Matteo.
In the dim light of the van, Matteo looked exhausted, but his posture was rigid, powered by an overwhelming sense of duty and emerging love. Over the past thirty hours, the fierce mafia boss had treated her not as a servant, but as his equal partner in a war against evil.
"The clinic has eight private security guards on the ground floor," Matteo explained, pointing to the blueprint. "Julian arrived two hours ago by private helicopter. He knows we survived the hospital ambush in Chicago. He’s preparing to move the baby to a non-extradition country."
"We can't let him move him," Liana said firmly.
"We won't," Matteo said. He reached out, his hand gently covering hers on the leather seat. "I have local Swiss operatives surrounding the perimeter. But I need you inside with me, Liana."
Liana looked at him, surprised. "Why me?"
"Because when we find my son," Matteo said softly, his dark eyes locking onto hers with deep sincerity, "he will be frightened. He has spent nine months in a cold lab with strangers. He needs a mother's touch. He needs you."
Liana’s heart skipped a beat. She placed her other hand over his, squeezing his strong fingers. "I won't let anything happen to your boy, Matteo."
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Matteo looked down at their joined hands, a faint, genuine smile gracing his features for the first time since this nightmare began.
"Let's go get my son," Matteo said.
