Chapter 4 - The Safe House in the Woods
Two black SUVs cut through the thick fog of northern Rhode Island, navigating narrow dirt roads lined with dense pine trees.
I sat in the back of the lead vehicle. Stefano sat beside me, his long legs cramped in the seat, his hand resting near a heavy leather holster strapped under his shoulder. Nero lay across both of our feet, his massive head resting on my knee as if he were guarding a prize.
My phone had been buzzing for two hours. Notifications from my bank, text messages from my nursing supervisor asking why I missed my morning shift, and a frantic voicemail from the memory-care facility reminding me that my mother's account was officially sixty days delinquent.
I stared out the window, feeling tears burn the back of my eyes. My life was falling apart in real time.
"Alice," Stefano’s voice broke the quiet.
I didn't turn around. "I missed my shift. The agency is going to revoke my placement. If I lose my license, I can't pay for my mother's care."
"Look at me," he commanded gently.
I turned to face him. Under the dim interior light, his face looked carved out of shadow.
"Your mother's bills were paid in full two hours ago," Stefano said calmly. "For the next two years."
I blinked, stunned. "What?"
"Danny took care of it. The memory-care facility in Warwick received a wire transfer from a secure trust. She will not be moved. She will not lose her care."
"I can't accept that!" I stammered, my cheeks burning. "That's... that's money from—"
"From me," Stefano interrupted firmly. "You took a bullet’s worth of risk for me twice. You stopped a lethal dose of potassium chloride from entering my veins three hours ago. A check for a care home doesn't even begin to cover my debt to you."
"I'm a nurse, Stefano, not a mercenary!"
"I know what you are," he said softly, his dark eyes softening in a way he rarely permitted himself. "You are the only person in five years who didn't look at me like a paycheck or a target. You looked at me like a human being. So let me take care of you."
The SUV came to a halt in front of a rustic, stone-and-timber lodge hidden deep in the woods near the Connecticut border. The house was invisible from the main road, surrounded by security cameras and high wooden fencing.
Danny opened the door. "We're secure, Boss. Perimeter guards are set."
We stepped out into the crisp morning air. Nero immediately bounded onto the grass, sniffing the perimeter before running back to my side.
Inside, the lodge was surprisingly comfortable—hardwood floors, a massive stone fireplace, and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking a dark lake. But the tension followed us inside. Danny set up three encrypted laptops on the dining room table, while two armed guards posted themselves at the front and back entrances.
"Voss talked," Danny said, stepping into the kitchen where Stefano was sitting while I checked his surgical dressings.
"What did he say?" Stefano asked, not flinching as I gently replaced his gauze.
"Carmine didn't just want you dead for power," Danny revealed, holding up a sleek silver USB drive. "He’s been embezzling from the union pension funds and the port shipping accounts for three years. Over forty million dollars. He knew you were auditing the books next month. The hit at the mansion wasn't just a takeover—it was a cover-up."
Stefano’s jaw tightened into a rigid block. "Where is Carmine now?"
"He fled north," Danny said grimly. "Crossing into Vermont toward the Canadian border. He has a private airstrip near Killington. If he gets on that plane, we'll never trace the money."
Stefano stood up, pulling his shirt back over his bandaged chest. "Get the cars ready."
"Stefano, no!" I blurted out, stepping in front of him. "Your abdominal wall was repaired four days ago! If your blood pressure spikes or you engage in physical exertion, you will tear the internal sutures and bleed into your peritoneum!"
Stefano looked down at me, his dark eyes intense. "Alice, if Carmine reaches Canada, he wins. He leaves behind a war that will tear my people apart."
"Then let Danny go!" I argued, placing my palm against his chest, right over his beating heart. "You aren't going anywhere. Not while I'm responsible for your life."
Stefano looked down at my hand resting on his chest, then back at my face. The room went entirely still.
"Then you come with us," Stefano said softly.
May you like
Danny gasped. "Boss, taking her into a hot zone—"
"She stays with me," Stefano barked, his eyes never leaving mine. "If I bleed out in the snow, I want the only competent nurse in New England beside me."
