Hunted By A Shadow: Chapter 17

As I rise to my feet, I pull Skylar up until she’s standing on shaky legs.

I let go of her and gesture to her father as I order, “Untie him.”

Carlo comes closer, and pulling a pocket knife out, he flips it open and crouches behind Harlan, cutting the cable ties.

When Harlan climbs to his feet, rubbing his swollen wrists, I say, “You have five minutes to say goodbye to your daughter.”

“What?” he gasps, his eyes flicking between me and Skylar. “Why? What are you going to do?”

Not answering the man, I cross my arms over my chest and mutter, “Your five minutes has already started.”

With panic blooming over his face, he grabs Skylar to him and holds her tightly.

“No matter what happens, I love you, sweetheart.”

She begins to cry harder and clings to her father.

I didn’t get to say goodbye. Christ. I’d give everything I have to hug Giulio one last time. To tell him I love him.

My grief spirals until the deadly rage that was soothed by killing the doctor returns with a vengeance.

“D-Daddy,” she sobs. “I love y-you.”

“I’m so sorry for this mess I’ve caused,” he whispers to her. “I just wanted to save you. Please forgive me.”

When she nods, my blood runs cold and I snap, “Time’s up.”

My eyes flick to where Carlo and Emilio are standing, and they jump into action, pulling Harlan and Skylar apart.

“You will be dropped off at hour house, Harlan. If you call the police, Skylar dies. If you try to help her in any way, she dies. You die. Your fucking housekeeper dies. Understand?”

He nods frantically. “What are you going to do with my daughter?”

The corner of my mouth lifts. “I’m taking Skylar to her new home, where she’ll serve me on her hands and knees.”

His features tighten, and I drink in his distress like the sweet nectar it is.

I lift my hand and wrap my fingers around the back of Sylar’s neck, tugging her to my side. “If she’s a good servant, I might give her visitation rights every once in a while.”

“Please. Don’t do this,” Harlan begs.

Letting out a sigh, I mutter, “Christ, I’m getting tired of hearing those words. Say them again, and I’ll kill you for annoying me.”

Skylar surprises me by murmuring, “It’s okay, Daddy. Go home.”

I tilt my head as I stare at Harlan, taking in every second of his pain. “I won’t repeat myself,” I warn him.

“Go, Dad! Please,” Skylar begs him. “Just go.”

“Carlo, make sure Mr. Davies takes his phone and wallet,” I order as I let go of Skylar. Turning around, I walk to the doorway. “You better follow me, topolina.”

“Bye, Daddy. I love you,” she says quickly before I hear her hurried footsteps behind me.

“Skylar!” Harlan cries before a grunt comes from him.

Carlo probably shut him up with a punch.

When I take the steps down, Skylar’s still behind me.

The woman surprised me, but then again, she’s trying to save her father’s life.

The things we do for love.

I stop by the office and say, “I’m heading home. Let me know when you find Castellanos.”

Elio’s eyes move between Skylar and me before he says, “Get some sleep.”

When I glance to my right, I see Bianca talking to Antonio, and I head toward them. As soon as Bianca notices me, her spine stiffens, and she lowers her eyes.

Stopping by the cousins, I say, “Bianca, you’ll work at our clinic from now on. You’ll be paid well.”

“Thank you, Mr. Torrisi.”

My eyes flick to Antonio. “Bring Bianca to my place tomorrow so she can do a checkup on Skylar.”

“Yes, boss.”

With that out of the way, I walk to the exit and signal with a chin lift to Vincenzo and Fabrizio that we’re leaving.

Fabrizio sets his coffee cup down on one of the tables, and both my men give Skylar a wary look as they walk to where the Bentley is parked.

When Vincenzo opens the backdoor, I step to the side and gesture for Skylar to get in.

She glances over her shoulder, probably hoping to see her father one last time. She climbs in, and I follow, which has her pressing her body to the other door in an attempt to put some distance between us.

“Where to, boss?” Fabrizio asks.

“Home.”

Skylar turns her face away from me and stares out of the window as we drive away from the warehouse.

I hear her suck in a shaky breath and realize she’s silently crying.

I roll my shoulders to ease the tension in my neck as I glance out of my own window.

My phone starts to vibrate, and when I pull the device out of my pocket, I see Franco’s name.

“Morning,” I mutter, exhausted from the long night.

“How are you holding up?”

I close my eyes and let out a sigh. “I’m fine. How’s the family? Are you getting any sleep?”

Franco lets out a chuckle. “Remind me what sleep is again? Just as we get the one settled, another one starts to fuss. I’m about to hire a group of nannies.”

“Why don’t you?”

“Samantha doesn’t want to. And honestly, I’m not going to trust a stranger with my kids.”

“Dario’s bored. You should get him to babysit so you can get some rest.”

Laughter explodes over the line. “Hell will freeze over. Every time he comes over, he looks at the triplets like they’re a bomb that’s about to detonate. He’s shit scared of them.”

A chuckle escapes me, then I say, “I’ll make some time to visit over the weekend.”

“You better, or I’m coming to your place with the triplets, and you can babysit them while I take a nap in one of the guest rooms.”

“Don’t you dare.” My eyes flick to Skylar, who quickly turns her face away again. “I have a guest. Don’t bring the kids around.”

“Who’s the guest?”

Lifting my hand, I rub my palm over my face before replying, “The woman who got Giulio’s kidney.”

“Christ, Renzo,” Franco snaps. “You’re taking her to your penthouse? Why?”

“I’ll tell you when I see you,” I say, not wanting Skylar to hear that part of our conversation.

“Okay. Be careful.”

“I will.” Ending the call, I tuck the device back into my pocket.

Minutes later, Fabrizio parks the Bentley in the designated spot, and I push the door open. Climbing out, I bark, “Come, topolina.”

Skylar hesitates before she gets out, and halfway to the elevator, she stops.

I press the button, and when the doors open, I scan the keycard and order, “Vincenzo, shoot her if she’s not inside the elevator when the doors shut.”

“Yes, boss.”

Skylar hurries inside and wraps her arms around her middle.

The silence is thick between us as we go up to the top floor, and when the doors slide open, I walk to the living room and pick up the remote. Switching the TV on, all the live streams from the cameras in the Davies house appear.

The housekeeper is in the kitchen, but there’s no sign of Harlan. Pulling my phone out, I dial Carlo’s number.

“Yes, boss?” he answers before the third ring.

“Where is he?”

“We had to rough him up a little. We’re five minutes from the house.”

“Did he get the warning?”

“Yes, boss.”

“Good.”

I end the call, and while I wait for Harlan to get home, I glance at Skylar, who stares at the TV with a horrified expression.

“Welcome to your new home,” I say, my tone promising nothing good.

Her eyes flit to my face. “This will never be my home.”

I let out a dark chuckle. “We’ll see about that.”