Total pages in book: 36
Estimated words: 32664 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 163(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32664 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 163(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
The manager rolls his eyes. “What are you going to do, meathead?”
I’m over the counter before he can take another breath, knocking over a stack of cardboard cups before I grab the prick by the collar of his shirt. I shake him hard. "No one speaks to her like that. Adjust your tone and apologize or you’re going to be digging your own grave within the next fucking hour.”
Jack yelps before his mouth snaps shut, and the other barista behind the counter watches the entire interaction with wide eyes. I can feel the shock rolling off Daisy, but it doesn't faze me. Everyone on this planet will respect my woman or suffer the consequences. Even the two other customers, a man sitting alone and a woman who was previously on the phone, are silent.
Finally, the manager finds his words again, even if they are strangled by the hold I have on him. "Ah… You know what? No hard feelings, Daisy. Feel free to go to the back and get your things. You were…a perfect employee?”
"I'll go," I snap, dropping Jack, angry even imagining Daisy in some cramped office with this asshole. "I want to see the security footage from the night of the break-in, anyway."
"I'll…uh…order for us then." Daisy tries to sound upbeat, but there's no hiding the tension she's feeling. "What do you want?"
"Surprise me." Glancing out the storefront window to confirm that our security detail is still there, I feel safe enough leaving Daisy for a minute. Something tells me she'll be traumatized having to watch the footage of her near-attack from the other night.
Jack's office is tiny, and I'm pretty sure if I stand sideways, I'll hit both walls. Daisy has spent time in this closet? It's degrading.
"Play the footage from the night Daisy left."
"Yes, sir," Jack stutters, navigating his computer and pulling up the security footage. It shows the front of the cafe, including the front door, the registers, and the first couple of tables.
"Back it up thirty minutes."
"Right."
A few clicks later and we're watching the footage. It's boring, to be honest. No one comes in or out of the cafe. It's obviously closed. But finally, three figures come in the door, forcing the flimsy locking and strutting into the cafe. Carlo and two men I don't recognize. Seeing my son after all these years, even on the tiny screen, sends a shock through me.
Daisy described him as a monster, but he doesn't seem monstrous. He's just a cocky punk kid. Carlo heads behind the register and grabs a knife, waving it at the cameras with a sneer. He looks...well, like Carlo. The same dark hair and Falcone features. My features.
I watch the entire interaction. There is no sound, so as soon as the three men are off the screen, I know the action is basically over. Daisy said she ran out of the back alley, and Carlo and his goons must have done the same.
I motion for Jack to hand me a pen, and I write down the public email address for my head of security. "Email the footage here and—"
I'm interrupted by a scream from out in the front of the cafe, and I'm running before I can even process the noise.
I burst into the room to see Daisy, her face as white as a sheet, with the male customer from earlier gripping her arm in a punishing hold. The female customer and the barista are both screaming.
"He has a gun!" one of them cries, "on his hip!"
Fuck.
"Let her go," I snarl. Daisy's eyes find me, and they are terrified, darting wildly back and forth. My security detail burst into the cafe, guns drawn, but the space is too small.
And this motherfucker has my Daisy.
"Carlo sent me," the man growls and yanks Daisy's arm. She cries out, and I take a step forward, rage building in my blood. "One more step and I'll put a bullet between her eyes."
"Dom," Daisy gasps, my name ending on a sob.
"Easy," Ashton's voice calls from somewhere behind me. "Let's all just take it easy."
"Carlo said he wanted her delivered alive," the man continues, smirking. "He doesn't need her unhurt."
"Dom," Daisy says again, her eyes pleading.
The rage is overwhelming. I'm a Falcone. And nobody threatens a Falcone.
"You can't shoot him," Ashton murmurs. “The ricochet…this place is too damn crowded.”
"Let him try," the man crows, tightening his grip. Daisy cries out, and the fire in my blood burns even hotter.
"Get everyone out of here," I say quietly, and I can sense Ashton and the security team moving to clear the cafe.
As soon as the doors are locked and the customers are safely out, I reach into my jacket and pull out my gun. He still hasn't drawn his, but he knows we're too close together. I can't risk a shot with Daisy right there.