Chapter 5 - THE RACE AGAINST TIME
Dominic shoved Evelyn hard against the counter, leaving her unconscious in Marco’s custody as the underboss rushed into the kitchen with two armed enforcers.
"Secure her! Get Collins down here to reverse the paralytic!" Dominic barked over his shoulder, already sprinting up the grand staircase two steps at a time.
His lungs burned. Every second felt like an eternity. If Leo drank that milk — if the paralytic dose finished what the poison started — his son would slip back into the dark forever, his vocal cords locked, his mind imprisoned in a body that couldn't scream.
Dominic burst down the second-floor hallway, kicking open the door to Leo’s private bedroom.
The room was empty.
"Leo!" Dominic shouted, panic threatening to tear his composure apart.
From the adjoined bathroom, a soft, high-pitched giggle echoed.
Dominic rushed toward the bathroom door, throwing it open. There, sitting on the tiled floor beside the sunken bathtub, was Mia. She was holding a plastic cup of warm milk, shaking her head vigorously.
"No, no, no! Bad milk!" Mia scolded playfully, splashing a few drops onto the tiles. "It smells funny! Like medicine!"
And standing right beside her, holding onto the edge of the sink with both hands, was Leo.
His face was flushed, his breathing heavy, but his eyes — those big, dark eyes — were wide, clear, and fixed entirely on his father.
"Daddy," Leo whispered.
The word was barely a breath, rough and unused, but to Dominic, it sounded like church bells ringing across a war zone.
Dominic dropped to his knees, throwing his arms around his son and pulling him into a ferocious, crushing embrace. Hot tears spilled over Dominic's scarred cheeks, wetting Leo's soft dark hair. For six years, he had believed his son was a ghost, a casualty of a brutal world he had chosen to inhabit.
"I've got you," Dominic choked out, his voice breaking entirely. "I've got you, Leo. You're safe. Daddy's here."
Leo slowly raised his small, trembling arms and wrapped them around his father's neck, burying his face in Dominic's shoulder.
"The big lady gave me bad milk," Leo whispered into his ear, his voice gaining strength with every second. "I didn't drink it. Mia said we should pour it down the drain."
Mia beamed proudly, crossing her arms over her pink shirt. "I told him! My mama says if milk smells like hospital, you don't drink it!"
Dominic looked up at the doorway, where Elena stood breathless, leaning against the frame with tears streaming down her face, her wrists still red from the ropes.
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Dominic stood up, holding his son tightly in one arm, and walked across the room. With his free hand, he gently pulled Elena into his side, wrapping her in his embrace alongside his son.
The nightmare was over. The traitors were caught. And the silence that had cursed the Moretti estate for six years was shattered forever.
