The Mafia's Heirs

93. I Believe You

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Victor groaned as he massaged his jaw.  He wondered where this scrawny woman had all this strength to deliver the kind of punch that she did. It felt as though his jaw had split into two.

"What do you mean by she is missing?" Jacqueline whisper-yelled, glaring at her best friend's bodyguard. "You were supposed to make sure that she was safe. That's literally your only job!" She shrieked.

Victor glared back at her. He was only here to find out if the nurse knew anything about the whereabouts of the surgeon but she had gotten physical with him instead of being of any use. And could he do anything to her? No. Why? Stupid principles he had in life because of his Nonna. 

"Look, we are trying to locate Mrs. Adesso." He wanted to keep his temper in check. He might hate this woman but she was still River's best friend and he was sure that if there was a situation where his boss Mateo had to choose between him and her, the Italian Capo would - without a doubt - choose his wife's best friend over a mere bodyguard like him, and that won't be good for him because his boss knew how to throw punches. "We are all worried for her, alright? So please, if there is anything that you know, please tell me. Or is there anyone that you know who would be able to help us track her?" The last question was pretty dumb because he knew that the best trackers were back at the mansion. 

"The only thing that I know here is that you are supposed to be her bodyguard and you are supposed to make sure of her safety. So if my best friend is in any kind of danger right now, it's entirely your fault." Jacqueline hissed at him. She did not like this man from day one when he was showing attitude when she asked him to take her to see her friend. He was going on and on about safety measures and all that shit and the same guy had managed to make the mistake that now had all of them worrying about River's life.

Victor closed his eyes, wondering why even for a moment he had thought that talking to this infuriating woman was going to get him anywhere. He had to get some kind of lead on the boss wife or else he was going to be dead meat – he knew that for sure. He wished this woman was something like her best friend – Dr. River Johnson would have acted logically in situations like this instead of getting all riled up and emotional. The Capo had gotten himself a mighty woman.

"I will try to get security footages." Jacqueline was shaking as she spoke. "We will be able to find something out from that, right?" 

"We already got them. She reached here. Her car's in the basement." Victor spoke. "But the footages have been tampered with so we don't know what to believe and what not to once she entered the hospital."

Jacqueline gulped. What had her best friend's life come to? She was happy that River found Mateo and the kids had their father, but the man's lifestyle was putting the lives of three of the most important people in her life, at stake. The kids' kidnapping, accident and now River's kidnapping. It was scary. 

It was scary for a bystander like her. She wondered how River must feel, though yes, she agreed that River was a hundred times braver than her.

"What do we do?" She asked him. "What if something happens to her? The kids... the kids must be so scared."

"Hey hey hey..." Victor grabbed both of her shoulders. "The kids are fine. They are used to Mrs. Adesso being away, remember? They don't have to know that their Mommy is missing."

Jacqueline nodded, wiping her sweaty hands on her apron.

"I swear to god, if something happens to her, I will kill you." She said finally.

Victor closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm himself down.

God give him patience.

He blamed himself enough and he did not want another human blaming him.

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River was annoyed. It was the only feeling that she felt, other than homesickness of course. She missed her kids terribly. And yes yes, she missed Mateo too. 

"You are an interesting woman, River Johnson." The raspy deep voice spoke as the filthy bag was removed from her head.

River looked straight in the eyes of Sergey Petrov, Mona and Dmitri's elder brother and the Boss of the Russian Mafia. The man was older than she thought him to be, but then she realized that she wasn't that young either. 

"Can't you call Mateo and blackmail him or something already?" River let out an annoyed sigh. "I miss my kids, and I am hungry."

The Russians might not be as proud and 'gentlemanly' as the Italians, but they did have their own principles, and could not torture women the way they did with men. So, what they had managed to do to her in the three days she was in their custody was to starve her – she hadn't touched water or food in three days.

"Don't you want to use the restroom?" It was one question that Sergey's arm candy, Anika, wanted to know. Wherever he went, she did. And the three of them had been in the same building for the past three days because Sergey knew that the hacker named Michelia will be able to find out his whereabouts if he made any movement. So he, his latest fling, some of his men and his hostage was in an abandoned but well kept building in the middle of nowhere. He didn't care three days had been wasted as long as his agenda had been served. 

"I am a doctor. I can go days without food, water or the loo." River rolled her eyes.

Sergey let out a chuckle. He had been observing this woman and she really had piked his interest.

"We don't need to involve Mateo in this, Dr. Johnson." Sergey spoke. "We can come to an agreement between ourselves. You tell me where Alessia Adesso is, and you get to go back to your boyfriend and children."

Sergey's accent was already funny to River but when he emphasized on the word 'boyfriend', she understood what this was about – they had found out that Mateo and River were not married and that meant that the immunity wives and children of made men of the Mafia had, did not apply to her, and that was why she was kidnapped in the first place. And here she was ready to give Mateo an earful on all the lectures he gave her on Mafia principles.

"I would be the happiest person in the world if I knew where she was." River said. "We are looking for her as well. The girl disappeared out of the blue and as much as I know that she is more than capable of taking care of herself, I have no idea where she is and in what condition she must be in."

She looked around the dark room. Of course, she did not expect the Russian man to believe what she was saying. Who would believe what the woman-

"I believe you."

Huh?

River gave him a flat look. "You do?" She asked, just in case he was kidding.

"I do." Sergey let out another chuckle. It seemed to River that the man was very humorous. Somewhat like his younger brother Dmitri. River had never met Mona when she was alive so she could not attribute the characters to the sister. "I know exactly what kind of person Alessia Adesso is. And she is not one to hide."

"Then why the hell am I held hostage like this?" River was running out of patience, mainly because after three days her bladder was full and demanding release.

"I just wanted to mess with Mateo Adesso when I found out the two of you were not married."

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