The room was silent except for the low hum of the city outside.
The man at the head of the table didn't move. Didn't speak. He simply stared at the file in front of him as if it had personally insulted him.
One of the men cleared his throat.
"Boss… the company is officially bankrupt."
No reaction.
"Accounts frozen. Properties seized. Media is calling it fraud."
Still nothing.
Another man shifted in his seat. "Police arrested him this morning."
That finally did it.
The mafia boss leaned back slowly, eyes dark, unreadable.
"Arrested?" he repeated, calm. Too calm.
"Yes. Financial crimes. He's in custody."
A sharp laugh echoed through the room.
"So," the boss said, tapping the file once, "he ruins my time, burns my money… and hides behind the law?"
"No, boss," one of them said carefully. "We tried locating him before the arrest. He vanished weeks ago. Changed routes. Changed phones."
The boss smiled but there was no warmth in it.
"Smart," he said. "Too smart for a businessman."
Silence again.
"We searched all his known houses," another man added. "Relatives. Old partners. Nothing."
The boss's fingers drummed against the table. Once. Twice.
"Debts don't disappear," he said quietly. "Men do."
One of his men hesitated. "There's… something else."
The boss looked up. One glance was enough to make the man straighten.
"Speak."
"He has no wife. No close family living with him."
The boss's eyes narrowed. "You said no close family. That means there's distant."
"Yes." A pause. "A daughter."
The word hung in the air.
The boss leaned forward slowly. "A daughter?"
"She doesn't live with him. Different surname. He kept her away from business and… us."
A slow smile curved the boss's lips.
"Of course he did."
One of the men frowned. "Boss, she's not involved. She probably doesn't even know"
"I don't care what she knows," the boss interrupted.
The room went cold.
"He borrowed my money," the boss continued calmly. "He signed my deal. Then he disappeared."
He stood up, towering over the table.
"If a man leaves a shadow behind," he said, voice low, "I collect the shadow."
One of the men swallowed. "What are your orders?"
The boss picked up the file, flipping it open.
"Find everything about her," he said. "Where she lives. Where she studies. Who she trusts."
He paused, eyes glinting.
"Her father chose prison," he added. "So she'll choose for him."
No one spoke.
Because they all understood one thing—
This wasn't about money anymore.
It was about leverage
stop and I was like"
"SHUT UP."
The shout exploded inside the car.
Lorenzo slammed his fist against the steering wheel.
The girl went quiet.
For exactly three seconds.
"Ups" she said lightly.
Then she continued.
"So anyway, he kept calling and calling and I blocked him but then he started using his friend's phone and I swear"
Lorenzo gritted his teeth.
Oh my God, he thought.
This girl isn't scared at all.
He glanced at her again in the mirror. She was smiling, talking to herself, waving her hands like this was a road trip and not a mistake.
Why am I bothering with this? he thought darkly.
I should've sent my men.
She leaned forward slightly. "Also, can I say something? Kidnapping someone right after campus? Very dramatic. But maybe work on the silence part. It's awkward."
His eye twitched.
She kept talking.
Laughing.
Living.
" SHUT up...just shut up" he said with anger
And for the first time since this entire mess began, Lorenzo Moretti realized something unsettling...
This wasn't going to be ea