Chapter 3 - The Crest in the Light
Across the grand hallway, the heavy brass service doors swung open.
Claire Bennett stepped out carrying a stack of fresh white linens. She looked up, expecting to see an empty corridor, but what she saw made her blood turn to ice.
Standing fifty feet away was a wall of armed security guards, and kneeling in the middle of the marble floor was Dominic Valenti—the feared crime lord whose picture appeared in city newspapers—holding her daughter in his arms.
Claire dropped the stack of linens onto the floor. Her face drained of all color, her hands shaking violently as she froze in terror.
Still holding Sophie against his shoulder, Dominic slowly raised his dark eyes. Across the empty expanse of the hall, his gaze locked directly onto Claire.
The tenderness in his expression instantly vanished, replaced by a sudden, violent wave of stunned recognition.
At that exact moment, Sophie shifted in his arms, resting her chin on his broad shoulder. Her small yellow cardigan pulled slightly to the side, revealing a delicate silver chain around her neck that had previously been tucked beneath her lace collar.
Hanging from the chain was a small, round silver pendant.
Dominic’s eyes caught the reflection of the chandelier light against the metal.
Engraved into the center of the silver pendant was a distinctive, intricate family crest—a crowned wolf surrounded by three stars. It was the exact same ancient crest engraved on the gold signet ring resting on Dominic's left hand.
Dominic stared at the silver pendant resting on the little girl's chest as if he had seen a phantom from his past.
His breathing slowed to a dangerous crawl. He slowly looked up from the silver crest and locked his intense eyes onto Claire's pale, trembling face.
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Claire backed up a step against the wood paneling, looking like she was about to faint.
"Marco," Dominic said softly, his gravelly voice dropping into a register that made his security chief immediately straighten up. "Clear the hallway. Bring that woman to my private study."
