Chapter 7
Nico stared at the empty space where the chipped mug used to sit, the silence in the illuminated closet roaring in his ears. His breathing grew shallow, erratic. He raised a hand to his head, his tattooed forearm trembling violently as he gripped his dark hair. The impenetrable armor of the Manhattan mafia boss cracked, splintered, and completely shattered.
"Call the guards," Nico ordered, his voice cracking, entirely stripped of its usual commanding bass. "Arthur, call the lobby. Lock down the building. Do not let her out of the lobby!"
Arthur didn't move. He remained standing by the vanity, his hands resting calmly in the pockets of his navy trousers. His composed, serious expression held no urgency, only a profound, punishing judgment.
"Do it, Arthur!" Nico roared, slamming his fist against the closet wall, rattling the designer hangers. "Stop standing there! Tell security to stop her!"
"I will do no such thing," Arthur replied, his gravelly voice echoing with a strong, unyielding intensity. "I am your lieutenant, Nico. I protect your business, and I protect your life. But I will not order your men to drag a heartbroken woman back into a cage you built with your own foolish pride."
Nico lunged forward, grabbing Arthur by the lapels of his deep-navy suit. The height difference was minimal, but Nico’s raw, physical power was terrifying. "She is mine! You don't get to make that call!"
Arthur didn't flinch. He looked directly into Nico’s wild, panicked eyes. "She was yours. And you threw her away. You sat in your study, surrounded by your power, and you told me you would forget her name by Friday. You wanted to play the untouchable king? Congratulations, Nico. You are sitting alone on the throne."
Nico’s grip on Arthur’s suit slowly loosened. The anger evaporated, instantly replaced by a crushing, suffocating wave of pure grief. He stepped back, his hands falling to his sides.
"I didn't mean it," Nico whispered, his voice breaking entirely, his broad chest heaving. "Arthur, you know I didn't mean it. I was stressed. The Donatelli crew... the shipments... I was just pushing back against the pressure. I love her. She's the only thing in this miserable life that actually matters."
"Then you should have told her that, instead of telling me how easily she could be replaced," Arthur said softly, adjusting his suit jacket, his tone softening with quiet pity. "You spent three years buying her diamonds because you were too cowardly to give her your vulnerability. She didn't take the jewels, Nico. She took the mug. She took the only piece of your actual heart you ever gave her."
Nico turned away, covering his face with his hands. A sharp, ragged sob tore from his throat—a sound Arthur had never heard from the man in all their years together.
May you like
"I have to find her," Nico choked out, lowering his hands, his dark eyes burning with a desperate, manic resolve. "I have to find her before she disappears into the city. If she gets on a train..."
"Then you better stop crying," Arthur said crisply, turning toward the door. "And start moving."
