Which is why as everyone starts to filter out, I check my phone, though I know I’ll find no relief in its blank screen.
My blood goes cold. I have six missed calls, all from Aisling.
My chest tightens painfully.
She wouldn’t call that many times unless something was wrong. She might be fiery, but she’s not dramatic.
She doesn’t beg for attention.
If she’s called me six times, it means the ground has cracked open beneath her feet. She needs me.
I step away from the table immediately, thumb already hitting the call button.
She answers on the first ring. “Raf,” she gasps.
The sound of her voice—panicked, thin—cuts straight through me.
“What’s wrong?” I demand.
“They took her,” she sobs. “They took Riley.”
The world tilts violently around me, and I brace against the table to keep my feet. “Who?” I ask, but I already know.
“The Yakuza,” she says, words tumbling over each other. “They took her from her school. They said…” Her breath catches. “They said they’ll kill her unless my family delivers your head to Tatsuo.”
Something feral tears loose in my chest. “I’m coming,” I say immediately. “Where are you?”
“At my parents’ house now,” she whispers. “Raf, please. I can’t lose her. I… we can’t let them hurt our daughter.”
My jaw locks as rage surges through me, hot and blinding. “We’ll crush them into the ground before they even have the chance,” I vow. “I’m on my way.”
I move fast, signaling to Sandro and Miko as I hang up the phone. They see my face and know instantly that something’s wrong.
“The Tanakas took Riley,” I say.
Sandro’s eyes darken. Miko swears softly under his breath.
But there’s no hesitation in my twin’s eyes when Sandro asks, “What do we do?”
“You’re going to get every last Chiaroscuro and Lombardi man ready for battle,” I state flatly, then turn to Miko. “I want the entire Novikov force ready to have our backs within the hour. We’re moving up our plan of action. Meet me at the Tanaka estate in an hour.”
“Wait. What will you be doing in the meantime?” Sandro demands, noting my lack of leadership in the plan.
“I’m going to get my daughter back.”
“I’m sorry, your what?” Miko grabs me by the collar of my suit jacket—just like he used to when we were kids—as he hauls me back into the room, depositing me against the table.
Sandro doesn’t look all that surprised when our eyes meet, but I realize Miko is entirely out of the loop when it comes to my personal life by now and probably has no clue what I’m talking about.
None of that matters right now, though.
All that matters is Riley.
“Look, we don’t have time for this,” I snarl. “The SparkNotes version is that Aisling and I have history. We met at Portentia’s five years ago and messed around a few times before I found out who she was. Turns out I knocked her up before ending things, okay? You can ask questions later, but right now, Tatsuo has our daughter, and we need to get her back. Ineedto get her back, Miko,” I repeat, my voice dropping with the vehemence of my emotion.
I can’t lose someone else I love.
I can’t lose Riley.