Chapter 5 - The Legal Execution
Hannah stared through the one-way glass at Jimmy. She watched him spit on the concrete floor, his eyes filled with the same arrogant, cruel entitlement he had used to terrorize her for three years.
If Lorenzo killed him, Jimmy’s pain would end in three minutes. He would plunge into the dark sea and be gone forever. But if he went to prison—if he was forced to rot behind steel bars while knowing she was safe, wealthy, and far beyond his reach—that would be true justice.
"Prison," Hannah said, her voice dropping all traces of hesitation. "I want him to spend every single day of his life behind bars. I want him to know that I put him there."
Lorenzo looked down at her, a faint, almost imperceptible flick of respect dancing across his dark eyes. He closed his cigar case with a sharp click.
"A sensible choice," Lorenzo said. He tapped a button on the wall intercom. "Marcus."
The voice of his chief security officer crackled through the speaker. "Yes, Boss?"
"Call the Deputy District Attorney. Tell him I have a high-priority suspect for the cold-case assault and attempted homicide of Hannah Hayes. Have a tactical unit pick him up from Gate 4. Ensure the charges are unbailable."
"Understood, Mr. Rossi."
Within ten minutes, police cruisers with silent, flashing red and blue lights pulled onto the private road outside the security gate. Hannah watched from the security monitors as Jimmy was hauled out of the guardhouse in heavy wrist and leg restraints. His arrogant posture collapsed the moment he saw the federal badges and the wall of armed Rossi security officers surrounding him. He screamed Hannah's name into the night air, but his voice was swallowed by the roar of the engines as he was shoved into the back of a armored transport vehicle.
He was gone.
Hannah collapsed into a leather chair in the control room, her hands covering her face as a dry, ragged sob escaped her chest. The weight that had been crushing her ribs since the night she lost her baby girl finally shattered.
Lorenzo didn't offer a hug or comforting words. He was not a man built for gentleness. Instead, he walked over, poured two fingers of amber bourbon into a glass, and set it on the table beside her.
"Drink it," Lorenzo commanded softly.
Hannah took the glass with trembling hands and swallowed the liquid. It burned her throat, leaving a trail of fire that grounded her back to reality.
"Why did you do that?" Hannah asked, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. "You could have just paid him off to protect your privacy. You could have killed him to save yourself the hassle. Why give me the choice?"
Lorenzo leaned back against the steel desk, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "Because a woman who carries the life of my son cannot be a victim. You need to remember who you are when you walk back up those stairs, Hannah. You are not a helpless maid anymore. You are the only reason Leo Rossi is breathing."
Hannah looked up at him, her eyes searching the hard, angular planes of his face. Behind the cold, ruthless exterior of the billionaire mobster, she caught a glimpse of something else—a man who was fiercely protective of the very few things he allowed into his heart.
"Thank you, Lorenzo," she said quietly. It was the first time she had ever used his first name.
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Lorenzo froze for a fraction of a second. His dark eyes locked onto hers, a strange, dangerous electricity sparking in the small room. He didn't correct her. He simply turned toward the door.
"Get some rest," Lorenzo said, his tone returning to its icy baseline. "Leo will be awake for his five o'clock feeding."
