My Childhood Bully is a Mafia Boss-Chapter 66

Ivy

I held my breath, waiting for the phone to ring. Each ring sent a shock through me, like an electric current coursing through my veins. Finally, a woman’s voice cut through the tension with an edge of curiosity that could slice through steel. "Hello?" she asked sharply. "Who’s this?"

"Who are you?" I countered, my voice shaking slightly.

There was a pause, and then she laughed—a sound like ice clinking in an empty glass. "I’m Reba," she purred. "If you are looking for James, don’t bother. He is with me right now. And who might you be?"

Relief flooded in me, knowing I had reached the right person. My grip on the phone tightened, knuckles turning white. "Put James on. It’s important."

"Who is it, Reba?" I heard a male voice in the background.

"Some chick is looking for you," Reba replied, annoyance lacing her words.

I could hear shuffling and muffled protests in the background before the line fell silent.

"Hello?" I hissed into the void.

"Who is this? What do you want?" The man’s voice was deep and gritty.

"It’s Ivy...I need to know where Aidan is," I blurted out urgently.

"Where did you get this number?" His suspicion was evident in his tone.

"It doesn’t matter!" I cried out, desperation creeping into my voice. "Aidan is in danger...please."

"Wait, you’re Boss’s woman, right?" he cut in. "What’s this about Aidan?"

"I don’t have time to explain," I said frantically. "Just tell me where he is."

The room spun around me and I leaned against the cold plaster wall for support. "He’s in danger, James. You have to help him."

There was a beat of silence, and then James asked again. "How did you get this number? This is for emergencies only."

"I found it," I said quickly. "And this is an emergency!"

Why wasn’t he understanding the gravity of the situation?

He was silent for a heartbeat too long. "Boss went to attack Raphael. He or Joseph was supposed to send me a signal if things went wrong, but I didn’t receive any signal."

"He hasn’t been home for hours and when I called him earlier, he sounded like he was dying," I said.

There was a heavy pause on the other end of the line as if James was weighing his options. Finally, he spoke, his voice low and urgent. "I will send men out there to find them," he said.

"Oh, thank you!" I said, but James had already hung up the phone.

"Please, let him be okay," I whispered to myself.

Suddenly, a loud noise jolted me from the spiral of dread.

The door. Someone was banging on the front door like they were trying to break it.

The banging on the door only grew louder and more insistent. I was frozen, not knowing what to do. Part of me wanted to run and hide, but another part knew I needed to answer the door.

I cautiously made my way to the front room, heart pounding in my chest. "Who is it?" I called out, trying to sound brave.

There was no response, only the sound of continued banging. I reached for the doorknob and slowly turned it, my eyes squeezed shut in anticipation.

When nothing immediately happened, I opened my eyes and peeked out into the night. Standing on my porch was a group of men dressed in all black—Raphael’s goons.

One of them stepped forward and hissed at me through clenched teeth. "We know you’re in there, Ivy. Open up or things will get ugly."

I felt a surge of fear grip me as I recognized one of them as Joseph, Raphael’s right-hand man. What were they doing here?

Before I could even think about responding, there was another loud noise from inside my house—it sounded like something breaking.

My blood ran cold as I realized they had already forced their way inside. Fear for Aidan flooded through me, and without thinking, I slammed the door shut and locked it.

"Go away!" I shouted at them through the door.

I sprinted into the living room just as Raphael’s goons burst through the front door. There were four of them.

"Get her," one of them said harshly, his voice dripping with venom as he motioned to me.

A man grabbed me roughly by the arm, pulling me close enough to smell his breath: stale cigarette smoke and cheap booze.

I couldn’t fucking believe it. Was I about to get kidnapped for the third time?

Oh, hell no.

I twisted my body and kicked, aiming straight for the man’s crotch. He let out a loud grunt of pain and doubled over, giving me the opportunity to break free from his grip.

Without hesitation, I ran towards the nearest window and smashed it open with my elbow. Glass shattered everywhere as I climbed out onto the fire escape.

"Don’t let her get away!" I heard one of them shout from inside the house. I quickly moved toward the back door.

My heart was pounding in my chest as I made my way down towards the backyard.

Just when I thought I was safe, a hand grabbed my ankle and yanked me backward. I let out a scream as I fell to the ground, landing on my back with a thud.

The man who had grabbed me loomed over me, his face twisted into an angry snarl. "You think you can just run away from us?" he growled, pulling me up by my shirt collar.

I struggled against his grip, but he was too strong for me. My eyes darted around frantically, looking for a way out.

That’s when I saw it—the baseball bat leaning against the side of the building. Without thinking, I kicked the man in the shin and made a run for it.

He stumbled back in pain and anger as I grabbed the bat and swung it at him with all my might. It connected with his head and he crumpled to the ground, knocked out cold.

I didn’t have time to celebrate my victory, though. The other men were quickly making their way towards me, weapons in hand. I turned and ran towards the back door again.

I stumbled out into the backyard and kept running toward the fence.

As I ran, my mind was racing. Was Aidan still alive?

I reached the fence and pushed it, but it was locked.

Dammit!

I turned around and met with a man pointing a gun at me.

"Dead end," he growled.

My throat went dry and my heart pounded fiercely against my chest. The surge of adrenaline flooded my veins, urging me to take action. My eyes darted around frantically, but there was no escape. Nowhere else to run.

THUD!

The man’s eyes widened in shock as he stumbled forward, collapsing to the ground with a dull thud. I instinctively leapt back, narrowly avoiding his lifeless body. My own eyes mirrored his in shock and disbelief.

But then, a figure emerged from behind him. Molly, her usually gentle face twisted into a fierce determination, stood tall and strong with a fireplace iron rod gripped tightly in her hand. She had come to my rescue, and I was both grateful and terrified at the sudden turn of events.

"Ms. Ivy, are you okay?" she asked.

I nodded silently. She came right at the time!

"You need to come with me right now," she hissed.

My heart raced as I gasped for air, my voice trembling with urgency.

"Aidan," I managed to choke out, "I have to find him now."

"We need to get you out of here first," Molly said with concern etched on her face.

As we hurried towards the fence door, I heard the faint sound of a phone ringing. It was coming from the unconscious man’s pocket. Without hesitation, I leaned down and snatched it up.

As I fumbled to answer the call, Molly quickly unlocked the fence door.

"Did you get her?" a deep voice answered on the other end.

I didn’t say anything but held my breath, recognizing the voice immediately.

It was Raphael Sinclair.

"Austin? Answer me!" he growled impatiently, his tone sending shivers down my spine.

"No," I said slowly as I ran walked out into the street. They didn’t get me."

The line went silent, and if it hadn’t been for his heavy breathing, I would’ve thought he had hung up the phone already.

"Beautiful Ivy. What are you doing answering Austin’s phone?" he nearly purred. Patronizing bastard.

The venom in my voice dripped like acid as I spat, "I won’t allow anyone to kidnap me ever again." My hands trembled in anger and fear as I demanded, "And where is Aidan? I want him back, unharmed."

A cold chuckle escaped the man’s lips as he sneered, "I admire your spirit, but you don’t know who you’re messing with." The threat hung thick in the air, making my heart pound so loudly it drowned out all other sounds.

Molly tugged urgently at my arm, her eyes pleading for us to get inside a sleek black car. She must’ve called for help.

I climbed in, never taking my attention off the man on the phone. My grip on the device tightened as I snapped back, "Neither do you." I couldn’t let the fear show in my voice. "If Aidan is dead, I will make you pay for it."

His response was like ice on my skin. "Oh, Blackwood is alive and well, don’t you worry, sweet Ivy," Raphael said with a sickeningly sweet tone.

Relief washed over me, but I couldn’t afford to let my guard down. Not yet.

"Prove it," I countered, trying to buy time as the engine purred to life.

"You will have to come and see for yourself," he said.

Walk straight into the Lion’s den? I wasn’t too sure about taking that risk.

"I am not an idiot. How do I know you are not lying about Aidan being there?" I snapped, my voice tight with fear.

Raphael let out a low chuckle. "I assure you, Ivy, I have no reason to lie to you. You have proven your worth. I admire a strong woman, so I will keep my word."

His words did little to comfort me, but I knew I had to find Aidan at any cost.

"Fine," I gritted through my teeth. "Where should I meet you?"

"Come alone," he said sternly. "And bring Austin’s phone with you."

My grip on the phone tightened as anger coursed through me. They were still using Aidan’s kidnapping to control me.

"I’ll be waiting for you," Raphael said before hanging up abruptly.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart. This was a dangerous situation, and I couldn’t afford any mistakes.

Molly must have sensed my anxiety because she placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Are you sure about this? We can call the police instead."

I shook my head firmly. "No, we don’t know if they will really harm him or not. And even if they don’t, they could use him against us again in the future."

Molly nodded in understanding and told the driver the address.