In His Grasp: A Mafia Romance novel Chapter 144

Chapter 144: Frederick's Granddaughter

After Emanuele dismissed Phillip, his mood remained restless. Cigarette after cigarette ignited, leaving a pile of butts in the ashtray. White smoke lingered in the office.

Using Isabella as bait was out of the question. He wouldn't risk exposing her to any danger.

Unconsciously, Isabella's significance in his heart grew heavier.

Emanuele couldn't help but take a deep breath.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. What if Frederick discovered his affection for Isabella and sought to drive a wedge between them? Was Frederick planning to strike when Emanuele underestimated Isabella?

The possibility wasn't implausible. If that were the case, it would be disastrous. His greatest fear was enemies realizing he cared about Isabella. The more he cared, the more vulnerable Isabella became.

Undoubtedly, Frederick was a formidable adversary, perhaps the first true challenger Emanuele had faced in many years. Crafty and elusive, Frederick lurked in the shadows, with his subordinates spread throughout Chicago, creating moderate yet troublesome disturbances. The troubles multiplied over time, and when quantitative changes reached a certain point, wouldn't it lead to a qualitative shift?

Emanuele had inventoried the weapons in the warehouse, introduced many new ones, and doubled the number of elite subordinates. Everything was ready.

He possessed sufficient strength to defeat Frederick, but only in a direct confrontation. Emanuele had confidence in a frontal battle. However, Frederick was clever. Knowing he couldn't win head-on, Frederick preferred ambushes, always leaving himself an escape route.

Whenever Emanuele thought he had Frederick cornered, unexpected events occurred. Frederick slipped away like a fish, eluding Emanuele's grasp.

This frustration weighed heavily on Emanuele.

His patience wore thin.

Emanuele stared at the photo Isidoro gave him; Frederick's figure was blurry, but Emanuele recognized him immediately.

Frederick seemed indifferent, as if the recent assault hadn't affected him.

Upon learning Frederick was at the bar, Emanuele's men rushed there and searched nearby but found no trace of Frederick. However, Emanuele felt he was close.

So close.

Yet damn it, they had searched every area nearby, and there was no sign of Frederick!

Could it be a smokescreen deliberately released by Frederick? It fit his style. The old man enjoyed toying with him.

Thinking this, Emanuele called James, "Strip Madilyn naked, carve the word 'whore' on her back, and send me the photo."

Madilyn was Frederick's granddaughter. They had captured her recently and brought her back to Chicago. Originally a sophomore majoring in fine arts, Madilyn grew up in France. Her father was Frederick's deceased son. After her father's death, she and her mother lived in France. Madilyn rarely met Frederick and knew little about his affairs.

When they captured her, she resembled a frightened rabbit, scared out of her wits. Just as innocent and naive as Isabella when he first encountered her, Madilyn seemed oblivious to the world of the Mafia.