His Merciless Redemption novel Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Dominic’s POV

(49

My penthouse office was silent except for the steady tick of the clock and the soft rustle of paper as Eduardo set a thin folder on my desk.

“That’s all we could pull in forty-eight hours,” Eduardo said, his tone careful. “She covered her tracks well.”

I leaned back in my chair, fingers steepled, jaw tight enough to ache.

Of course she did.

Isabella had always been clever, but the woman who had sat across from me in that boardroom had been something else entirely. She had been self-contained, composed, and untouchable in a way that set my teeth on edge.

“Start from the beginning,” I ordered.

Eduardo opened the file. “New identity registered five years ago under Isabella Bianchi. Moved to Florence almost immediately. Worked her way into Carvelli Designs where she started low, promoted fast. Director- level now. Well-liked, respected. No record of financial issues or connections to our rivals. Clean.”

“Too clean,” I muttered.

Eduardo hesitated, flipping to the next page.

“There’s one thing.”

My gaze snapped up.

“A boy. Five years old. Mateo Bianchi. No father listed.”

So, there was a child.

Mateo. That was my father’s middle name. It hit me like a blow to the chest that I didn’t let show. I kept my voice even, icy. “Blood?”

“Not yet confirmed.”

I closed the file slowly, fingers tightening around the edges until the paper crumpled.

She left me. She lied. And she raised a child, all on her own.

The thought pinched me like a persistent annoying splinter I couldn’t get rid of.

“I want everything on this kid and her,” I said flatly. “DNA, school records, neighbors, colleagues. Who babysits him. Who she trusts. How she pays her bills. Who she talks to when she’s upset. I want to know her life down to the brand of coffee she drinks.”

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Chapter 10

Eduardo gave a short nod but didn’t move.

“And Eduardo,” I added, my voice quiet but dangerous, “no one breathes a word of this outside the family. Not even Alessia.”

49

Once Eduardo left, I stood and crossed to the floor-to-ceiling windows, staring at the skyline glittering below.

I’d buried her years ago, literally and figuratively. I had mourned her, cursed her, blamed myself and the world in equal measure. And now she was alive, thriving, and looking at me like a stranger.

What else don’t I know?

I rested my hands on the glass and forced myself to breathe.

The problem wasn’t just that Isabella had returned.

It was that she hadn’t come back to me.

I wanted her back.

She was always mine.

I had to talk to her.

I quickly went to my laptop and sent her an email.

***

Isabella’s POV

I woke to the faint vibration of my phone. A new email. A new meeting request.

I glanced at the sender and froze.

Dominic Russo – Requesting private discussion. Time – To be confirmed.

My fingers hovered over the screen. My sanctuary suddenly felt paper-thin.

I stared at the email until the letters blurred. My first instinct was to delete it, pretend it had never arrived. But I knew better. Dominic didn’t send messages like this unless he was already certain he’d get an answer.

My phone buzzed again, this time with a cheerful reminder from Mateo’s school about an upcoming field trip. The two notifications sat side by side, starkly contrasting. One represented everything I’d fought to build. The other, everything I’d fought to escape.

I placed my phone aside.

“Mamma?”

Mateo appeared in the doorway, dragging his toy lion behind him. His curls were mussed from sleep, and his big brown eyes blinked owlishly at me.

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Chapter 10

:

“You’re awake early,” I said, forcing my voice to stay light.

A

49

“I dreamed there was a storm,” he mumbled, climbing into my lap. “But we were inside, so it didn’t

My throat tightened. Sometimes, he’d get these dreams, but he seldom awoke from them.

“That’s because we always make sure we’re safe, don’t we?” I said softly.

“Uh-huh,” Mateo said, resting his head against my chest.

“Why don’t you go pee and I’ll be right there to help you brush and get ready?” I said to him.

He nodded before hopping off my lap.

get

us.”

The moment he padded back to his room to freshen up, I grabbed my phone and hit a familiar contact.

“Luca? I need to meet you. Today. At the office before anyone else arrives.”

His voice sharpened instantly. “What happened?”

“Not over the phone. Just, please be there.”

By the time I dropped Mateo off at kindergarten and arrived at Carvelli Designs, dawn had barely touched the Florentine skyline. The usually warm light in the studio felt cold, distant.

Luca met me by the front desk, hair a bit mussed as if he’d run his hands through it a few times too many, coffee in hand.

“You look like hell.”

“Feels accurate,” I muttered, handing over my phone.

Luca read the email and frowned.

“This Russo guy seems taken with you, huh? Is this even legal?” he asked, raising a brow.

I crossed my arms tight against my chest. I had to tell him at least a little bit of the truth if I wanted his help. “We have some history together. It’s… complicated.” I shook my head before looking at Luca. “The point is, he’s not just going to go away. I’ll have to keep him away. Which means I need to be ready for every angle. And I need your help with that.”

Luca’s brows raised even higher. I knew he was itching to ask questions, to know more, but something in my expression must’ve warned him off, because he didn’t say anything else. He simply nodded, gesturing for me to follow him into my office.

We spent the next hour reviewing everything, school pickup schedules, my apartment building’s security, even who was authorized to visit the office. My carefully constructed life was suddenly full of cracks, and I was worried Dominic Russo knew how to exploit every single one.

Luca leaned back in his chair.

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Chapter 10

“Is he dangerous? Do you think he can harm you?” Luca asked seriously, his light brown eyes searching my face, clearly protective.

Could he? Could Dominic harm me?

49

The thought of the car explosion came to my mind. I was almost ninety nine percent sure that it was Dominic who had orchestrated the whole thing. If he had done something like that before, who was to say he wouldn’t do it again?

I swallowed hard. I couldn’t, wouldn’t, let that happen, not when I had Mateo to take care of.

I looked at Luca then, but couldn’t bring myself to say the truth. I knew he didn’t know that Dominic was supposed to be my husband. But it was still hard for me to admit that my own husband had wanted me dead. How shameful, sad and pathetic was that? “I don’t think so,” was all I muttered.

Luca frowned at my words, but didn’t probe any further. “Even so, I think you need someone who can move faster than he can. Hire a PI. Or a lawyer who isn’t afraid to push back.”

I hesitated only a fraction of a second, then nodded.

“Do it.”

Luca nodded. “And you also need tighter security. I know no one can enter your apartment without prior permission, and we’re all here at the office. But you’re still alone during commutes to and from the office and Mateo’s school. I’ll come with you till we’ve figured out something permanent,” he told me.

My chest warmed at the care he was showing me even though he didn’t know the whole story yet. “Thank you,” I said to him, but he simply waved me off, ruffling my hair a little, chuckling when I swatted his hands away with a loud ‘hey’.

He simply chuckled some more before getting up to leave.

“And Luca?”

He looked at me over his shoulder.

“Don’t tell anyone else about this,” I said.

“I know how to keep secrets,” he said with a wink before leaving.

I let out a soft sigh, knowing I could trust him. It’s why I’d asked for his help of all people in the first place.

When I finally stepped outside into the crisp morning air for a short break, I took a long breath.

I’d built my freedom once, brick by painful brick. I’d do it again if I had to, but I wished it wouldn’t come to

that.

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