My Mafia Husband Said He Was Broke

On the evening of the seventh day, Santino returned.

The lock turned, and he entered, bringing with him the chill of the late night and the faint, expensive scent of perfume.

He didn't even look at me. While unfastening his cufflinks, he spoke coldly, "Get Luca dressed. I'm taking him out."

I froze, the needle in my hand nearly piercing my fingertip.

He had made it clear that for his own safety, Luca was never to be exposed to the world of the Family.

Why the sudden change of heart?

"Tomorrow," I said, instinctively blocking the door to Luca's room. "It's too late tonight. He's still getting over that bad cough."

Santino's expression darkened. His mask of patience slipped, and for a moment, I saw the ruthless Don beneath.

Just as his temper was about to snap, a knock came at the door. It was our landlady, Mrs. Russo.

Santino frowned, the annoyance of being disturbed making him look like a caged lion. "So late. What is it?"

Not wanting him to know my plans, I spoke first. "I'm thinking of moving. I was just talking to the landlady about the lease."

"I found a cheaper place."

Santino didn't suspect a thing.

In his eyes, I was just a poor woman who complained about the five-hundred-dollar monthly rent. He nodded indifferently, loosening his tie. "Go talk outside. Don't make a racket in here. I'll watch Luca."

I hesitated.

But he was Luca's biological father. He wouldn't harm his own son. I could only nod.

Mrs. Russo was a kind-hearted old Italian lady. She pulled me into a dark corner of the stairwell.

"Erin, you're really leaving? If the rent is too much, I can lower it a little more..."

"No need, Mrs. Russo." I shook my head, lowering my voice. "The boy's father and I are separating. We're leaving the city soon."

The old woman's eyes widened in shock. "What? Leaving Mr. Connor? Heavens, my dear, have you gone mad?"

She paused, then sighed. "It must be his idea, right? After all, I see how much you love him, putting up with this life for his sake. You'd never leave on your own."

I lowered my eyes, a bitter taste on my tongue.

So even an outsider could see how pathetic my love for him had been.

Seeing my silence, Mrs. Russo didn't press the issue. She just patted my hand sympathetically. "Since you've decided, then so be it. God bless you, Erin. That man will regret losing you one day."

However, when I finished the conversation and pushed the door open, my blood ran cold.

The room was empty. Luca was gone.

My hands trembled as I dialed Santino's private number.

No answer.

My nineteenth call went unanswered. A fear I had never known before seized my throat. I burst out of the room, grabbing everyone downstairs and questioning them like a madwoman.

These people weren't ordinary tenants; they were all Santino's lookouts.

Seeing my state, they knew there was no point in hiding it anymore.

One of the low-level enforcers, a man I had once helped, told me with a troubled expression, "Don Connor took the young master. He got into a black, armored car. The license plate belonged to the Family's medical unit."

A chill ran down my spine. I stumbled to the private clinic controlled by the Connor Family.

It was the place where the family dealt with gunshot wounds and other off-the-books procedures.

The clinic was heavily guarded, but my identification was still valid, and it got me inside.

Outside a diagnostic lab, one only core family members could enter, the heavy door was slightly ajar.

Santino's voice drifted out. "The specialist is sure this will work. The data will give them the diagnostic model they need."

Then came Riley's voice, laced with false concern. "But Santino, this cardiac stress test... the specialist said it's strenuous. And Luca is so small, and you heard Erin, he's sick. If she finds out you're doing this for Finn, won't she..."

Santino's gaze was fixed on the complex machinery inside the lab. "Finn's condition remains unresolved. The doctors are running out of time. This experimental test is our only hope, and it requires a test sample of the same age."

"I am Luca's father. According to Family tradition, the firstborn son carries the burdens of the Family. He will do his duty."

"I won't let her interfere."

I clamped a hand over my mouth, tears streaming down my face.

So his sudden appearance today wasn't to make up for his absence as a father.

His sudden warmth was a ploy to lure my son, who was already weak, to a clinic and use him like a lab rat for an experimental procedure.

I had thought he'd had a change of heart, that he wanted to finally act like a father.

I never imagined he would risk our son's health for a diagnostic test for Riley's precious boy.

So much for the sacred bond of blood.