CAN I SLEEP HERE TONIGHT? THE MAID'S FEARLESS TODDLER ASKED THE LONELY MAFIA BOSS — HE SAID YES

Gabriel felt a cold, murderous calm settle into his bones.

He knew the name Julian Vance. Vance was not a mafia figure; he was something arguably worse. He was a high-ranking, corrupt deputy district attorney with deep political ties, vast legal immunity, and secret financial connections to Don Victor Moretti’s syndicate. He was a wolf wearing the polished badge of the law.

"Vance," Gabriel said calmly, addressing his head of security. "Turn off the perimeter alarms. Open the inner courtyard gates."

"Boss?" Vance Sterling blinked in surprise. "He has armed federal marshals and local police escorts with him. If we let them onto the property—"

"We don't leave Maren’s terror standing at the gate," Gabriel commanded sharply. "Let them drive up to the front steps. Let him see who he is dealing with."

Five minutes later, the heavy black SUVs rolled up the gravel driveway, their headlights cutting through the thick rain.

Gabriel stood on the covered stone porch, his suit jacket unbuttoned, his hands casually tucked into his pockets. Standing behind him in the shadowed marble foyer were ten of his most lethal security guards, completely out of sight but ready to draw at a single gesture.

Julian Vance stepped out of his sedan. He was forty years old, handsome in a slick, hollow way, with sharp features and cold blue eyes that calculated the value of everything he looked at. He carried a leather briefcase and a rolled-up paper document.

"Gabriel Kane," Julian said, stepping onto the stone porch, his voice laced with polished arrogance. "I must say, I’m surprised to find my runaway wife hiding in the lair of Manhattan’s most notorious underworld figure."

Gabriel didn't move an inch. He towered over Julian, his dark eyes empty of any emotion save for a silent, terrible promise.

"She isn't your wife," Gabriel said flatly. "The divorce was finalized eight months ago."

Julian smiled, a slow, ugly expression. "Ah, so she gave you the sob story? Poor Maren, playing the victim. What she conveniently forgot to mention to her employer is that she violated a court order when she took our daughter out of the state of New York."

Julian held up the paper document.

"This is an emergency custody warrant, signed by a supreme court judge. Maren Cole is wanted for parental abduction. And little Nora is legally mandated to be returned to my custody tonight."

Inside the foyer, hidden behind the thick oak door, Maren heard every word. She pressed her back against the wall, weeping silently, kissing the top of Nora’s curly head. Nora looked up, her little hands wiping her mother’s tears. "Mama, why is the mean man from the old house here? Don't let him take my blanket."

On the porch, Gabriel took one step forward. The sheer weight of his presence forced Julian to involuntarily take a half-step back.

"You brought police escorts to my home, Julian," Gabriel said, his voice quiet, almost pleasant, yet carrying a edge that made the hair on the back of Julian’s neck stand up. "You think a piece of paper signed by a judge you bought and paid for protects you here?"

Julian’s smile faltered slightly, but he leaned in, lowering his voice. "Don't play hero, Kane. I know who you are. I know about your shipping contracts at Pier 42. I know about your offshore accounts in the Caymans. If you interfere with a federal warrant, I will have every agency in the state raid this mansion by sunrise. Hand over the girl and her mother, and I leave you in peace."

Gabriel looked down at the court order in Julian’s hand. Slowly, deliberately, Gabriel reached out, took the paper from Julian’s fingers, and snapped it in half.

CRACK.

Julian gasped in shock. "Are you insane?! That is a federal document!"

Gabriel let the torn pieces flutter down into the muddy rainwater on the porch steps.

"I don't care about your judge, Julian," Gabriel said softly. "I don't care about your warrant. Maren Cole and Nora are under my roof. They eat at my table. They sleep under my protection. If you take one more step toward my door, I won't just destroy your career. I will erase you from existence."

The police officers standing near the SUVs shifted uncomfortably, their hands resting nervously on their holsters. They knew who Gabriel Kane was. They knew that no court case in the world mattered if Gabriel decided a man wasn't going to wake up tomorrow.

Julian’s face turned bright red with fury. He stepped back toward his car, pointing a trembling finger at Gabriel.

"You think you’ve won, Kane?!" Julian snarled, his composure completely shattering. "You think you can keep them hidden in this fortress forever?! I will burn your empire to the ground! I will leak every file I have on your family to the grand jury! You will rot in a federal prison, and I will take my daughter back while you watch through bulletproof glass!"

Julian slammed his car door shut. The dark SUVs spun their tires on the wet gravel, speeding away into the dark night.

Gabriel stood on the porch, watching the taillights fade. He turned around and walked back into the warm, golden light of the foyer.

Maren was sitting on the bottom step of the grand staircase, her hands covering her face, her shoulders shaking violently with quiet sobs. Nora sat beside her, holding her yellow blanket, looking frightened and confused.

Gabriel walked over and knelt in front of them. He didn't touch Maren, respecting her boundaries, but his dark eyes were burning with an intensity she had never seen before.

"He won't take her, Maren," Gabriel promised, his voice thick with raw emotion. "I swear to you on my life. He will never touch her again."

Maren looked up, her eyes wide and bloodshot. "You don't understand, Gabriel... Julian isn't just trying to get Nora back to be a father. He doesn't love her! He wants her because my father left a twenty-million-dollar trust fund in Nora’s name that can only be accessed by her legal guardian! He wants the money! And he will kill anyone who stands in his way!"