The afternoon my maid asked me for two months of salary in advance and begged to leave early, I assumed someone had compromised her. So I followed her through freezing Chicago rain expecting to find a rival, an informant, or a man blackmailing one of my employees—but instead I found Linda on her knees beside a dying seven-year-old boy, crying into his hospital blanket because she was eighty thousand dollars away from saving his life.

Word travels fast in the Chicago underworld, especially when money moves in unexpected directions. By Thursday afternoon, my sudden interest in St. Jude’s Hospital had raised eyebrows among my competitors.

The Moretti family, led by an arrogant young boss named Dante Moretti, had been trying to push into my southern distribution routes for months. Dante was a rat who used blackmail, extortion, and innocent bystanders to gain leverage.

I was at my desk reviewing shipping manifests when Marco entered without knocking. His face was dark.

"We have a situation, boss," Marco said, setting an encrypted tablet on my desk. "Dante Moretti’s men have been sniffing around St. Jude’s."

My eyes narrowed into slits. "Why?"

"They saw the heavy financial transfer from our primary trust account to the hospital’s pediatric wing. Dante thinks you have a hidden liability there—a secret child or a mistress."

A cold, lethal silence settled over the study. The ambient warmth of the room seemed to evaporate instantly.

"Dante doesn't know who Keo is," Marco added hastily, "but he knows the boy is important to you now. He placed two tailing units outside the hospital grounds this morning."

I stood up slowly, adjusting the silver cufflinks on my suit sleeves. "Dante has mistaken my act of charity for a sign of weakness."

"What are your orders?"

"Call Tony and the heavy team," I instructed, my voice dropping an octave into pure malice. "We are going to pay Dante Moretti a personal visit before he decides to turn a hospital into a warzone."

Before I could step out of the study, my phone rang. It was the private number I had given to Keo's room.

"Mr. Gallo?" Linda’s panic-stricken voice echoed through the speaker. "There are men in dark suits standing outside Keo's room! The nurses tried to stop them, but they claimed they were sent by you!"

"Linda, stay inside the room and lock the door," I commanded firmly, grabbing my shoulder holster from the desk drawer. "Do not open it for anyone except me. I am five minutes away."