Dante's POV

I tapped my feet impatiently as I waited for Marco to arrive. He had left early this morning to finalize the deal he had made with a friend of that girl.

According to the update I received from Alexio, the girl only had one friend other than her uncle in Verona. With her uncle missing, then her best friend must know where she is.

Alexio got information that Antonio had found out about her friend and reached out to her. They made a deal but Marco was quick to offer double the price and the girl had agreed without a fuss. It wasn't surprising in any way, it was how the world worked. Even a family would betray you for money. Marco knew that and used it to our advantage.

I was waiting in my study when my phone buzzed, it was Marco informing me that they had arrived and were in the underground room where we conducted certain businesses. I was still dressed in a sweat shirt and trousers since it was still early in the morning.

I hurried downstairs and went outside. I went past the garden and opened a trap door that led to the underground room.

The tunnel I went down into was dimly lit. I walked down with the aid of the flickering lights mounted on the tunnel walls. Shortly after, I stood before a large metallic door. It buzzed open to reveal an empty room with a single chair and a yellow bulb dangling from the ceiling. On the wall, weapons were arranged according to how dangerous they were.

"Marco!" I called out when I spotted him standing at the far side of the room with his back on the wall, "please tell me you got her." I said, eager to get this over with. He nodded and pushed himself forward. His assistant, Luke, stepped out of the darkness of the far side of the room and pulled a girl after him. She had a sack over her head and her hands tied behind her back.

Marco took over and dragged her to the center of the room, directly under the light bulb, and then pulled the sack off her face. Her smooth hair had scattered all over her face, obstructing my view. Marco pushed her hair away backwards and the most beautiful pair of hazel eyes stared right back at me.

She sputtered before I noticed the tape over her mouth. "Take it off." I ordered and luke pulled it off sharply, causing her to hiss in pain. I stepped into the light. She squinted her eyes for a while but when she got a good look at me, she gasped. She tried to scramble backwards but she bumped into Marco, who shoved her forward roughly.

"So you saw me that night," I said with a grin. I was expecting this reaction.

"No... No... I didn't see anything." She tried to sound convincing but with the way her eyes darted around the room nervously, I could tell that she was lying.

"We both know that's a lie." I bent down to get a good look at her. She is beautiful, I must admit. "What were you doing there?" I asked.

"I was looking for my cat. I swear I wasn't looking for anything other than my cat. When I saw it, I ran out and didn't mention it to anyone. Please let me go." She pleaded.

I remembered the footage I had seen, she looked like she was searching for something when she first walked in. "I promise not to mention it to anyone, please let me go, please don't harm my uncle, he doesn't know anything about this." She continued but I wasn't listening anymore.

"Should we handle it?" Marco asked, watching me with his hawk-like eyes. I knew he could read me, he knew I was contemplating on what to do with her. "The best option is to get rid of her to avoid any problems later on."

"No! No! Please!" She screamed as she began to cry.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Alessia." She replied in between sobs.

"Well, Alessia, you saw something you shouldn't have and now you are a liability to me. I can't afford to let them get their hands on you. That simply means I can't let you out of here. I would be risking everything if I did that."

"I promise I won't breathe a word to anyone. Please don't hurt anyone, don't hurt my uncle and don't hurt my friend please." She continued to plead.

"Friend?" I asked, looking up at Marco in confusion. "You mean the same friend that sold you out for some cash?" My eyes never left hers and I could see how she struggled to comprehend what I had just said.

"You don't know what you are talking about." She said.

At that moment, I realized the kind of person we were dealing with. She is one of those naive young women that simply refuses to wake up to the harsh realities of life. Killing her would be a waste of her life. She is obviously unaware of the whole thing.

"Look, I am not interested in whatever you have going on with your best friend, but I can't let you out of here because you are the only thing that can link me to the murder, so I suggest you don't get on my nerves until I decide what to do with you."

"But..." She stammered, trying to compose her words, but before she could, Marco interrupted her.

"But boss, she is a problem. If she stays alive, we would always have a problem waiting to erupt. Antonio will never stop searching until she is found and if she remained alive, then that would always be a possibility." He sounded really pissed but I didn't care, I make the decisions here.

"Take her to Rosa, she will know what to do." I said to Luke and he sprang into action. She kept screaming, pleading and sobbing, but no one paid any attention to her. Luke flung her over his shoulder easily and walked out.

"That was a mistake, boss," Marco said.

"What about her friend? Did you take care of her?" I asked, ignoring his question and that pissed him off because he scowled at me, but that was the intention, so I don't care.

Marco worked for my father till he died. He kept a close eye on me when I was growing up and, due to his vast knowledge of the mafia world, I held onto him when I finally found my foothold.

"We left her at the house," he replied.

"Take care of her. She is a loose end. If she could betray her best friend, then I am certain that she would switch to Antonio's side in a heartbeat and the men that were with me the night of the murder, find them and bring them to me." I ordered and walked out the door with Marco following closely behind.