Signed To The Mafia King - Chapter 62: Chapter 62

LUCA
I handed Maya to Valerie and stood. So both of her children were not Riot's? That made more sense.
Now I understood why she was so worried.
“Maya isn't his daughter too?” I asked, leaning forward with my hands on the table.
“No, I already had them before I married Riot. When I couldn't give him a child after a year, he started hating me.” Valerie cried, cleaning her face.
If Valerie's son was not Riot's child, then he was very unsafe. They could kill him.
We had to find him, and we had to save him.
Alina followed me to the door. Immediately we stepped outside, she stopped and her eyes filled with bright tears. “What have I done, Luca? That kid will die, won't he?”
I stepped towards her, shaking my head. “He won't die. We won't let him. Go in for work. Call a meeting with your men, and ask them to be careful, we're not sure yet how they will react, but we need to be ready.”
Alina gulped and nodded, turned and walked inside.
Marco was already standing beside my car. A minute later, we drove out of the compound to my office.
I stepped into my office, pulling off my jacket and tossing it onto the back of my chair.
Rolling up my sleeves, I walked to my desk, my mind still on Valerie’s words.
The kid wasn’t Riot’s.
I pulled out my phone and called Marco. I needed his help. “Marco? Come to my office.”
He stepped in almost immediately. I had told him about everything that had happened. I still wasn't pleased that he had been so flippant about Riot hitting his wife, but I knew Marco, he would never do something like that himself.
Marco stopped in front of my desk. “Yeah, boss?”
“Get me the Alvarados on the phone. Now.”
Marco didn’t ask questions. He just nodded and left.
I sat down, tapping my fingers against the desk. My gut was tight, and I felt uneasy. This didn't happen often.
But this? This was a problem.
The Alvarados were brutal, but they weren’t stupid. If they knew that Valerie's son wasn't Riot's, he was as good as dead.
And I wasn’t about to let a child pay the price for whatever mistakes Valerie and Riot had made.
My phone rang. It was Marco. “They’re on.”
I grabbed the phone. “Put him through.”
A click, then a voice I recognized immediately, laughed into my ears. “Luca Marino?”
I leaned back in my chair. “Daniel Alvarado.”
Daniel Alvarado was the eldest son. The one actually running things while his father played king and his brother behaved foolishly.
“You called,” Daniel said. “I assume it’s about my brother?”
I didn’t waste time. “I want the boy.”
He stayed silent for a moment, then he laughed again. “Do you?”
I tried to make myself relax. They wouldn't kill the boy, I told myself. They wouldn't dare. “I know what you’re thinking. I know you want the boy, but he's only a child. Give him to me. He needs his mother.”
Daniel hummed like he was thinking of doing it. But I knew better. “You want me to just hand him over?”
“You know I don’t ask for things without giving something in return.”
A pause. Then Daniel’s tone became colder. “You took my brother.”
“He touched what’s mine.”
His voice became colder than an ocean. “I heard it wasn’t you who hurt him. It was your wife. So I believe what's yours actually hurt my brother.”
I should have known the bastard would bring that up. “And?”
“I want to talk to her.”
I’d punch him in the face for even daring to make that suggestion, if he were standing before me. “No.”
Daniel scoffed. “No?”
“She’s my wife,” I said evenly. “Her business is my business. Whatever you have to say to her, say it to me.”
He let out a low, irritated breath. “Luca, don’t be stupid. We both know who I should be talking to.”
I wasn’t about to argue over this. “If you have a problem with Alina, then you have a problem with me.”
Daniel grunted. I could hear the rage in his voice when he said. “You’re willing to go to war for this woman?”
My stomach knotted. That was exactly what I was trying to avoid.
“I’m willing to do whatever it takes to protect what’s mine,” I said. “And right now, I’m offering you a deal. Riot for the kid. Simple.”
Daniel’s laugh was short, humorless. “That’s not a deal, Luca. That’s a demand.”
“You and I both know the boy is worthless to you. Keeping him does nothing.”
Daniel clicked his tongue. “And yet, you want him.”
I stayed silent, refusing to argue with him. He sighed. “Here’s my offer. Give me my brother, and I’ll think about giving you the boy.”
My jaw clenched. “That’s not good enough.”
“Then I guess we have nothing else to discuss.” he said.
He was right. I hung up.
I dropped the phone onto the desk and exhaled, pressing my fingers against my temples.
“Marco?” I called.
He stepped in. “Boss?”
“The next few days might be bloody. Tell the men to be careful. We don’t know how the Alvarados will react, and I don’t want anyone getting caught off guard.”
Marco nodded. “You think they’ll hit first?”
“If Daniel is smart, he’d let this go.” I sat back, tapping my knuckles against the desk. “But smart doesn’t always win out over pride. And if he wants war, I’ll crush them. I just don’t want to have to.”
Marco didn’t argue. He just nodded and left.
I stayed at my desk for a while, thinking. If Daniel was planning something, I needed to be ahead of it. I wasn’t the kind of man who sat back and waited.
Pushing to my feet, I grabbed my jacket. I needed to see my men, and to make sure they were ready for whatever was coming.
I was halfway to the door when my phone rang again. It was Daniel calling back.
I picked up. “That was fast.”
“I’ve thought it over.” His sounded jovial, but I wasn’t stupid enough to think that meant anything. “I’ll return the boy.”
I didn't believe him. He'd been too angry to have suddenly changed his mind. “In exchange for Riot?”
“Yes.” A beat of silence. “And Valerie. And Maya.”
“Excuse me?” I roared into the phone.
“You heard me.” He sounded gleeful, like he really thought I would agree to his demand. “I take Riot, and they come home also. We both pretend none of this ever happened. We are her family after all.”
My jaw clenched. I knew what he was doing. He wanted to reassert control, remind Valerie that she still belonged to them, that she couldn’t just run.
I took a slow breath. “You expect me to hand them over?”
“They’re Alvarado,” Daniel said simply. “Valerie was never yours to keep.”
I could end this right now. Tell him no. Start a war. Or I could play it smarter.
“You want them? Fine. But I want proof the boy is alive.”
Daniel chuckled like he was amused. “You’ll get it.”
The line went dead.
If Daniel was willing to make that trade, did that mean the boy was truly at risk?
Or was this all a setup?