Chapter 7 - Dominic Gave Her a Choice No One ExpectedHarper stared at the photograph until the screen blurred.
Barnaby looked terrified.
His ears were flattened.
His green eyes were wide.
The housekeeper beside him had silver hair and blood along one temple.
“Who is she?”
Harper whispered.
“Teresa.”
Dominic’s voice sounded different.
Not merely angry.
Personal.
“She worked for my mother.”
Harper looked at him.
“For how long?”
“Thirty-two years.”
The answer explained everything.
Teresa was not staff.
She was family.
Rossy knew it.
“Where was security?”
Dominic turned toward Leo.
“Find out.”
Leo was already typing.
“Working.”
Harper looked again at Barnaby.
Her cat.
The ridiculous animal who slept across her keyboard whenever she worked from home.
Who screamed for food every morning as if he had not eaten in weeks.
Who had been the first living thing she bought after moving into her own apartment.
Rossy had taken him because of her.
Harper’s breathing changed.
Dominic noticed.
“Don’t.”
She looked up.
“Don’t what?”
“Blame yourself.”
“He has Teresa because she had Barnaby.”
“He has Teresa because he wants me emotionally compromised.”
“And Barnaby?”
“Because he wants you compromised.”
Harper swallowed.
“It’s working.”
Dominic took the phone from her.
“No.”
His voice hardened.
“We think.”
“We plan.”
“Then we act.”
He looked at her.
“Panic is a luxury Rossy wants us to purchase.”
Harper stared.
“You rehearse these lines?”
“No.”
“Because that sounded extremely rehearsed.”
For the first time since seeing the photograph, Dominic almost smiled.
Almost.
Then Leo interrupted.
“Got something.”
They moved toward a table.
Leo displayed security footage.
Teresa’s vehicle.
A gas station.
Two men.
Then another camera.
A highway.
A toll booth.
Finn joined through video.
“We tracked the vehicle until 1:16 a.m.”
“Where?”
Dominic asked.
“Industrial district.”
A map appeared.
Harper leaned closer.
Warehouses.
Rail yards.
Old factories.
Finn highlighted three buildings.
“These belong to shell companies associated with Rossy.”
Dominic pointed.
“That one.”
Leo looked at him.
“Why?”
“Cold storage.”
Harper frowned.
“How do you know?”
“Rossy used it fifteen years ago.”
“For what?”
Dominic did not answer.
Harper sighed.
“Right. Criminal mystery.”
Dominic looked at Leo.
“Prepare eight men.”
Harper straightened.
“I’m coming.”
“No.”
She laughed once.
“We literally just had this conversation.”
“And circumstances changed.”
“So did I.”
“Harper.”
“No.”
Dominic turned fully toward her.
“You have done enough.”
“That is my cat.”
“And my war.”
“That stopped being exclusively your war when bullets entered the room I was standing in.”
Dominic’s jaw tightened.
Harper stepped closer.
“You said Rossy wants us emotional.”
“Yes.”
“So you charging into that warehouse because Teresa is family is exactly what he expects.”
Dominic went silent.
Leo looked between them.
Harper continued.
“You need someone thinking differently.”
“And that person is you?”
“Yes.”
“You were planning hydrangeas five days ago.”
“And apparently I’m adapting quickly.”
Leo coughed.
Dominic glared.
Leo became silent.
Harper pointed toward the map.
“Rossy knows how you think.”
“He knows how Leo thinks.”
“He knows your organization.”
“But he doesn’t know me.”
Dominic studied her.
Harper continued.
“He thinks I’m the helpless blonde woman who accidentally wandered into your room.”
“That woman is useful.”
Something changed in Dominic’s expression.
“What are you suggesting?”
Harper smiled.
“Let him underestimate me one more time.”
Three hours later, Harper drove alone toward the cold-storage facility.
Not truly alone.
Dominic’s men surrounded the district invisibly.
Leo was positioned on the roof of an abandoned factory.
Dominic waited two blocks away.
Harper wore an earpiece.
This time, nobody searched her.
Because this time, she arrived openly.
She parked.
Then stepped outside carrying a small duffel.
A man appeared at the loading entrance.
“Harper.”
She raised both hands.
“I came to negotiate.”
The man laughed.
“Boss said you might.”
Of course.
Rossy had anticipated Dominic.
But perhaps not her.
The loading door opened.
Harper entered.
Cold air hit immediately.
Rows of industrial freezers surrounded a central loading bay.
Teresa sat beneath a hanging lamp.
Barnaby’s carrier rested beside her.
Harper almost cried when the cat meowed.
Teresa looked at her.
“You must be Harper.”
Her voice was surprisingly calm.
Harper blinked.
“Yes.”
Teresa smiled despite the blood on her face.
“You’re prettier than the photographs.”
Harper stared.
“You’ve seen photographs?”
“Dominic asked me to choose clothes for you.”
Harper almost laughed.
Even kidnapped, Teresa apparently had opinions.
Rossy emerged.
“You people have an extraordinary talent for treating hostage situations like family reunions.”
Harper faced him.
“You wanted leverage.”
“I have it.”
“No.”
She placed the duffel on the floor.
“You have an elderly woman and a cat.”
Teresa raised an eyebrow.
“Elderly?”
Harper winced.
“Sorry.”
“Sixty-three is not elderly.”
Rossy rubbed his forehead.
Harper almost smiled.
Then she looked at him.
“You want Dominic.”
“Yes.”
“You want the port network.”
“Yes.”
“And you want him humiliated.”
Rossy smiled.
“Now we understand each other.”
Harper nudged the duffel forward.
“Then I have something better.”
Rossy opened it.
Documents.
Financial records.
Photographs.
He frowned.
“What is this?”
“Everything Dominic collected on your judges, customs officers, and accountants.”
Rossy looked up sharply.
That was a lie.
Mostly.
Finn had constructed an extremely convincing collection of useless material mixed with enough real intelligence to make it credible.
Rossy began reading.
Harper watched his eyes.
Greed.
Fear.
Recognition.
“You stole this?”
“Yes.”
“From Dominic?”
“Yes.”
Rossy laughed.
“Why?”
Harper looked down.
Then allowed herself to appear uncertain.
Hurt.
“Because I realized what he is.”
Rossy studied her.
Harper continued.
“He kidnapped me.”
“Controlled me.”
“Put me in the middle of a war.”
Her voice trembled deliberately.
“I thought he cared.”
Rossy smiled.
There.
Exactly what she wanted.
He believed the wounded-woman story because it confirmed his view of Dominic.
Men like Rossy often understood betrayal better than loyalty.
Harper stepped closer.
“I want out.”
“And you think helping me accomplishes that?”
“I think destroying Dominic does.”
Rossy’s smile widened.
In Harper’s ear, Dominic said quietly:
“Careful.”
She ignored him.
Rossy walked around her.
“You kissed him outside the warehouse.”
Harper’s heart skipped.
Surveillance.
Of course.
She forced herself to shrug.
“I was scared.”
“And now?”
“Now I’m angry.”
Rossy stopped.
“Prove it.”
Harper looked at him.
“How?”
“Call him.”
Silence.
“Tell Dominic you escaped.”
Harper’s pulse accelerated.
“Tell him you want to meet.”
Rossy smiled.
“Bring him here.”
Harper touched the phone in her pocket.
This was not the plan.
Dominic’s voice entered her ear.
“Do not.”
Rossy watched.
Harper removed the phone.
“Fine.”
She dialed.
Dominic answered after one ring.
“Harper.”
She almost broke at the sound of his voice.
She forced herself to continue.
“I got away.”
Silence.
Dominic understood immediately.
“Where are you?”
“I don’t know.”
Harper looked at Rossy.
He nodded.
“Old cold-storage building near the rail yard.”
Dominic’s voice became rough.
“Are you hurt?”
The question was real.
Harper swallowed.
“No.”
“Stay there.”
Rossy smiled.
Harper closed her eyes.
“Dominic.”
“Yes?”
She needed to communicate something.
Anything.
Then she remembered the first night.
The whiskey.
The shaking glass.
“You were right.”
A pause.
“About what?”
“I should have finished the whiskey.”
Dominic went silent.
Good.
He understood something was wrong.
“Ten minutes,” he said.
The call ended.
Rossy took Harper’s phone.
“Excellent.”
Then he smiled.
“Unfortunately, I still don’t trust you.”
Harper’s stomach dropped.
He removed the earpiece from her hair.
The tiny device landed in his palm.
Rossy looked at it.
Then at Harper.
“You really are becoming more interesting.”
He crushed it beneath his shoe.
Everything went silent.
No Dominic.
No Leo.
No safety net.
Rossy grabbed Harper’s arm.
“Move.”
She struggled.
He dragged her toward Teresa.
“Dominic will come.”
Harper kicked him.
Rossy slapped her.
She fell.
Teresa shouted.
Rossy pointed a gun.
“Enough.”
Harper froze.
He aimed toward Barnaby’s carrier.
“Next act of bravery kills the cat.”
Harper’s blood went cold.
“Okay.”
She raised her hands.
“Okay.”
Rossy smiled.
“Better.”
He ordered his men into positions.
Harper sat beside Teresa.
The older woman leaned toward her.
“Are you really betraying Dominic?”
Harper whispered.
“No.”
Teresa smiled.
“I knew I liked you.”
“Can you walk?”
“My pride is injured more severely than my legs.”
“Good.”
Harper looked around.
Seven men.
Rossy.
One exit behind them.
Another loading door.
She whispered.
“When Dominic comes, get low.”
Teresa looked at her.
“My dear.”
“Yes?”
“When Dominic comes, everyone should get low.”
Five minutes passed.
Then ten.
Rossy became impatient.
“He should be here.”
Harper looked toward the door.
Something was wrong.
Then every light went out.
Darkness.
Teresa laughed softly.
“There he is.”
The first explosion destroyed the loading entrance.
Not large.
Controlled.
Metal folded inward.
Gunfire followed.
Harper threw herself over Barnaby’s carrier.
Teresa dropped beside her.
Rossy shouted orders.
His men fired toward shadows.
Dominic’s men answered from three positions.
Harper crawled.
A guard appeared.
She grabbed a loose metal pipe and swung.
He blocked it.
Then seized her throat.
Harper kicked.
He lifted her.
Suddenly his body jerked.
He collapsed.
Dominic stood behind him.
“Harper.”
She had never been happier to hear one word.
He grabbed her.
Checked her face.
Arms.
Body.
“Are you hit?”
“No.”
“Teresa?”
“Alive.”
“Barnaby?”
“Extremely offended.”
Dominic almost laughed.
Then Rossy fired.
Dominic spun.
The bullet hit his shoulder.
Harper screamed.
Dominic returned fire.
Rossy disappeared behind machinery.
Leo reached Teresa.
“Move!”
Harper grabbed Dominic.
“You’re hit.”
“Through.”
Blood covered his shoulder.
“We finish this.”
“No.”
Dominic looked at her.
Harper tightened her grip.
“You told me panic is a luxury.”
His expression shifted.
“So stop buying it.”
Another shot hit metal beside them.
Harper dragged Dominic behind a freezer unit.
“You’re losing blood.”
“Rossy is twenty meters away.”
“And Leo is pursuing him.”
Dominic started to rise.
Harper shoved him back.
To her shock, he stayed.
“Dominic.”
Her voice softened.
“You do not have to personally destroy everything that threatens you.”
He stared at her.
“That is how I survived.”
“I know.”
Harper pressed fabric against his shoulder.
“But maybe survival isn’t the only thing you’re allowed to do anymore.”
Something broke behind his eyes.
Then gunfire stopped.
Leo appeared.
His face was furious.
“He’s gone.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
“Again?”
“Maintenance tunnel.”
Harper expected rage.
Instead, Dominic looked at her.
Then at Teresa.
Then at Barnaby.
Everyone alive.
He exhaled.
“Let him run.”
Leo stared.
“Boss?”
Dominic’s gaze remained on Harper.
“I said let him run.”
It was perhaps the first time in Dominic’s life that revenge came second.
Harper understood the significance.
So did Leo.
They left before dawn.
In the SUV, Teresa held Barnaby’s carrier.
The cat complained continuously.
Dominic sat beside Harper with his shoulder bandaged.
Harper rested her head against the seat.
Teresa looked between them.
“So.”
Dominic immediately said, “No.”
Teresa smiled.
“I haven’t asked anything.”
“I know you.”
Harper opened one eye.
Teresa looked at her.
“Has he told you he likes you?”
Dominic closed his eyes.
“Teresa.”
“What?”
“He kidnapped the poor woman.”
Harper laughed.
Teresa continued.
“You cannot kidnap someone and expect her to understand your emotional intentions.”
“Please stop talking.”
Harper laughed harder.
Dominic looked toward the window.
Harper saw the faintest redness near his ears.
That made her laugh even more.
Then Teresa became serious.
“He has not brought a woman near family in eleven years.”
Harper stopped.
Dominic’s face closed.
“Enough.”
Teresa nodded.
The boundary was clear.
Harper respected it.
Later, when Teresa fell asleep and Barnaby finally stopped screaming, Harper whispered.
“Eleven years?”
Dominic looked at her.
“Do not.”
“Okay.”
She meant it.
Dominic seemed surprised.
Harper rested her head against his uninjured shoulder.
He stiffened.
Then relaxed.
“You could ask,” he said.
“I could.”
“You want to.”
“Obviously.”
“Then why aren’t you?”
Harper closed her eyes.
“Because you’ll tell me when you’re ready.”
Silence.
Then Dominic took her hand.
His fingers threaded through hers.
“When I was twenty-nine,” he said quietly, “I trusted someone.”
Harper did not move.
“A woman?”
“Yes.”
“She sold information about my family.”
His thumb moved against Harper’s hand.
“My younger brother died because of it.”
Harper’s chest tightened.
“Dominic…”
“I killed the men responsible.”
His voice remained flat.
“But revenge did not make him less dead.”
Harper understood suddenly.
The control.
The suspicion.
The refusal to depend on anyone.
The belief that love created weaknesses enemies could exploit.
She squeezed his hand.
“I’m sorry.”
Dominic looked toward her.
“I am telling you because Rossy already understands something I refused to.”
“What?”
His eyes held hers.
“You became a weakness.”
Harper’s stomach tightened.
Then Dominic continued.
“But I was wrong about what that means.”
She waited.
“A weakness is something another person can control.”
His hand tightened.
“You are not that.”
Harper whispered.
“What am I?”
Dominic looked at her for a long time.
May you like
“A choice.”
And for Harper, that single word meant more than any promise Caleb had ever made.
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