Dangerous Secrets: My Mafia Stepbrother

Isabella didn’t believe what William had said. Besides being cunning, William’s capabilities were nowhere near Emanuele’s. Emanuele was the master of Chicago, and at this moment, William was on Emanuele’s turf; he couldn’t possibly have overpowered Emanuele.

However, seeing William’s confident demeanor, Isabella felt a bit uneasy, afraid that what William had said might be true. If it was true, then Emanuele would be in danger.

Seeing Isabella’s suspicion, William didn’t continue tormenting her because he had more important matters to attend to. He took out a pair of scissors and began cutting Isabella’s hair.

Isabella had beautiful, chestnut-brown hair. Her hair was of excellent quality, and she took great care of it, often tending to it. As a result, her hair was smooth and lustrous, reaching down to her waist, resembling the finest silk.

At that moment, William grabbed Isabella’s hair, and in her astonished gaze, with a crisp sound, a large chunk of Isabella’s hair fell to the ground. Isabella exclaimed, “You’re insane!”

Why would he cut her hair? In that instant, Isabella felt her heart dripping blood. She had kept her beautiful hair for so long, but now, William had suddenly taken away half of it. One side of her head was now short, while the other remained long, looking quite absurd.

Isabella felt engulfed by immense sorrow, but she struggled to restrain her inner grief, refusing to yield in front of William.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

William held the hair he had cut from Isabella, a smile appearing on his face. “Your hair is truly beautiful, Isabella. I wonder if Emanuele will be pleased to see this strand of hair? Perhaps this will be the only memento you leave him.”

Saying this, William tied Isabella’s hair with a string and placed it in a box. Isabella watched as William left, her gaze falling upon her hair-short on one side and long on the other, the short side now a mess, barely reaching her chin, while the long side remained significantly asymmetrical.

She had kept her long hair for so long, always treasuring it. But now, it had been cut by William, all for the sake of presenting it to Emanuele. It was to prove that she was now in his hands, to leverage Emanuele to accept William’s terms before he would release her. That must be it.

Isabella had never experienced this before, but she recalled Grazia mentioning that when someone is kidnapped, the captor might send items from the captive to their relatives. Sometimes it’s clothes, shoes, or even hair, fingers, or eyeballs…

Should Isabella consider herself lucky that William had only taken her hair?

As William left, Isabella gradually calmed down. Although she was shocked by the sudden kidnapping, she was typically emotionally stable.

Isabella knew that escaping wouldn’t be easy, but how would she know if she didn’t try? She observed her surroundings-very dilapidated, with the floor still bearing clusters of black, dirty-looking, coagulated substances, perhaps congealed blood.

She thought that someone as cruel as William, when given the chance to capture one of Emanuele’s people, would likely indulge in extreme torture. Perhaps Phillip was the best example, and she didn’t know whether Phillip had been detained here by William and tormented.

Nevertheless, Isabella felt that if she continued, she might become the next Phillip. After witnessing William’s recent behavior, Isabella began to feel nauseated.

She feared that William might do something cruel to her, and she couldn’t fathom how she would resist if he did. So, if she could escape, it was better to do it now.

However, Isabella was currently bound to a chair and didn’t know how to struggle.

At that moment, something suddenly occurred to Isabella. Elisa had actually taught her how to free herself when bound by someone. Elisa had taught her very practical techniques, and Isabella hadn’t expected that she would need them now.

Isabella began to wriggle on the chair, striving to loosen the ropes binding her. After adjusting her position several times, Isabella felt the ropes around her body start to loosen significantly.

Isabella was elated. Though her arms were now sore, it didn’t matter. She was sure she could free herself from these restraints, as long as William didn’t return too soon…

—

Emanuele quickly received the box. When his subordinate handed it to him, they said it had been found on a nearby trash can lid, with a clear indication that it was meant for Emanuele. Only after confirming its safety did they bring it back to him.

Emanuele looked at the small wooden box in his hand. It was very light, and he was certain that there were no explosives inside. He opened the box to find a bundle of hair inside. It was a beautiful chestnut color, soft and shimmering under the light.

It was evident that the owner of this hair had cherished it dearly. Emanuele ran his fingers over the bundle, reminiscent of how he used to touch Isabella’s hair. It was all too familiar, and he could even sense the fragrance of her favorite shampoo, still placed in the bathroom.

But now, as he perceived this scent, Emanuele felt as though he were losing his mind. There was a note on top, with a single line: “Emanuele, if you’re unwilling, next time it won’t just be hair.”

The strong sense of threat overwhelmed Emanuele, suffocating him. His grip on the wooden box tightened until it cracked. He had to find William and Isabella quickly. He had to rescue her.

“Boss, I’ve found William’s trail. Is this him? Look, he seems to have been moving around these few blocks,” Zak suddenly exclaimed, staring at the computer screen.

Emanuele walked over immediately. Zak was a computer expert; if he wanted, he could access all the surveillance videos in Chicago. However, the sheer volume was overwhelming and disorienting.

Therefore, Zak had used William’s movements to deduce possible locations. Indeed, after accessing the surveillance in those areas, they spotted William.

Emanuele scrutinized the screen carefully, then narrowed his eyes. “Well done, Zak. That’s him. Let’s continue to follow their trail.”

After receiving Emanuele’s approval, Zak’s fingers flew across the keyboard, continuing to trace William’s movements.

“I’ve located several places where William might be hiding. Boss, shall we send someone to check out these locations?”