The Mafia Boss’s Dog Refused to Leave the Little Girl’s Coffin—Then They Heard Something Inside

Smoke poured from La Estrella's upper windows when we arrived.

Harlan had set the restaurant on fire to destroy the hidden office and force the Vasquez family into the street.

Tomas was inside.

Rosa and Elena had reached the sidewalk, but Tomas had gone back for a boy trapped in the kitchen apartment. Flames rolled across the ceiling above him.

I ran in with Bruno.

The heat punched the breath from my lungs. We found Tomas beneath a fallen shelf, shielding the boy with his body. Bruno pulled at Tomas's jacket while I lifted the shelf enough for him to crawl free.

A second explosion shook the dining room.

We escaped through the rear alley seconds before the roof collapsed.

Elena wrapped both arms around Bruno's neck. "Good boy," she whispered.

Tomas coughed and pointed toward the sewer grate. "Men went down there before the fire. They had kids with them."

The tunnel map from Harlan's driver showed a line from La Estrella to an abandoned ferry terminal.

Project Lantern was moving.

Brooks called every agency she trusted. We had less than an hour before the ferry left the river and transferred its passengers to a cargo ship offshore.

I looked at my men gathered near the burning restaurant.

For years, they had followed me because of fear, money, or family tradition.

"Tonight, no collections. No territory. No old rules," I told them. "We bring those children home, then this organization ends. Anyone who cannot live with that should leave now."

Three men walked away.

The rest stayed.

Tony cut Tomas free from the paramedic blanket and handed him a radio. "You know the tunnels better than we do."

Elena tugged my sleeve.

"Harlan said the ferry has a red lantern on top," she said. "He said that is how the boats know where to meet."

Bruno barked toward the river.

We entered the tunnel beneath the burning restaurant.

Halfway down, we found a row of children's shoes arranged beside the wall.