I had just finished negotiating a deal with some prick when I was walking down a dimly lit, empty street in North London. I had parked further away, making sure nobody could get to it if things went wrong.

I blinked hard, thinking I must have been seeing things, when I noticed a small figure in the near distance at the top of the road. I carried on walking and realised it was a child. A little girl. All alone. She looked terrified.

I did not like children. Hell, I thought they were fucking annoying. I was a mob boss, not a family man. But I could not deny the twisting in my gut when I saw the girl trembling. I got closer, careful not to scare her. Why the fuck was she alone at night? It was not safe.

Her eyes widened when I stopped in front of her, arms wrapping around herself as if to make herself smaller. I crouched down, not wanting to tower over her. She could not have been older than four.

“Are you okay? Where are your parents?” I asked, forcing my voice gentle. I might be ruthless, but I would never scare a child on purpose.

“My mama gone,” she whispered, lip trembling.

“Your mama is gone?” I pressed, concern edging into my tone. “Where did she go?”

Tears welled and spilled. “Big bad man took my mama.”

My jaw clenched. “Can you describe him?”

She sniffled. “He was tall… had big bushy eyebrows. A moustache too. And a purple jacket.”

I knew instantly. Jake Enzio. One of my rivals. Rage flared hot in my chest. I could be brutal, but hurting women crossed a line even I would not.

I hugged the girl, learned her name was Aurora, and wiped her tears. I told her that her mama would be back soon, then I called Niall. I needed someone to watch her while I got her mother back.

When Niall arrived, I promised Aurora she would be safe with him until I returned. She did not know us, had no reason to trust us, but I was determined to reunite her with her mother.

I jumped in my McLaren and tore down the streets, fury burning with every mile. The Enzios had warehouses near the docks. If they had taken her, that was where she would be.

When I pulled up, I spotted two guards at the side door. Idiots. A twist of my silencer, two muffled pops, and they dropped like bags of cement. I stepped over their bodies without a glance.

Inside reeked of oil and damp, laughter echoing deeper in. I followed the sound until I heard it. Your cry. High, panicked, cut off too quickly. My blood roared in my ears.

I rounded the corner. There you were. Tied to a chair, bruises already darkening your skin, while Jake Enzio loomed over you in that ridiculous purple jacket.

“You picked the wrong fucking woman to touch, Enzio,” I growled, stepping out of the shadows, gun raised.

His smirk faltered before he covered it. “Styles. Did not know she meant something to you.”

“She did not,” I said flatly, sights locked between his eyes. “I do not even know her. But she does now.”

You were a stranger. We had never met. But I was going to get you back to your daughter. And I hoped, in that moment, you trusted I was here to save you, not hurt you.

“I found your daughter in the street after that bastard took you,” I told you, knowing you were probably going out of your mind worrying about Aurora. “My second in command is looking after her right now, she’s safe.”