Chapter 23 – Giovanni
GIOVANNI
T he only way to get her back is to go digging. Siena has told me to prove it, time and time again. This time the proof needs to mean more than words. I need to find out the truth of what’s buried in the shadows of her father’s mess.
So, I dive in. I stop sleeping. I stop eating. I make calls to men I hate, men who only talk if you pay, men who smirk because they know you’ll hate what you hear. And little by little, I piece together Robbie Costa’s last days.
The debts weren’t just numbers in a ledger. They weren’t just whispered threats at a poker table. Robbie signed papers. Promises. And not the kind that could ever be forgiven.
He promised them Siena.
Her picture was clipped to one of the files like some sick trophy. Her home address written in slanted scrawl. The restaurant she worked at circled like a target. The words “deliver the girl” inked in red.
I’ve seen a lot of ugly in this life. But nothing that made me want to burn the whole fucking city down the way this did.
I pay them off. Every cent. I don’t give them a choice. I shove the money into their greedy hands and take every piece of evidence. I make sure they understand, with the sharp edge of my voice and the weight of my name, that if they ever breathe Siena’s name again, they won’t keep breathing at all.
By the time I’m done, I’m shaking with rage.
My knuckles split from how hard I slammed one of them against the wall to get what I needed.
I don’t care. All I can think about is Siena.
My sweet, beautiful girl, never knowing how close she was to being sold off like a goddamn pawn in her father’s game.
I can’t sit on this. I can’t go home and wait. I need her to know the truth.
So I go to her. I wait outside the restaurant, leaning against my car, heart pounding harder than it ever has before. When she finally steps out, her eyes widen, her body stiffening like she’s preparing to run.
I push off the car and meet her halfway. My voice is rough, ragged, but steady enough to hold her eyes.
“We need to talk.”
The words are stuck in my throat as I look at her. She’s clutching her bag tighter, her jaw set like she’s ready to tell me to go to hell before I’ve even spoken.
I hate that I even need to do this. To tell her how close she came to being destroyed by the one man who should’ve protected her.
I pull the envelope from my jacket and hold it out to her. “This is why we need to talk.”
Her brows knit together as she stares at it. “What is that?”
“Proof,” I grind out. My voice is raw, harsher than I intend. “Proof that your father wasn’t the man you thought he was. Proof that I’m not the monster you believe me to be.”
She hesitates, then takes the envelope. Her fingers tremble as she flips it open and pulls out the papers. I watch her eyes scan the words, watch the color drain from her face as she takes in the signatures, the red ink, the attached photographs.
“What is this?” she whispers.
“It’s what Robbie promised,” I say, every word laced with fury I can barely contain.
“He owed money to men who don’t forgive debts.
And instead of paying them, he offered you as payment.
He gave them your picture, your address, where you work.
He put you on the fucking table like you were a stack of chips in his game. ”
Her hand flies to her mouth, a choked sound escaping. My chest aches at the sight. I step closer, desperate for her to hear me.
“I paid them off. Every last one of them. I took the evidence, I burned the rest, and I swore on my name that if they ever so much as thought your name again, I’d put them in the ground myself.”
She shakes her head, tears spilling now. “No. No, he wouldn’t…”
“He did,” I cut in, my voice sharp but breaking.
“I wish to God it wasn’t true, Siena. But this is who he was.
He was never going to protect you. He was going to sell you.
And I swear on my life, the only reason you’re standing here and not chained to one of those bastards is because he came to the casino first that night. ”
Her knees buckle, and I catch her before she falls, holding her tight against me. She fights me for a second, but then her fists clutch at my shirt like she needs something solid to hold onto.
“I know what I did,” I murmur against her hair, my arms tightening around her.
“I made the call. I took him from you. And I’ll live with that for the rest of my life.
But you need to know this, what I did didn’t take away a father who loved you.
It took away the man who was ready to trade you like currency.
And knowing this now, I would do it all over again without a second thought.
I promised to always protect you and I did, without even knowing it.
You can hate me for it, I’ll accept that because I know you’re safe.
But don’t you dare hate yourself for loving me, because I swear to you, Siena, we were never a mistake.
You’re the only thing in my life that’s ever been right. ”
She sobs against my chest, and I press my lips to her temple, silently begging her to understand. To forgive. To come home.