Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Enzo yawned again, and took a healthy gulp from the coffee mug clutched between his hands. He hadn’t slept at all. Between fielding calls throughout the night and getting nowhere, his frustration was high. But the real reason he could not sleep was Kathleen Drake.
This had taken on a whole new level of danger.
Alessandro Vitale was not someone to trifle with, but if Rocco was out for Enzo’s blood, it was a whole different level of danger.
It was one thing to deal with random henchmen.
Enzo had done that for most of his life.
But with Vitale and Rocco involved, the danger multiplied.
Which meant Enzo had to tell Kathleen it was time for her to go home. He did not look forward to that argument, but what choice did he have?
He drained the dregs of his coffee and walked back toward the kitchen to refill his mug.
His bag was already packed. He was ready to go.
As soon as he dropped Kathleen, he would start making his way to Mallorca.
She was right, having the treasure would be the best power move, but he just didn’t have the time to look for it, and now, if La Famiglia was turning on him, he wasn’t sure he had the resources either.
Now he just had to convince Kathleen that New York was where she needed to be. He snorted to himself. He already knew it wouldn’t be easy. She was as stubborn as she was beautiful. It was one item on a long list of things he liked about her.
He poured more coffee and then heard soft footsteps on the stairs.
Definitely Kathleen, her step was lighter, softer, out of place compared to the heavy stride of his men.
He grabbed another mug and poured coffee for her, adding a little cream.
He had no idea how she liked it, but figured why not try?
When he came out of the kitchen, he found her standing at the terrace doors, staring out. There was a small bag at her feet. “You going somewhere?” he asked in surprise, offering her the mug.
She wrapped her hands around it as if she hadn’t been warm in ages and inhaled deeply. “Coffee here is so much better,” she murmured. Then, with a shaky exhale: “Yes. I’m going home.”
A sharp, unexpected disappointment lodged in his chest. This was what he wanted, what was safest for her, so why did it feel like a punch to the ribs?
“I understand,” he said quietly. “I was going to talk to you about that this morning. It’s probably better if you do go.”
“Yes.” She nodded. “I don’t know what I’ve been thinking.
I guess it all seemed like fun and games at a certain level, but this…
” She met his gaze. “This is different. Kidnapping. Hostage situations. Treasure maps? And I get the impression that whoever this man is, this Vitale, he’s not someone you want to tangle with. ”
Enzo nodded slowly. He wouldn’t burden her by letting her know that now there were more players in the twisted game. It didn’t matter. She was going home.
“It’s just better if I go,” she finished.
He agreed with her one hundred and ten percent, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t disappointed she was leaving.
When this was over, he would go to New York and take Kathleen out on a real date.
Something fun. He started to say something and then changed his mind.
When he worked for La Famiglia, he had a rule: Don’t make any promises.
Who knew if he would be around to keep them?
Instead, he said, “So… what time is the jet coming? I assumed you called your brother?”
She waved a hand. “No. I’m going commercial. I don’t want to explain everything. It’s easier this way. When I get to New York, I’ll talk to Jamie and explain.”
Enzo opened his mouth to argue, but then closed it.
Fighting her would do no good. She would be safer on a private jet, but he didn’t have time to wait for that to happen.
She should be fine on a commercial flight.
It wasn’t like they could grab her in mid-air.
He’d tell Jamie she was coming and make sure he had a serious security detail waiting for her the moment she landed.
“Okay. What time is your flight?”
She glanced at her watch. That’s when he noticed just how pale she was. Dark circles shadowed her eyes. She looked fragile in a way she never had before. It broke his heart that it was partially his fault she looked this way.
“I have just enough time for this coffee,” she said softly. “Then we should go.”
He nodded. “Alright. I’ll get my team organized. I’ll meet you out front.”
She gave him a small smile and sipped her coffee. Enzo walked back to his office with a strange heaviness lingering in his chest. He’d caused her fear, her distress. It twisted him in ways he didn’t like.
He should have left that stupid statue. Then he would be out of this now. He cursed. No, he argued with himself, he wouldn’t. Vitale would have come after him anyway and told him to get the map back. That fiend had Bianca and wanted the map. He wouldn’t have just let Enzo off the hook.
No, it was a good thing he had the map, but it had brought danger to Kathleen’s door, and he was heartsick over that.
He sent quick texts to his men about the plan, tidied his desk, and locked down anything he had to leave behind.
He wasn’t sure when he’d be back. Truthfully, he wasn’t sure he’d be back at all.
When you were dealing with Alessandro Vitale or Rocco Rinaldi, life became uncertain.
Enzo put feelers out to find out exactly what play Rocco had.
That was all he could do at the moment, so he set that worry aside.
A few minutes later, he walked to the front door. Kathleen was standing on the steps, his man was already loading her bag. Two SUVs waited at the curb. Kathleen climbed into the first SUV. The security team piled into the second.
Enzo drove. When they pulled out, another SUV slid into line ahead of them, a lead car.
Danilo was driving. He wasn't taking chances. Danny was the best he had, after himself. They’d both taken a lot of driving courses and done some racing, so they were more familiar with fast speeds and evasive driving than anyone else.
Which reminded him that he needed to ask Danny why Matteo had been driving the other day.
He’d done well enough, but it could have ended very differently.
They wound through the streets of Milano toward the airport. He checked in with his team. No tail. That didn’t comfort him. If Vitale wanted a tail, Enzo would never see it.
They pulled into the departures area. Kathleen turned to him.
“Well… thank you.”
A short bark of laughter escaped Enzo, surprising them both. “For what? I think I’ve only gotten you into more trouble.”
She smiled, a hint of her usual spark returning. “Maybe. But at least we had fun doing it.”
He nodded, a tight ache in his chest. “Take care of yourself.”
“I’ll do my best.”
He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss.
She caught his face in her hands and deepened the kiss, taking him by surprise.
Then she broke off the contact and offered him a quick smile before reaching for the door as one of Enzo’s men opened it for her.
They flanked her immediately as she slid out.
At the last second, Enzo made a decision.
He hopped out of his door and quickly joined her.
He didn’t want her to go, but more than that, he needed to be sure she was safe.
“I’ll walk you in,” he said. “At least as far as I can.”
He scanned the area. Nothing seemed off. Which only made the ache in his chest tighter.
They walked into the airport with his security team close behind. Most travelers here were used to people with bodyguards; no one paid attention.
Kathleen had already checked in. She carried only a small bag.
She’d left most of her stuff with Aldo and had asked that he ship it to her since she didn’t want to bother with checked luggage.
Enzo appreciated her efficiency. Most women he knew wouldn’t part with all of the new clothing they’d just purchased.
As they approached the passport control line, Enzo’s spine prickled. Something was wrong. He scanned the terminal. Nothing. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. He scanned again.
Two men were loitering near the wall on their left, near the passport queue. It was hard to tell for sure because they were wearing ballcaps, but he felt they watched too closely. Paid too much attention.
He continued to scan. One more on the right. A woman this time. Still on this side of security. He alerted his men.
At least they were on this side. He could get her through security, but then what? She would be on her own. Maybe he should go back and buy a ticket so he could walk her right to the door of the jetway.
Enzo continued his sweep. His stomach dropped. Just ahead, right before the security lane, were four men he recognized immediately as Vitale’s men. They stood in a cluster, boldly staring.
“We have to—” He broke off as Dominic, one of Vitale’s right-hand enforcers, approached. Enzo’s men immediately encircled him and Kathleen.
Dominic smiled, sharp, amused, deadly. “Enzo. Good to see you. But we have a request… Mr. Vitale prefers Miss Drake remains with you.”
“I don’t give a flying fuck what Vitale prefers—”
Dominic held up a hand, still smiling. “If Miss Drake goes through security, my men on the other side will grab her. If you call in a jet, we have men stationed there, too.”
Despite the conversation being conducted in Italian, Kathleen stiffened beside him.
“Vitale prefers,” Dominic continued smoothly, switching to English, “that you stay together.”
“Why the hell does it matter?” Enzo growled, sliding his arm around Kathleen. She leaned into him, eyes wide with fear.
Dominic’s smile sharpened. “Because having to keep track of Miss Drake while handling everything else… adds a certain complication.”