Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
With unexpected suddenness, the past rose like a specter in her mind, all the years of worrying if she was doing all she could to keep Connor safe, hidden.
All the moves, all the new beginnings. None of it had been fair to Connor, and she didn’t want to go down that road again.
She needed to hear her son’s voice. Make sure he was safe.
Her voice trembled when she told Enzo, “I’ll meet you in your office shortly.”
She didn’t bother waiting for a reply; she just raced up the stairs like the very devil was after her. Once inside her room, Kathleen closed the door and leaned on it as she gasped for breath. Fear careened through her, causing her heart to thud erratically
She’d always promised herself she would stay out of trouble if she survived WitSec. Then, once she was free, she’d vowed to remain so. Stay on the straight and narrow and stay out of trouble, not that she’d caused the trouble to begin with, but still…
And now, here she was again. She wanted to claim it was through no fault of her own, but the truth was, even though she hadn’t purposely stolen Ernie, she had been enjoying the unexpected adventure.
Now regret flooded her, making bile rise up her throat.
How could she have been so stupid to think this was fun?
Being around Enzo didn’t help matters. He made it hard to think straight.
The sense of adventure was only heightened by his presence.
He was too sexy for words, and that, coupled with chasing a treasure, well, it was like catnip…
addictive and dangerous. But it was done now.
The reality of the situation was settling in her soul.
She was in danger. Enzo and her brother could only do so much.
She’d been cavalier earlier, thinking Connor would be fine without her. That was ridiculous.
Connor. If Vitale could get to her, he could get to Connor.
She straightened and dug her phone out of her pocket, dialing her son’s number.
The phone rang and rang and then went to voicemail.
Her stomach knotted. She tried again. Still nothing.
Nausea crawled up her throat as her vision watered.
Had Vitale gotten to Connor already? Was he another insurance policy?
Panic gripped her heart with icy fingers. Her hands started to shake as she tried to think of who she could call. His coach, Bill Peterson. She looked up Peterson’s number and took a steadying breath. The phone rang and then cut out. She tried again. It rang. It was a stronger connection this time.
“Hello?”
“Bill? It’s Kathleen Drake.”
“Kathleen. You sound scared. Didn’t anyone call you?”
“Call me? What? What do you mean?”
“Kathleen,” Bill said, his voice sounding so apologetic.
“Connor is fine. We’re all fine. The storm last night was much worse than expected, but we made it through, if a little soggy.
” He chuckled. “Someone from the university should have called to tell you we were all okay. I am so sorry about that.”
Kathleen’s mind whirled. What the hell was Bill talking about?
A storm? Then it hit her. Bill had taken the whole football team on a camping trip as a team-building exercise.
They were staying in the wilds of Vermont or New Hampshire.
Suddenly, she couldn’t remember. No campground.
Just deep in some forest, so they had to depend on each other to get everything done.
He did it every year. Said it was the best team-building exercise ever.
“Kathleen, are you still there? Reception isn’t great, even with my satellite hook-up. Kathleen?”
“Yes, I’m here. I’m glad you all are safe. Tell Connor I said hey. Best of luck with the rest of the trip. You are staying for how long again?”
“Another four days. And I’ll tell Connor. Again, I am so sorry that no one reached out to you, but we’re all good.”
“Okay, Bill, take care. Have fun.” She clicked off the call and immediately crashed down on the bed.
She sucked in oxygen like she’d been deprived for hours.
Slowly, the dizziness and nausea faded. Connor was alright.
Better than alright. He was in a forest in the wilds of New England, somewhere no one could get to him for another four days.
It didn’t get better than that. A bubble of laughter burst from her chest, so profound was her relief.
She straightened and let out another breath.
Now she needed to talk to Jamie. First, though, she needed to talk it through with Enzo.
Jamie was going to freak out, and honestly, she didn’t blame him.
She was freaking out. What had started out as a bit of a lark now seemed so much more ominous.
She snorted as she realized how desperately she wanted to go back to being bored.
How could she have taken calm and peace for granted?
She would need to have her answers ready if she was going to keep Jamie from starting a war.
She made her way toward Enzo’s office, fear bubbling in the pit of her stomach. At least she had four days before she had to worry about Connor again.
A rapid string of Italian greeted her as she entered the office.
Enzo was on his feet, one hand on his hip, the other holding his phone as he snarled at the screen.
His shirt was pulled tight across his muscular chest, and the pulse in his jaw jumped.
The voice on the other end replied in a surly tone, but Enzo didn’t appear to be listening.
He met her gaze as he replied to the caller in Italian.
His voice went quiet, and he enunciated very clearly.
She didn’t need to understand the language to know Enzo was threatening the other man on the line.
A shiver went down her spine, although whether it was from fear or desire, she hadn’t a clue.
And just what the hell did that say about her?
Enzo hung up and gestured to the chair across from him. “Coffee?” he asked.
“Who were you threatening?” she countered.
“I thought you didn’t speak Italian.”
“I don’t,” she conceded, “but I don’t need to understand that call. Your tone said it all.”
Enzo moved from behind his desk over to the bar area and poured himself and Kathleen some coffee. He added cream to hers and brought it back, setting it before her.
“Are you going to answer my question?”
He took his seat and took a sip of his coffee as he studied her. “There are a few things I need to share with you, and you aren’t going to like them.”
If she weren’t sitting, Kathleen’s stomach would have dropped to the floor. What else could he possibly tell her that would make things worse? Connor was okay, she reminded herself, and if there was a problem with Jamie, someone would have called her.
“Okay.” Her fingers trembled as she reached for the coffee cup. She wrapped her suddenly cold hands around it and tried to suck the warmth from the mug into her body. “What is it?” she asked, dreading whatever answer he was about to say.
“The man I was speaking to is Bianca’s brother, Rocco.”
Kathleen frowned. “Is he going to help us? Surely he isn’t pleased that Vitale has his sister.”
The pulse in Enzo’s jaw jumped. “Rocco and Bianca don’t get along. They are rivals for their grandfather’s affection. Their grandfather, Massimo, favors Bianca, which makes Rocco jealous.”
Enzo continued. “I used to work for Massimo and stayed when he retired to help Rocco run things for the first six months. Rocco tolerated me then, but barely. Now he’s trying to lay Bianca’s kidnapping at my feet to alienate any support I might have in the family.
He does not want his people to help me.”
Kathleen stared at Enzo. Her mouth went dry as he spoke, her body breaking out in a layer of sweat. He was connected to the… She couldn’t seem to get the words out. She knew what he was trying to tell her, but she just couldn’t get her brain around it. It just couldn’t be true.
“You…” she whispered. “I thought…” She swallowed. “You ran a business like Jamie. That’s what you did. Had an empire of some kind like my brother.”
Enzo cocked an eyebrow. “Is that what he told you?”
Kathleen thought back. “N-no. He didn’t say. I just assumed…I never imagined…” She blew out a breath and raised her mug to take a sip of coffee. Her hand was shaking violently, so she put the mug down on the desk.
“You were in the mob.” It came out harshly; bitterness attached to every word.
“Yes,” Enzo agreed. “I was the Consiglieri for Massimo and then for Rocco. But I was more than that. I ran things as the old man started to drop the ball. He wanted me to take over. Treated me as his successor and heir apparent for the organization. But Rocco, who had done fuck all for the family, and was a screw up, came back and promised to straighten up. He begged to be allowed to take over, claimed it was his right.”
Enzo shrugged. “I was okay with it, but I wanted out. Massimo begged me to stay and help Rocco for six months, and then I was allowed to walk away. We lasted about five. Rocco would like nothing more than to kill me. In his mind, I am still a threat.”
“What does all this mean?” Kathleen breathed. Fear and loathing fought for space in her heart. Another man with connections to organized crime, the very thing that had upended her life all those years ago. Fucking history repeating itself.
“Rocco is trying to blame me for Bianca being kidnapped. He is telling La Famiglia that Bianca was taken as a way to hurt me and that I am responsible for his beloved sister being in danger. He’s trying to poison everyone against me.
He’s told them that he will get Bianca back and that negotiations are already taking place. ”
“Is it true? Is he going to get Bianca back?”
Enzo shook his head. “No. He will kill Bianca and blame me. Then he will put a price on my head, claiming it is my fault she’s dead.”
Kathleen’s entire body went cold. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t swallow, couldn’t think.
She stared at Enzo. This was far worse than anything she’d ever imagined.
Not only was she involved in this ludicrous treasure hunt with a madman, but her protector was a mobster who was feared and hated by his former family.
Enzo took another sip of coffee and then put down his mug. “I wanted you to know the truth so you understand the scope of the situation.”
Kathleen swallowed the scream building within.
She knew from experience that yelling and raging never worked.
White-hot anger suddenly filled her veins.
Her voice was surprisingly cool and mild when she finally spoke.
“So let me get this straight, we have the original thieves who want the map, Vitale and his people, and now Rocco wants you dead too. Does that cover it? Three groups of people who are after us and the treasure?”
Enzo’s voice went equally cool. “That sums it up. Although,” he added, “I think there will be four groups that want me dead once your brother finds out what I’ve brought you into. Jamie will be out for my blood as well.”
“No doubt,” Kathleen agreed. What did it all mean? “So why are you telling me all this? What does it matter?”
“I wanted you to know the truth. Now we make a plan on how we’re going to get the treasure, save Bianca, and survive the rest.”
A laugh burst from Kathleen’s throat. “You make it sound so easy.”
“No, it’s not easy, but it is simple. We need to find the treasure in order to survive. With Rocco in the picture, everything changes. We need to get the upper hand. The treasure does that.”
Kathleen stared at Enzo for a long moment. “Where do we start?”