Chapter 21 Adrian
A fter Mia woke up from her long morning nap, clearing needing the extra hours of sleep to recover from the stress and exhaustion in the past twenty-four hours, we settled into the living room to start the work of setting up our escape plans.
While she raided the refrigerator to gather ingredients to make us some sandwiches for a late lunch, I made a phone call to my contact in the local coroner’s office.
I keep my phone angled away from Mia as I dial the next number, carefully guarding the display as if she might glimpse the details of who I’m contacting. It’s not that I don’t trust her—God knows I do—but this contact is one I’ve guarded for years. Even Massimo doesn’t know I’ve got Dr. Edmund Rhodes on standby for “special circumstances.” This is a man I’ve trusted with secrets, a man who could either ruin me or help me vanish entirely, depending on how the chips fall.
I step into the small alcove by the window, turning my back as the phone rings, my voice dropping low when he answers. “Edmund, it’s Adrian.”
“Mr. Luciana,” he greets me, his tone sharp but professional. “You need bodies and equipment, I presume?”
“That’s right. A man and a woman. And I’ll need it quiet. Off the record.”
A pause. He understands that I’m asking for more than just a favor. There’s a price on this kind of discretion, one I’ve always paid him well for, but even he can sense that this time is different.
“I can arrange for two anonymous cadavers to be delivered to the cabin. You’ll receive them prepped and unidentifiable. I’ll handle the autopsy reports and ensure there’s no trace back to either of you. No names, no records.”
“Perfect. And bring the supplies we previously discussed to create an explosion—the fuel, the ignition switch.” I glance over my shoulder at Mia, who’s watching me with a mix of curiosity and tension as I murmur instructions. “We’ll set the stage and then disappear. Understood?”
“Understood, Mr. Luciana. I’ll see you tomorrow night after midnight, as long as the roads are clear.”
“Good man,” I reply before hanging up and turning back to Mia, who’s waiting with a steaming mug of coffee and a look of nervous expectancy.
She hands me the coffee as I sit across from her, taking a long sip and letting the warmth fill me, grounding me in the moment. I know she’s waiting for me to spell out the full extent of what we’re about to do.
“We’re in the clear for supplies,” I say. “Bodies, fuel, ignition switch, everything we need to make this believable.”
“Are the roads clear?” She cocked her head, a worried expression on her face.
I nodded. “Almost. I arranged a private crew to start working on them yesterday. I get updates and I’m told they are finishing the last section of road and driveway today.
Mia nods, her fingers tracing absent patterns on the rim of her mug. “Adrian… you’re really sure this is what you want to do? To leave everything?”
I reach across the small table, taking her hand firmly in mine. “Mia, I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. There’s nothing left for me in that world—not when I have you here with me.”
Her gaze flickers, and I can see that fierce independence tempered by a tentative hope, the same vulnerability she showed me our first last night, one that makes me want to shield her from every hurt that’s ever crossed her path.
But even as I hold her hand, feeling the steady beat of my own heart grounding me, I know there’s something she still needs to know. Something that might break her but needs to be said if we’re going to move forward.
“Mia…” I pause, bracing myself for the pain I’m about to unleash. “There’s something else I haven’t told you about.”
She sits more upright, her brow furrowing as she senses the shift in my tone.
“When Massimo called me, he gave me a direct order.” I feel the weight of the words pressing against my chest. “He ordered me to kill you.”
She pulls back her head sharply. As her expression falters, the spark of hope in her eyes snuffed out as she pulls her hand back, folding it tightly in her lap. She looks down, silent for a long moment, her face tightening, eyes unfocused as the reality of it sinks in.
“I don’t know what to say,” her voice is strained and her eyes look bruised.
I feel the sharp sting of guilt. “I didn’t tell you until I could finalize my plans to get us out of here, Mia. I don’t want you to worry. Nothing’s going to happen to you, of course. I had to come up with something that would buy us time.”
She nods, forcing a smile.
I swallow hard, the bitterness filling my throat. “But that’s not the worst of it. I’d been pushing him to hold off, hoping… praying… your brother would intervene. That he’d fight to protect you.”
The color drains from her face, and I see her hands tighten into fists. “Dante…” she breathes, her voice breaking on the word. “He didn’t… he wouldn’t…”
I reach for her, placing a hand on her shoulder, but she jerks away, the anguish spilling over as she turns to me, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “Tell me,” she whispers. “Tell me what Dante said.”
I force myself to hold her gaze, hating the pain I see there, the heartbreak I’m about to deepen. “Dante told Massimo that he didn’t care if we killed you. Said he wasn’t coming for you… and that finding pieces of you scattered across Winter Haven wouldn’t make a difference.”
A strangled sound escapes her, and she claps a hand over her mouth, as if to contain the scream clawing its way up her throat. Her body trembles as the realization hits her, shattering whatever last scrap of loyalty she’d held on to, whatever lingering hope she’d kept for the brother she used to know.
I move towards her, pulling her against my chest as the tears fall. She doesn’t resist, doesn’t push me away. Instead, she clings to me, her fingers digging into my back, her sobs muffled against my shoulder as I hold her close, feeling each tremor of pain ripple through her.
“Mia,” I murmur, pressing my lips to her hair. “You’re not alone. Not anymore. I’m here. I’m not letting you go, and I’m damn sure not letting anyone hurt you ever again.”
She pulls back, her eyes searching mine, raw and vulnerable. “Adrian, I don’t understand. Why? Why would you risk everything for me?”
I cup her face in my hands, brushing away the dampness from her cheeks, my gaze steady. “Because you’re everything to me, Mia. You’re the one I’ve been looking for… the one who made me believe that maybe, just maybe, I could have a life outside this damn family. I only want that with you.”
Her eyes glisten with fresh tears, but this time, there’s a softness in her gaze, a trust that wasn’t there before. “You mean that?”
“With every piece of me,” I say, my voice low but firm. “You don’t have to feel alone anymore, because I’m yours. I’m your family now, Mia. And I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you feel loved and protected, the way you’ve deserved all along.”
She leans into my touch, closing her eyes as a sigh escapes her, a soft, broken sound that feels like the release of years of hurt and isolation. I hold her, feeling the fragility of this moment, the way we’re both laying everything bare, giving each other every raw, unguarded part of ourselves.
For a while, we sit like that, the silence between us filled with a quiet understanding, a promise that binds us deeper than any spoken words. And when she finally lifts her head, her expression is different—resolute, fierce.
“All right,” she says, her voice steady, though there’s a tremor underneath. “Let’s do this, Adrian. Let’s make this plan work… for both of us.”
I nod, feeling the spark reignite within me, a shared determination burning between us. “I’ll make the next calls, get everything in place.” I lean forward, brushing my lips softly against hers, sealing the vow we’ve made. “We’re getting out of this, Mia. Together.”
She watches as I turn away, my phone in hand, dialing the next contact. And this time, I don’t feel the weight of secrecy, the usual tension that comes with covering my tracks. I feel only the fierce conviction that I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe, to give her the life she deserves.
As the calls continue, I glance back at her, watching the quiet strength that’s settled into her expression, the silent resolve that mirrors my own. And I know, without a doubt, that whatever obstacles lie ahead, we’ll face them together.