CHAPTER 6
Adriano
Meeting with Gennaro wasn’t on the list of things I ever planned to do again, but here I am. I’ll do anything to get Chiara back, and if that means I have to negotiate with my adoptive father, I’ll do it.
He sits at one of the tables at the restaurant where we’ve agreed to meet. His guards are standing not too far away behind him, and mine are right behind me.
It’s strange to see Gennaro after all this time. He looks the same, just older. His cold gray eyes regard me carefully as I take a seat at the table across from him.
“It’s good to see you,” he says.
“Is it?” I don’t think I can say the same.
“Of course. You’ve done really well for yourself.”
I raise an eyebrow at him. “I’m not here to chitchat.”
“Then why are you here? What are you boys up to now?” He waves over a waitress, who brings us a bottle of whiskey and two glasses.
But I’m not here to drink, so I wait until the waitress steps away from the table.
“Matteo and I aren’t boys anymore.” I glare at him. “Cut it out with the games. Where is she? Where is my wife?”
I can’t keep the rage out of my voice, and Gennaro’s brow furrows.
“How am I supposed to know where your wife is?” he asks.
I want to lunge across the table and strangle him. “I know Matteo kidnapped her, so don’t pretend you’re fucking clueless. What the fuck do you want from me?”
Gennaro’s jaw clenches, the lines around his eyes becoming more prominent.
Oh, for fuck’s sake. I know what’s happening here. Gennaro truly doesn’t know anything.
“Matteo did it on his own. He didn’t even tell you,” I say.
“I thought you wanted to discuss business. I think it’s time. After all, you’re my heir.”
I scoff.
I’m right.
It’s Matteo who’s behind Chiara’s kidnapping. All on his own.
“I don’t want anything from you,” I say as I get up.
“I understand you’re upset right now. We can talk about this some other time, once your wife is safely back with you. Sit down. I’m going to tell you where Matteo is. You need to show him that you’re better than him.”
I sit back down, but only because I know he won’t tell me anything otherwise. “Why should I believe anything you say? Matteo is your son.”
“So are you.”
“He’s your flesh and blood. You’ve been working with him this whole time, and you abandoned me.”
What does he expect? That I’m just going to forget that important detail?
“I didn’t abandon you, son. I gave you everything you needed to become who you were supposed to be. I set you up for success. And it worked. Look at you. You have everything you could’ve ever dreamed of. Tell me I’m wrong.” The glint in his eyes makes the whole thing sound worse.
He’s so proud of himself. It’s mind-boggling.
“But Matteo is a different story,” he continues, his eyes darkening. “He let his jealousy and your success cloud his judgment. He’s nowhere near as good as you are.”
“And you don’t realize that’s your fault? You always pitted us against each other.”
Gennaro shakes his head. “You were always like that, ever since I brought you home. But that’s because only one can remain in the end. One of you is supposed to get it all. The best one, and that’s you.”
I gape at him. “Are you saying you’d let me kill your own son?”
Because if not, then I don’t know what he’s talking about. Matteo is never going to step away and let me take his birthright.
“If Matteo is so weak he gets himself killed, then so be it.” He waves at the waitress. “Pen and paper.”
The waitress places a notepad and a pen on the table a moment later. Gennaro takes it and scribbles down something. He rips out a small sheet of paper and pushes it across the table toward me.
It’s an address.
I frown at him.
“Matteo’s favorite safe house. He’s probably there,” he says.
“It’s a trap.” I don’t see how it could be anything else.
“That’s for you to figure out. I don’t know what Matteo is thinking. He might be expecting this.” Gennaro shrugs. “You’re smart. Don’t worry.”
I pocket the address and get up. Gennaro smiles at me, and I stride away from him with my guards. What the fuck is going on?
I know Matteo and Gennaro have been together. There have been no fights between them that I know of. At least not big enough to cause such a rift, so what is happening? Is Matteo really doing something on his own? Or is it all a trap for me?
Matteo and Gennaro’s relationship has never been the best, but Matteo has Gaviani blood in his veins. And yeah, all I wanted was to show them that I didn’t need them and that I could do everything on my own. I wanted to be better than Matteo, but hearing Gennaro’s praise feels empty.
I don’t care about any of that anymore. And if it’s true what Gennaro just told me, I’m disgusted. Instead of supporting us both, which is what he should’ve done if he wants to call himself our father, he wants us to try to kill each other to see who prevails.
Then he’ll focus his attention on the winner. Hell, maybe he sent Matteo into this, promising him that if he kills me, he’ll finally get everything he wants.
It’s sick, and I’m glad I didn’t have to spend any time with him after I turned eighteen. If I did, maybe I’d be like Matteo. Just angry and willing to do anything for Gennaro’s attention and approval.
But it doesn’t matter. I’ll check the address. If it’s a trap, I’ll figure it out. Getting my wife back is the only thing I care about.
My men have checked everything, and the address Gennaro has given me exists. The house is huge, and as my men and I are closing in, I spot two guards.
I motion for my men to hide behind the trees. Matteo’s guards have no clue what’s coming. They’re just casually strolling around, and there aren’t many of them, probably so they wouldn’t draw too much attention.
Excitement rushes through me. Is this really it? Is he here with my wife? I motion to my men, and they swiftly move forward.
A few moments later, I see one of the guards fall to the ground. The other one is no longer in sight, but one of my men waves at me.
I hurry forward, keeping my gun up in case more of Matteo’s men pop out from somewhere. Just because we can’t see them and couldn’t detect them earlier when Rocco was checking out the place doesn’t mean there isn’t a hidden exit somewhere.
I race through the open gate. My men are at the front door, which is wide open.
“Sir, all the guards are down. The house is empty.”
Empty? My heart sinks. She’s not here. My wife isn’t here.
Fuck! I kick out at the empty air, cursing under my breath.
“I think they were here recently,” one of my men says as he appears in the doorway.
“But they’re not here anymore, and we don’t know where they are!” I snap.
Was this Matteo’s game? Gennaro’s too? Maybe all they want is to see me suffer. Gennaro didn’t ask me about Chiara and he didn’t say anything about me getting shot.
Why didn’t he tell me how disappointed he was in me? Are they both somewhere together and laughing at me? Watching me from yet another fucking camera? Unless Matteo never really told him all the details, or Gennaro didn’t believe him.
I stride inside the house. If they were here, then maybe there’s some kind of clue about where they might have gone. Maybe there’s something to help me figure out if Chiara is okay.
As I enter the first room, I crease my brow. Empty coffee cups and half eaten food is still on the table. A discarded food wrapper lies on the floor. The chairs are pulled out in a haphazard manner.
It looks like they all left in a hurry. Someone must’ve tipped them off I was coming. But who was it? Gennaro? Maybe he had a change of heart and doesn’t want his son dead after all. I don’t know what games they’re playing and I don’t give a damn.
I have to find Chiara, so I look for a bedroom. As I enter, I spot something peeking out from the nightstand drawer. Photographs.
I pull them out and take a closer look.
What the fuck?
I stare at the photos, unblinking, because I can’t believe my eyes. It’s Chiara and Matteo. She’s wearing some stupid red dress and she’s smiling next to Matteo. I look at the next photo. It’s the two of them on the bed. Kissing?
Fuck!
I grind my teeth. What is that sick son of a bitch doing with her? Why did he take those photos? Probably so he could leave them here on purpose and have me find them.
I toss the photos away. Getting to Chiara is now more important than ever. Who knows what he’s doing to her right now? What if he’s forcing her to...
I don’t even want to think about it because it makes my blood boil. I clench and unclench my fists. But letting anger take me over now isn’t going to help me find my wife. I have to stay in control of myself and my emotions. It’s the only way I’ll be able to save her, but I’m running out of time.
I pull the drawer completely open, nearly yanking it completely out. Another sheet of paper catches my eye.
No. What the fuck is that?
An article about fatherhood? As I lift it, my gaze falls on the ultrasound photos and a pregnancy test under it. Matteo wrote our twins under the image.
I sit down on the bed, staring at the test and the images. This has to be another trick. Matteo wants me to believe my wife is pregnant with his twins? What sick fuckery is this?
But what if it’s true?
What if everything else was a trick and this is real?
I rake my hand through my hair.
Chiara and I met at a club. Matteo could’ve guessed what my type would be. What if he sent her at me? But if she was his girlfriend, why would he let me touch her or marry her? Except, I don’t even know if Matteo cares about any of that. He could be using her too and making her believe he was in love with her.
Or he might have blackmailed her or forced her to do all this. I close my eyes for a moment, my jaw so tense it’s a surprise none of my teeth have cracked. Could he have come up with something like that? Could I have fallen for it?
But why would Matteo try to shoot her then? Or would he have missed her on purpose? Or did he know I’d throw myself in front of her? Or what?
I snatch the pillow next to me and hurl it across the room. It hits a shelf with some ornaments that come crashing down to the floor.
I don’t know what to think anymore. Is any of what happened between Chiara and me real? Because if it’s not...
“What happened?” Rocco asks from the doorway.
He was supposed to stay in the car and watch for any new alerts. But I don’t think anyone’s coming here. Not any more of Matteo’s men and not the cops.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Rocco inches toward me as if he’s entering the cage of a wild beast.
I don’t say anything. I just point at the photos and everything else. He takes a closer look while I keep staring at the wall.
My wife.
My Chiara.
But what if she’s not mine? What if she has never been?
“Chiara is pregnant?” Rocco asks. “Twins?”
I shrug. “That’s what it says.”
“Not yours?”
“We used protection.”
“You know that’s not foolproof.”
“Don’t give me a sex ed class now, for fuck’s sake!” I shoot him a glare. “My wife might be fucking pregnant with Matteo’s twins! Didn’t you see the photos?”
“Why would he leave all of that here for you to find? Come on, think about it. It makes no sense.”
“But what if it does?” I ask. “What if they’ve been together all this time and he used her to get to me? Maybe he guessed which family would be the most problematic and—”
“And wanted her to do what? Break your heart? I think you told me once that Matteo doesn’t believe in love. Why would he assume you’d suddenly fall in love when you were just like him? Gennaro taught you both not to get attached. So Matteo must have come up with this after he saw how much you cared about Chiara. Everything he’s done so far was to hurt you by using your feelings for her. This is just another one of those things, and I know that deep down you’re aware of it too.”
“Why? What’s the point? Are there cameras in here too? Because I can’t see them.”
“We disconnected the power, just in case. He wants you to suffer and he wants you to snap and not think clearly. Maybe he wants you to lose your mind and kill Chiara next time you see her. Who knows? And who gives a fuck what he wants? We’ll find them, and we won’t let Matteo win.”
“How do you know he hasn’t already won?” I want to believe Rocco’s words, but everything is just so... fucked up.
“Because you’re still alive. Now let’s go. If they were here, then they couldn’t have gotten far. We need to search the area.”
“You’re right.” I sigh.
Sitting here and questioning everything that happened between Chiara and me won’t help me. I have to find her, and then I’ll have my answers.
All of them.