11. SQUALO #2
“Meet us at the master suite,” I said, walking past them.
As I headed down the hallway, I caught Gabriella whispering to Isabella.
“Do I have to go with him?”
Isabella didn’t answer. She stopped outside her dorm while Gabriella reluctantly followed me.
By the time we reached the stairs leading to the upper deck, I noticed her pace slowing. She dragged her feet up each step, one hand gliding along the rail.
“At this pace, we’ll get there next week.” I chuckled. “I’ve seen glaciers move faster.”
She let out an annoyed breath. “If you’re that eager, then carry me.”
There were rules Gianni and I had set back in 1993, and one of them was not touching his sister. It suited me just fine. I didn’t want to touch her, not even with a ten-foot pole. But watching her crawl up those stairs…
“Fuck,” a word just slipped out.
I stopped, turned around, and took a few steps back down. She stared at me, confusion draining the color from her face, but I didn’t say a word. I stopped in front of her, and before she could even blink, I grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her over my shoulder.
“Do you want to lose an arm?” she hissed, pounding her fists against my back. “Put me down.”
“Don’t move,” I muttered. “You’ll wake everyone up.”
“Do I look like I give a shit?” Her voice rose to its normal volume. “I’m not joking, Oliver. If you don’t put me down, I’ll chop you in half and feed you to the sharks.”
I ignored her and kept climbing until we reached the upper deck. I pushed open the door and took another flight of stairs to the bridge cabin.
The key was already in the lock. I turned it carefully and eased the door open while she continued hammering my back. My skin had gone numb beneath the steady blows of her fists, but I kept quiet. The last thing I wanted was anyone knowing we were up here.
As the door clicked shut behind us, I lowered her onto the floor.
Her feet landed on the blue carpet, its center stitched with a rose of the winds, the north point aimed toward the wide windows overlooking the bow. A bank of computers lined the long console beneath them, their screens casting a pale glow across the room.
She parted her lips to say something, but I ignored her and walked straight to the desk.
I dropped into the chair, wrapped my hand around the mouse and clicked the screen awake.
Then, I pulled up the surveillance recordings, and rewound the footage to the last thirty minutes to find the man in the hood.
She stepped closer, close enough for me to feel her breath brush the back of my ear.
“A normal person would apologize for acting like an animal.”
I turned my head. Our faces were so close I could feel her breath against my lips.
“Do I look like a normal person?” I asked, my jaw tightening as my eyes locked with hers.
Her gaze drifted back to the screen.
“Does this look weird to you?”
I rewound the footage a few minutes.
A hooded man snatched a piece of paper from Isabella’s hand and shoved her toward the plunge pool. But she never actually fell. She jumped in herself.
Then the hooded man turned.
I recognized him instantly.
“That’s Dante,” I said. “He was supposed to be missing.”
A few seconds later, after Dante walked away from the plunge pool, another man stepped in and pulled the pool cover shut.
I knew this face as well. This was Luca. His brother.
They were working together, and they were both on my yacht.
I exited the recording and returned to the live surveillance feed. Rising from the chair, I towered over Gabriella, searching her startled face.
“What did he take?”
She swallowed. “I don’t know.”
I scoffed. “You’re such a good liar, Gabriella.”
I took a step forward.
She took one back.
“Stop,” she whispered, her hand hovering over my chest.
I caught her wrist and pulled her toward me until her body collided with mine. My lips parted, ready to curse her. She knew far more than she should, and I wasn’t ready to let her drown just yet.
Footsteps came from the other side of the bridge.
My hand slid to her waist, and I spun her around, guiding her backward until her back met the wall. I clamped my hand over her mouth.
“Shh.”
I pulled her toward a small alcove hidden behind a curtain, where a narrow table with a coffee machine was tucked away.
It was the only place to hide.
I pressed her against the table. Her legs parted around my hips as I crowded into the small space. My hand stayed firmly over her mouth while her eyes held mine. The space was so cramped I had no choice but to press against her just to fit inside.
She sank her teeth into my fingers, making me hiss, but I only pressed my hand harder against her face. Her face was so petite my palm covered almost the entire lower half of it.
We had never been this close.
I could smell the faint scent of vanilla on her skin, and feel the warmth radiating from her body. Her eyes shifted with the light, settling into their darkest shade of blue.
How could this woman be at the root of everything I hated?
I swallowed, my jaw locking.
The door opened, and footsteps entered the bridge, followed by voices.
She tried to squirm free, but the tighter she struggled, the more she rubbed against me. An irritated huff escaped her nose as her eyes rolled.
“I set the course for Li Galli,” a man’s voice said. “We should be there in a day or two, depending on how long that rich bastard can stall.”
That voice belonged to a captain—just not the one I’d hired. I’d seen him at the helm of the Deep Blue during tours, but for this sail I’d chosen Captain Nicholas Smith, a man who’d sailed with me for years.
Gabriella raised an eyebrow when he called me a bastard.
She looked like she agreed.
I answered by pulling her a little closer, my left eyebrow quirking upward.
“We have to find De Luca,” the captain continued. “He has the rest of the map.”
A map?
“I’ll keep a close eye on his sister.” This voice belonged to George.
“We’ve only got the coordinates. We still don’t know where the gold is buried.”
Gold?
“Get the tape from tonight. They can’t know Dante is with us.”
A mouse clicked, opening the recording.
I could hear the captain pull the tape free and slap it against his palm.
“Let’s meet Dante,” he said before a few more clicks sounded through the cabin.
Then footsteps crossed to the door, and a moment later the lock clicked shut behind them.
I pulled my hand away from Gabriella’s mouth and stepped back.
She straightened immediately, glaring at me.
“You could’ve smothered me.”
“I can see you’re still breathing.” I shrugged. “You’re welcome.”
She shut her eyes and took a slow breath through her nose, trying to compose herself.
“Whatever.” She waved a hand and headed for the door.
“Before you leave,” I said, stepping closer. My hand rested against the doorframe. “Don’t trust anyone. Not even Isabella.”
“And who should I trust?” A mocking smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. “You?”
“Just be careful,” I said with a sigh, stepping aside.
I watched her walk away, my eyes fixed on her back as if it might reveal what she was thinking.
Instead, it only left me with more questions than answers. But if I wanted answers, I had to let her go.