Chapter Fourteen
Zahra
“Men, am I right?” I raised my hands, dropping them with a tight smile as I approached the counter. Tatty shot me a knowing stare that made me slump my shoulders and groan in exasperation.
“When I realized you two were together-together, I regretted not having popcorn to see Julio get beat up,” she admitted.
Despite my worry, a smile tainted my lips. “Me too … kind of. But that’s me and Julio, Tatty. That’s how we play.”
“Letting him touch your tits in front of a man who gives I can squash you till you’re dust energy?
Yeah, no, you were playing with Julio’s life at that point.
Besides, you’ve got yourself a man now; you can’t be letting Julio touch you like that anymore, or talk to you like that in front of your man. That’s not cool.”
“Yeah, probably, but you don’t know Elio, okay?
He’s—I mean, he can be a little extra sometimes, and it’s not like I knew he would get offended.
Besides, he ignored me throughout the ride here, and you don’t see me being a bitch about it, in fact, I didn’t care.
Why? Because I am mature and I will not be that person. I’m bigger than that.”
Tatty laughed, shaking her head. “I did not miss that attitude.”
I grinned. “I know you love me, everyone loves me, they just like to pretend they don’t love me, but I know they do. I am very lovable.”
Her stare gave Really? as she snorted and said, “Okay, Zahra.” She shook her head. “How did it go with that Devil kid, though? You guys still roll?” she asked, assembling different needles to racks.
“Yeah, Elio’s his brother.”
She stopped. “You’re dating the brother of your fuck buddy?”
“Yup—well, Devil’s not my fuck buddy anymore. We ended it.”
“So, you moved on with his brother.”
I shrugged. “I mean, you’ve seen his brother.”
“I have seen his brother, and I see why, but girl, you move fast.”
I laughed. “Is Daiyu in?” I asked.
“Yup, with all you need.”
My smile slipped off my face as I nodded.
“The operation is a go then?” she asked, and I shifted on my feet.
“Yup.”
“Are you okay? To carry it through?”
I shook my head. “No. But if Daiyu’s lead is right, and Handlers are really on the cruise, I don’t care about anything else. Those kids need saving.”
“Oh, God—he’s gone.” Julio’s words came out cautiously from behind me, cutting our conversation short.
I turned with a sly smirk. “And you scream like a girl. What have I taught you, Julio?”
“Shush.” He’d placed ice on his wrist, cautiously stepping out from behind the door, looking around like Elio might pop up with a gun to finish him off. “A little heads-up would have been nice. Where the fuck did you find him anyway?”
“Brother of the fuck buddy,” Tatty supplied with a smirk.
Julio turned his head to look at me, staring blankly, the catalog tucked under his arm. “Why am I even surprised? Only you would pull something like that; family dinner must be eventful.”
“Ha,” I chortled, and grabbed the catalog when he turned his shoulder, gesturing for me to take it, seeing as he was busy icing his bruised wrist. “No family dinners yet, but hopefully soon. I’ll get popcorn, record the whole thing, and send it to you,” I said, opening the catalog.
“What does he do?” Julio asked, leaning on the counter.
“Eh … politics, inside politics, business shit.”
When I noticed their quietness, I looked up and between both of them before adding, “You know, that serious-people shit that helps the nation?”
Julio nodded.
“Yeah, that’s what he does.”
“Must be loaded,” Tatty said, leaning against the counter while I looked back at the catalog in my hands, flipping page after page of the designs.
“He is,” I agreed. “Hit the jackpot with that one.”
Julio’s laugh was mocking. “Not like it’s any use for you. You have a whole ci—”
“We don’t—” I looked around, my heart lurching as if Elio would pop out of nowhere. “We don’t talk about that.”
“I forget. Apologies, ma’am.” Julio smiled.
“That gloved-hand friend of yours was here,” Tatty cut in.
“Vitale?” I asked, my eyes not leaving the catalog.
“Yup, the hot creepy fucker,” Tatty said. “Said he knew you would drop by here because you were around the area, and to give you a message.”
I looked up, my attention grabbed. “What message?”
“Bells are ringing,” Julio answered. “He said to tell you that, word for word.”
“What is that about?” Tatty asked.
I sighed, my annoyance spiking by the second, as I offered my clueless friends a tight smile.
“He writes nursery rhymes, and, well—loves to drop hints of the new shit he’s working on here and there.
I’m pretty sure he dropped one for Layla because he knows I eat at her family’s restaurant whenever I’m down here. ”
“Creep,” Tatty muttered.
“You can’t blame him; he was dropped too many times as a kid and has so many issues because of it.
In fact, give me a sec; I’ll call him to let him know that I got his message.
” I smiled, pulling out my phone from my purse as I moved to another spot in the reception area, placing a call to the fucking bone in my throat.
He answered on the third ring. “I see your friends delivered my message.”
“Vitale, what is your problem? Ambushing my friends, ambushing me? Threatening me?”
“It got you to call me, didn’t it?”
I rubbed my eyes. “Where the fuck are you?”
“Sicily.”
“Great, stay there, and don’t call or come here until I ask you to.”
“Are you telling me what to do?”
“That’s exactly what I’m doing.”
“You wouldn’t even ask me why I went back to Sicily quicker than intended?”
“No, because I don’t care, and because I really wanted you gone.”
“Ask me.”
I closed my eyes, letting out a controlled breath. “Vitale, I don’t have time for this.”
“Ask me.”
“Fine! What happened to you, sweetheart? Why did you leave so early? I really wanted to spend time with you, it’s so unfortunate, but please tell me why you left.
I really wanna know so bad because this aching in my chest, I can’t—I can’t control it.
I just need to know why you left because I don’t think I’ll survive if you don’t fucking tell me. ”
Without seeing him, I knew he was smiling. I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt.
I heard him clear his throat. “Well, your, uh—recent bed-buddy asked me to leave. He didn’t come to me, but he had people come to me. They threw around threats here and there, gave me hours … a head start.”
I raised my brows. “Oh, that’s expected. I’m surprised he didn’t kill you.”
“Yeah, me too. But I am intrigued. You know me, I love a good drama,” his voice drawled. “I love playing in it. Especially when I know my role is one I would win at. I know what’s coming so … this will be interesting.”
Anger sliced against my chest as I took the phone from my ear, closed my eyes, gritted my teeth, and let out a steady breath.
Opening my eyes again, I pressed the phone back to my ear. “Marino has nothing to do with this.”
“Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Faizan.”
“Stay away from him.”
I heard him give a wistful sigh.
“I fucking mean it, Vitale. You fuck with him, then you fuck with me; there’s no going around it.”
He scoffed, then said, “I’ll be seeing you soon, Faizan.”
The call disconnected.
I squeezed my phone as I pulled it from my ear.
“Fuck,” I muttered, pressing the bridge of my nose.
I wanted to hit something so badly, something that looked and smelled and talked and walked like Vitale fucking Conti.
Schooling my features, I turned back to Tatty and Julio.
“What did I say?” I walked toward them with a grin.
“He was so eager to talk about his new addition to his upcoming album.”
“That I understand, but what’s up with the gloves?”
I blew out a breath. “Every man in their family wears gloves, don’t even get me started on it. It’s like some occultic tradition they can’t talk about. Crazy.” And that was the truth. Vitale always wore gloves like Manuel, their fathers, brothers, cousins, uncles, and nephews.
The Contis were a weird society I didn’t want to get involved with more than I already was. I had no reason to bother them as long as they didn’t bother me.
“Let’s see … I need a shoulder tattoo, something small but symbolic.”
“Shoulder?” Julio asked, surprised. “That’s too innocent for you.”
“Trust me, I know. But I gotta cover a gunshot wound.”
Tatty gasped, eyes wide, with surprise lacing her voice. “Gunshot?”
“Yup.”
“You’re usually more careful,” Julio pointed out.
“That I am. It took me by surprise. Luckily, it wasn’t fatal,” I said, my eyes centering on a heart-shaped design.
I dropped the catalog on the table, turning my head to an angle to see the shape of the design forming an E.
I smirked to myself, pointing at the heart-shaped design.
“This one, I want this one, but with some changes.” I looked up at Julio.
“We won’t finish closing up the heart; we’ll stop the curve at this point.
” I indicated with my finger. “And then from this other bit, it’s going to have, like, a thunder shape design, but … one that looks like the letter M.”
“Hmm, I can picture what you’re saying, but maybe draw it out so we’ll get the full picture?”
Tatty provided paper and a pen, and I carefully drew it out how I wanted it to look. “There, but with more expertise.”
“Got it, I’ll call up Daiyu.”
At the mention of her name, my mind became burdened by the side mission I kept safely hidden from Street and Elio.
The things I would have to do to get them off that cruise ship.
I hadn’t exactly lied to Elio about needing to get a tattoo done, I’d merely omitted the other reason this tattoo parlor was the very one I’d walked into.