Chapter 52
Isabella
Icouldn’t stop trembling. Lorenzo hadn’t told me how long I had to say my goodbyes, so I needed to think and plan quickly, but my mind was reeling, making it hard to think.
I wasn’t going to be able to get Gemma out of the estate on my own. But who could I ask for help? Elio and Damian were out of the question: they were Lorenzo’s right and left hands. The same went for Amalia. She would never cross Lorenzo, especially for Gemma.
I really only had one option.
Running for the stairs, I could only hope that Cristian was willing to take a risk. I knocked on his door, wincing at how it echoed in the empty hallway. It only took him a few seconds to answer, but it felt like it took centuries.
“Cristian,” I breathed out. My brain and body seemed to be at war with one another: my brain was spinning far faster than my body was allowing.
“Isabella?” Cristian’s eyebrows pulled inward. “What’s wrong?” He looked down. “Is it the baby?”
I shook my head. “The baby is fine,” I assured him. My voice was hoarse from fear. “It’s Gemma.”
A complicated look flickered over his face. “Isabella, I don’t think I’m the one to come to about your sister.”
“You’re the only one who can help me.”
“What?”
“Gemma called the FBI.” The words struck Cristian like a punch to the face. “Lorenzo is going to kill her.”
Cristian didn’t even bother to tell me that I was wrong: he knew his brother better than that. “What did he say, exactly?”
“That he would make it painless unless I interfered,” I told him. “He’s giving me time to say goodbye.”
Cristian frowned, deeply troubled. “You should be spending time with her.”
I sobbed, shaking my head. “I can’t do that,” I said.
“You’ll regret it if—”
“No,” I said, cutting him off. “I cannot let Lorenzo hurt her.”
Cristian stared at me, blinking over and over. “You know that won’t end well. If you go against Lorenzo, he’ll make it ten times worse.”
His threat rang in my mind. “I know, but I can’t let her die.”
Cristian stared at me as if he had never seen me before; I wanted to sink into the floor.
This could blow up in my face so badly if he turned around and went running to Lorenzo.
“Why are you telling me this?” he asked, voice cautious, practically begging me not to say what he knew I was going to say.
“I need help.”
He immediately shook his head. “I can’t.”
“Then, she’ll die,” I shot back, “and I don’t know if I’d ever be able to come back from that.”
Cristian winced, but still, he reiterated that he couldn’t help. “Why did you come to me?” he demanded. “Out of all the people you could have turned to.”
“Because you’re the only one who understands,” I said. “You were born into the Cosa Nostra, but you also got out. You’ve seen life on both sides; you have to understand how jarring it is to be shoved into this life.”
Cristian sighed and nodded. “It’s a lot for anyone to handle,” he agreed.
“It’s like tripping into a minefield,” I pushed. “You’re never really sure that something isn’t going to blow up in your face. I’m adjusting to that feeling, but Gemma never will. She’s too soft; she won’t survive.”
Cristian was quiet for a moment. It seemed to stretch on for years. “You’re asking me to betray my brother.”
“I know,” I said, pleading with him. “Believe me, if I thought I could do this on my own, I would. I know what helping me would cost you, but I cannot do this alone, so I’m asking you to help me save my sister.”
If he said no, I would have to find a way to get Gemma out of the house.
That would mean telling her what was going on before leaving, and I wasn’t sure if she was self-aware enough to be quiet and do what I said.
My heart started to race, and that set the baby off.
He squirmed and wiggled, unhappy with the adrenaline spiking through both of us.
“Maybe I could talk to Lorenzo,” Cristian offered. “He listens to me.”
If this were any other situation, I would agree with him. Lorenzo respected Cristian’s opinions more than anyone; if Cristian gave his older brother explicit advice on something, he’d usually listen. But not about this.
This kind of betrayal wasn’t something easily forgiven or forgotten.
What am I thinking? I shouldn’t have come up here. I shouldn’t have put Cristian in an impossible situation. “I’m sorry,” I told him. “I’m sorry. I should have never—”
“I’ll help.”
I jerked. “Cristian.” My heart kicked hard against my ribs. “You will? Really?” I felt like I could cry all over again.
He nodded, and then swallowing hard, looked behind him. “Luce mia.”
I heard someone moving behind him, and my heart beat became deafening in my own ears. My stomach dropped to my knees. “Cristian, who—?” Gemma appeared in the gap behind him.
Gemma smacked him, over and over. “You had to think about whether to save my life or not?” she asked through gritted teeth. “After what I just let you do? I thought you were a good guy!” Her voice rose, and it echoed around us, and everything inside of me froze.