42. Enough
Enough
“You don’t have to do this, Callum,” I wheezed. Callum’s rigid shoulder pressed into my stomach with every step.
“Unfortunately, I do.”
“Where are you taking me?” My voice faltered when I saw the cargo ship waiting at the end of the dock. “What do you want with me if you’re leaving Rome?”
He didn’t answer. Oh, God. If I left Italy on that boat, it would make it a thousand times harder for Sani to find me. The thought of never seeing him again… it was too painful to bear.
My pulse quickened, heat rushing through me as I bucked, thrashing like a fish out of water, almost causing Callum to lose his grip and drop me.
He slid me down his body until I was back on my feet, one arm wrapped tight around my back while he clutched my jaw roughly, fingers digging into my flesh.
“I don’t want to hurt you, Aria. But I will if you give me no other choice.” He glared at me, his jaw taut as he gritted through clenched teeth. “Now, behave.”
Before I could respond, he’d thrown me over his shoulder and took a few more steps until the atmosphere shifted around us. The silence was deafening. Callum’s men had all come to a complete halt, their guns raised and poised ahead as Callum’s strides slowed beneath me before he came to a slow stop.
A strange stillness had taken hold of them all, and the air crackled with a heavy, electric charge, like the feeling just before a storm breaks. My heart lurched, and I tried to swing my upside-down head to the side to see around Callum’s back.
And there was the cause. My husband. My protector. The man I was hopelessly in love with.
He was leaning casually against the corner of a steel container as if he’d been standing there all along, waiting.
Dressed in a black shirt with sleeves rolled up as usual and black trousers, with one hand in his pocket and the other hanging loosely at his side, holding a silver gun.
Although he looked relaxed, almost bored, his eyes told a different story.
Even from a distance, I could sense them locked on me, scanning quickly for injuries, darkening at the cable ties around my wrists and the rope around my ankles. The overwhelming tension in my chest snapped with relief, and I could breathe again. He’d found me.
“Sani–” His name had scarcely left my lips when his eyes darted to my face, and everything else seemed to vanish; the men, Callum, the boat, the sea.
The only thing that existed in that moment was the way his face softened, just for a fleeting second, as he reassured me without words.
Then his deadly glare returned as he directed his gaze at Callum.
I couldn’t see Callum’s face, but I could feel how his body had tensed and how he’d tighten his hold around my thighs.
“You’re here alone,” Callum shouted. “How heroic.”
Sani straightened and stepped forward, blocking Callum’s escape route.
“Put.” The ocean breeze ruffled his black hair and carried his eerily calm voice like a looming threat. “My wife. Down.”
No one moved. No one spoke. Callum let out a frustrated sigh, tilting his head back to gaze at the sky, showing this was a massive inconvenience to his plans. He lowered his head, locked eyes with Sani, and muttered two words that made my stomach drop.
“Kill him.”
The quiet command cut through the air like a whip, and I screamed as the men opened fire on Santino. Callum spun round, shifting me higher on his shoulder as he sprinted between two shipping containers to take a different route to the boat.
“Sani!” I screamed, his name tearing from my throat.
The sound of screeching tyres joined the gunfire, and I lifted my head to see three black SUVs had skidded to a stop and Buccini soldiers came flying out to join the chaos.
I glimpsed Giovanni, crouched behind an open door, shooting, but there was no sign of Santino.
Callum’s boots battered the dock as he sprinted towards the water’s edge, the cargo ship once again looming ahead like a dark mountain of doom.
I kept shouting Sani’s name, knowing it was the only thing I could do to help him track us.
My heart thumped violently as Callum veered sharply towards the end of the harbour and the waves slapped against the edge of the concrete.
One moment I was in the air, over Callum’s shoulder, and the next I was falling, tumbling to the hard ground as a powerful force crashed into Callum. I rolled across the asphalt, my shoulder scraping painfully against the rough surface before I stopped just short of the edge of the dock.
Groaning, I shut my eyes tightly to recover from the disorientation and clear my vision.
When I opened them again, Santino and Callum were locked in a brutal fight, their fists flying into each other’s faces too fast to keep up with.
I tried to move, but my wrists throbbed where the cable ties had cut into my skin.
I rubbed my ankles together, trying to break free from the rope, but it was futile.
My eyes widened as I saw the men grappling on the floor, a knife in Santino’s hand inching towards Callum’s throat. Callum had his hand beneath Santino’s jaw, forcing him back while he tried to change the direction of the knife between them.
“Sani!”
Callum’s eyes swerved to me, a cold glint sparking inside them. His leg lashed out with a sharp kick to my stomach, driving searing pain through my ribs. The force of the blow sent me tumbling straight over the edge of the dock.
The world disappeared as I was swallowed whole by a wave, my body sinking in a weightless dance against the current.
The freezing water stole my breath, and a guttural cry escaped, only to dissolve into shimmering spheres rising towards the fading light above.
Unable to swim with my hands and legs tied, a surge of panic swept through me as I thrashed wildly, struggling to reach the surface.
For a few precious seconds, I pushed through the water and tried to inhale a deep breath as the force of the waves struck my face. The spray obscured my vision, but I still saw them: two figures on the dock, locked together like animals trying to tear each other apart.
I had barely formed Sani’s name when saltwater flooded my mouth, and I was dragged back down to the depths. My lungs burned, and my muscles ached as I struggled to fight my way back up, but it was hopeless; the surface seemed to slip further and further away.
My chest clenched, desperate for air, and the corners of my vision darkened as a pulsating pressure in my head intensified the terrifying clarity. I was drowning.
I blinked against the blur of the surface, seeing a shape crash through and dive down towards me. Sani. Even underwater, I knew it was him. Strong arms wrapped around my waist, and then he was kicking hard, driving us upwards until we broke through the waves together.
Crisp air rushed into my lungs in painful bursts as I coughed against his shoulder, my head leaning into his neck.
“Ci sono io, piccola,” he breathed harshly, one arm locked around me tightly, holding me against him as he kept us afloat.
I closed my eyes, simply living in that surreal moment of salvation and love as he swam back towards the dock, repeating that line over and over. I’ve got you, baby. I’ve got you.
Hands gripped my biceps and lifted me away from him, pulling me out of the water and onto the dock.
I blinked up at Giovanni’s face, still coughing and wheezing for more oxygen as Sani braced his hands on the concrete and pulled himself out.
He reached for me immediately, pulling me back into his arms as Giovanni cut the cable ties from my wrists with a knife and untied my feet.
Sani’s hands were everywhere. Gripping my shoulders, exploring my body, running through my hair as his intense, dark eyes tracked their path, checking for any serious injuries.
“Are you hurt?” he asked, his voice rough and tinged with anger as he cradled my face in his hands. I concentrated on my breathing and shook my head, my lips trembling as gratitude washed over me. He saved my life.
As though he didn’t believe that I was truly okay, his eyes kept searching and settled on my marked wrists as I rubbed them.
A shadow fell over his features at the sight, but I threw my arms around his neck and pressed my face into his skin, inhaling his scent.
He held me close, so tight that all the air I’d just tried to breathe in rushed out again, but I didn’t care.
His hand slid into the back of my wet hair, and he gently pulled my head up, pressing his forehead to mine as he breathed against my lips. “You scared me, Ribelle. I nearly lost you.”
His words were barely above a whisper and laden with so much emotion. I’d never heard him sound so broken.
“I knew you’d find me.”
“You could have drowned.”
“But you saved me.”
“Always. I’ll always save you,” he growled, tightening his grip in my hair before pressing his lips to mine, pouring all the maddening love between us into a soul-baring kiss.
We broke apart at the sound of more boots coming down the dock behind us.
Santino’s men. I peered over my shoulder and saw that Gio had an unconscious Callum on the ground and had tied his hands behind his back.
“Take him,” Gio commanded, and two men stepped forward to drag his limp body off the floor, his head hanging low. Blood was pouring from his mouth, and he looked battered, with a knife wound to his shoulder.
“Is he dead?” I whispered as he was carried away.
“Better not be,” Sani growled, glaring at him and pulling me closer into his chest. “I have plans.”
I had no doubt. A fire flickered in Sani’s eyes, sharp and piercing, promising a storm of violence. Callum had better hope he died from his wounds before Sani had him tied up in his sanctuary.
“I’ll make sure he stays alive until you get there. Take your time,” Gio said, gripping Sani’s shoulder. His eyes moved to my face, and he offered me a smile. The first one I’d ever seen on the mafia boss. “Are you sure you’re okay, Aria? Do you need a doctor?”