Chapter Twenty-Three #2
“My father’s paranoia escalated a few days ago.
I only got one side of the conversation, but from what I gathered, he was talking to one of Marcello’s contacts from Providence.
It seems your father didn’t tell either of them he was framing you for the operation, so mine used it as leverage.
He contacted this man after your wedding and promised him Becca in return for getting rid of you. ”
“The fucking coward knew the writing was on the wall.” Turning, I slam the envelope on the table so hard it rattles. “Why are you telling me this? What’s in it for you?”
“I’m being used, and I want no part of it. I won’t have another woman’s blood on my hands.”
I snap my chin over my shoulder. “What do you mean another ?”
Her shoulders curl inward as if she’s trying to disappear. But she can’t. She’s standing at the mouth of Hell, and the only way out is through a wall of fire. “You have to understand, Gianni, I never meant for it to happen.”
Dark energy vibrates off me as I slowly erase the distance between us. “The truth, now .”
Tears spill down her cheeks. “My father blackmailed Marcello because of me.”
“If you’re hinting that our so-called ‘arranged marriage’ was Carmine’s attempt at forcing Marcello to buy his silence, you can save your breath. We figured that out already.”
“No, you don’t understand. I knew about Victoria,” she says, the sadness in her voice sharpening my defenses.
“I suggest you back the fuck away from this topic.”
She shakes her head, her hands clasped tightly in front of her.
“I can’t, not anymore. You deserve to hear the truth.
” Fear and regret fill her eyes, but I care nothing about either.
My blood has already turned cold. “My father didn’t tell me much about the deal he made, only that he’d uncovered a secret Marcello would do anything to keep quiet.
I didn’t ask questions. I’ve been in love with you since we were kids, Gianni.
” A bitter laugh accompanies her small shrug. “I thought fate had intervened.”
“Get to the point.”
“I was heartbroken when I found out you’d rejected the contract. I wasn’t thinking straight. All I could see was my fairy tale being ripped out of my hands. So while our fathers were meeting, I snuck out and followed you. That’s when I saw you with her .”
A wave of black rage sweeps over my eyes. Every part of me splinters, the man and husband falling away, leaving only the criminal. “You told your father about Victoria.”
The words are sharp and mechanical. No feeling, just purpose.
Her stiff nod radiates alarm, but she doesn’t run. “I was hurt. I didn’t know he’d go to Marcello and threaten to pull the plug on his silence if he didn’t fix it. Even after he did, I never dreamed he’d go so far as to…”
In less than half a second, I have her pinned to the wall by her throat, the muzzle of my gun to her forehead.
“To what, Cathalina … murder her? Because that’s what he did.
I unknowingly sent my girlfriend to her grave because you couldn’t fucking handle rejection.
” A vicious smile spreads across my face.
“But it didn’t work out like you planned, did it?
None of you counted on eyewitness and video footage sending me to jail, or me being handed the opportunity to retaliate. ”
“Go ahead,” she wheezes, her arms hanging limply at her side.
“Pull the trigger, if that’s what you need to do.
I deserve it. But know that while I love you, Gianni, I never wanted that love returned at the cost of someone else.
I swear, I never meant for anyone to get hurt, Victoria or Becca.
That’s why I’ve been hanging around—to ensure history doesn’t repeat itself. ”
“Why didn’t you tell me this before now?”
“I was afraid of what my father would do to me.”
“You should’ve been more afraid of what I’d do to you.
” But even as I say the words, I feel my finger backing off the trigger.
While the man in me demands blood, the criminal recognizes a familiar situation.
Cathalina is nothing more than a pawn in her father’s game.
What she did to Victoria is not unlike what I did to Jack Ledger.
Same script, different actors.
I grit my teeth.
More proof of Becca’s influence altering my brain chemistry.
But not spilling blood doesn’t mean I’m not about to fuck her world up.
I ignore her exhale of relief when I release her throat and slide my gun back into its holster. “Do you know the details of what your father is involved in?”
Her fingers brush the bright red mark on her neck. “No.”
“He kept his mouth shut and looked away while thousands of women were being trafficked through the Port of Providence. Still think Daddy has your best interest at heart?”
“Oh, God…” She gasps, her hand flying to her mouth. I believe she didn’t know. I’ve yet to meet anyone who can fake the shade of green she’s sporting. “I’m so sorry.”
“I don’t want your apology. I want you to leave the country by the end of the week.”
She blinks at me for a few seconds before realizing I’m dead fucking serious. “Come on, Gianni, I’ve bared my soul here. Have a little mercy. I can’t just?—”
“That is me being merciful,” I shout. “Your silence nearly cost me my freedom and then my life. But that’s not what has me fighting to keep my hand off my gun.
That’s because of what it cost my wife. She has suffered an avalanche of trauma since I walked into her life.
I accept my role in her pain, but you damn well better accept yours.
” My volume escalates as I jab my finger at her.
“So take the gift and run, Miss Damiano. In any other situation, the punishment for betrayal and collusion would be much more permanent.”
Cathalina swallows hard and nods, her nauseating pallor turning the color of chalk.
I try to compartmentalize all this. I can’t let it consume me. When all this is over, I’ll deal with whatever residual anger and pain haunt me, but until then, I have to lock it away and focus on Becca.
Once my blood is no longer roaring in my ears, I realize she’s still standing there. “That’s your cue to leave, Cathalina.”
“But I came here for a reason.” I glare at her, and she sighs. “ Another reason.”
“Make it quick.”
“Whoever my father is colluding with is planning something … tonight.”
“Planning what?”
“I don’t know. I only got one side of the conversation, but whatever it was, I have a feeling it involves Becca. Dad’s panicking, Gianni. I’m worried he’s about to do something really stupid.”
My body goes numb.
Shit.
She’s still talking when I grab my phone from the table and rush out the door. I take the stairs two at a time, the images polluting my head knocking the breath out of me. The moment I hit the first landing, I call Becca.
No answer.
Immediately, I hang up and dial Taz.
No answer.
“Goddamn it!” Four more steps and I pause to pull up Becca’s GPS tracker. What I see drowns my humanity and sends me down a spiral of darkness.
Christ, she’s headed east on I-78.
Shoving the final door open, I barrel across the main floor of the club, nothing but motion and purpose. I don’t care about anything going on around me.
My name is called. Hands reach for me. I ignore them all.
“Boss, is everything okay?”
I turn to see Tony, the idiot bouncer who let Cathalina upstairs. I should fire him on the spot, but without her, I may have wasted more time. So instead, I hold out my hand. “Give me your phone.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “Boss?”
“I won’t ask again.” Wisely, he digs in his jacket pocket, his meaty hand dropping the device in mine.
“Remove Miss Damiano from my office and ban her from the premises.” I don’t wait for an answer.
I take off in a frantic run to my car, all training going out the window.
I don’t check for bombs or tripwires. I throw the door open, barely closing it before my foot hits the gas.
I’m tracking Becca on my phone and hitting redial on Tony’s, weaving in and out of traffic as the speedometer creeps higher.
Eighty miles per hour.
Ninety miles per hour.
One hundred and ten miles per hour.
I dare a cop to pull me over. I’ll send us both to Hell before my fucking foot comes off this pedal. I’ll be damned if I’ll let Declan Flynn turn Becca’s nightmare into a reality.
He doesn’t get to win this time.
But as more calls go unanswered, a dread settles deep in my stomach. One that darkens my thoughts with Becca’s own words.
“He never held my life over my dad’s head, Gianni. He held my innocence.”
Then, it hits me. East I-78 leads toward Newark Bay … and Elizabeth Marine Terminal.
Flynn has no intention of killing her. He’s closing the circle.