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“Papà, I love him.” Tears fill my eyes and his roll in response. “I will never agree to an annulment.”
“Then you’re agreeing to his death.”
I shake my head. “No. I’m not agreeing to shit?—”
“Language, Camilla.”
“No—” I smile. “Fuck this shit. How’s that language for you?”
“Your insolence will be punished.”
“Isn’t it always?” I get up from the chair. “If you kill him, you will never see me again.”
“Oh, Camilla.” He tuts condescendingly. “There’s nowhere you can hide that theCosa Nostrawon’t find you. You should know that by now.”
I do, though it doesn’t hurt to try.
I refuse to marry Leonardo.
“We’ll see,Papà.”
With that, I get up and walk away, headed to my bedroom. It’s time to call for reinforcements, even if I might regret it. Nikolai won’t exactly agree with this, but it’s literally my last resort. I can’t let him die, and he wouldn’t want it either, no matter how stubborn he is about it.
My mother had mercy on me and returned my cell phone, which made me trust her again, even if just a tiny bit. She said what my father is doing is blown out of proportion and that she doesn’t want to be an accomplice to his downfall. I don’t blame her, especially since it will come if this gets out. But more than anything, I’m grateful for her change of heart; it means she’s still my mom. Otherwise, I would never have talked to her again for her betrayal. I want to say mothers should put their children above everything, but I know damn well that’s not how it works in our world. Husband overeverythingis the right answer. Always.
I dial Annie’s number and she picks up on the fourth ring. Little bitch. She almost doesn’t answer and I know it. She was about to send me to voicemail. All over one part in a recital. “Hey girl,” I start, waiting until she replies to drop the bomb.
“Hey,” she answers. “Everything okay? You don’t usually call.”
She’s not wrong, I don’t like speaking to anyone on the phone. “No.” I choke up and fight back the tears. “I need Ilya to get me in contact with Nik’s dad.”
“What the fuck for, Cam?”
“It’s…complicated,” I reply. “But his life is in danger, and if you don’t get this done, hewilldie.”
Surprisingly, she asks, “What do you need?”
“He needs to convincePapànot to kill Nik.” Yeah, that sounds stupid when he’s already told me countless times that he’s made up his mind. “Tell him we got married on neutral ground, andPapàplans to kill him for it. The Elite need to intervene.”
“Okay,” Annie answers quietly. “Just be careful. I’m scared Matteo is going to lose his ever-loving shit if you do this.”
“Without a doubt.”
I hang up the phone, not wanting to dwell on it any longer, and put it on loud. I never have my phone on loud since I basically only text, but I’m really hoping that Nik’s father contacts me. Although at the same time I’m scared shitless of him doing it. I knowPapàis going to have an aneurysm over it, and I’m not looking forward to that. It’s not fair, though, and he knows it. My marriage is real and legal, even by the Elite’s standards. Neutral ground is neutral fucking grounds, and my dad is about to find out what I’m capable of doing for my husband. I would kill for him, family or not. I’d go as far as making Leo disappear, somehow.
I care about Nik. I love him. I have for a very long time, fucking years. What started out as revenge for my brother’s death really backfired, yet once I learned the truth, I didn’t even feel an ounce of guilt over my feelings. Not anymore. Fuck my dad, Leo, and anyone else who wants to come between us. It’s not going to matter; I won’t let anyone achieve it.
I have to figure out what I’m going to say to Nik’s dad, how I will say it, and what the outcome will be for myPapà. I don’t want to get him in trouble; he hasn’t killed him yet. I just want them to prevent him from doing it, and if I have to rat him out, then so be it.
I lie down in bed, exhausted, when my phone rings. I open my groggy eyes and wipe them, peering at the screen to see a long phone number. The kind I couldn’t recognize if I tried. I slide my finger across the screen and answer the call.
“Hello?”
“This is Oleg Pavlov.”
I shoot up to a sitting position, almost dropping the damn phone. “Mr. Pavlov, I have a situation.”
I hear the sharp inhale from the other end. “I know all about it. My question is, why do you think I can help you?”
