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I tilt my head to the side. “Leo's car?”
“I don’t want you on the back of my bike dressed like that. Not right now.” He pointedly scans my outfit, his gaze pausing on the high slits on both sides of my hips.
My mouth parts and my brow dips low. “I hadn’t thought of that.” I hesitate for a moment, raking my bottom lip with my teeth. “I could though. And if it means getting to Leo faster—”
“I know you could, but the car is safer, okay?”
“Alright. So what's going to happen to your bike?”
Aries peels his gaze from mine before he shrugs and scans the rustling trees behind me again. I guess I’m not the only one who feels the possibility of an ambush.
“I told him he can have it. All he has to do is forget he ever saw us.”
My brows crinkle and confusion clouds my mind. “You’re just going to give your motorcycle away? I don't understand.”
Aries’s smirk turns into a wide grin as he slowly tilts his head to look at me. “Nah, that's not my bike. It's Dante's.” He punctuates his words with a low laugh under his breath. “Speaking of, I need to make a call.”
He pivots to face the yard, keeping me in his sight as he pulls out his phone and brings it to his ear.
* * *
DANTE
Trees along the highway blur past us when another ring pierces the silence. It’s Rafe. Matteo clicks the green answer button on the steering wheel.
“Turn around. Meet us at Teterboro Airport.”
His clipped words pull me forward, straightening in my seat without conscious thought. My heart slams against my ribs. “Where is she?”
“What happened, Rafe?” Matteo asks at the same time.
“Raven’s here. But Leo’s gone.”
“Explain. Now.” Matteo’s words split the air like twin whips with enough force that I wouldn’t be surprised if I saw a spider web crack along the windshield. He changes lanes and whips the SUV around in an illegal U-turn.
“Charles Pinkerton’s dead. And Vito Santorini snatched Leo in retribution.” Rafe delivers the words like he’s reciting his coffee order, not two very different, life-altering sentences.
“Explain more,” Matteo grits the words between clenched teeth.
Rustling takes over the line, and I can just make out muffled music in the background. “I can’t. Sorry, brother, but you’re not my priority right now. I need to call in a couple favors. Meet us at the airport. I’ll have a plane for us.”
Rafe ends the call before either one of us can respond. There’s a moment of silence before we share a look. It’s one we’ve shared countless times before—one that precedes war. Our loyalty to one another has kept us breathing for longer than either of us ever imagined. I’m sure I’m not the only one wondering if this time our luck will run out.
Matteo presses on the gas pedal, increasing our speed as I take out my phone and pull out my Las Vegas contacts. We have friends there, despite the Santorinis staking their claim. And we’re going to need backup.
