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“Julietta,” I growled.
Then the darkness rose to claim me.
Chapter Twenty-Five
JULIETTA
I sat on my bed, pulling at a loose thread on the duvet while my mind continued to spin. All the jokes about Romero being a criminal had been true. How could I have not seen it? How had my mother not seen it?
Maybe she had.
After all, it was his edge that attracted me to him. His roughness. The tattoos.
I sighed, getting to my feet to stare out the window. It was late afternoon, the sun’s golden glow across the sky streaked with creamy orange and vibrant pink.
A loud beeping started from downstairs, almost like the fire alarm. My body locked up.
For a moment I couldn’t help but wonder if the guys had set the house on fire with me locked away, but footsteps pounded up the stairs and down the hall toward my room.
I leaned back against the window frame, bracing for whoever it was to kick the door open.
A fist thumped against the door. “Time to get out of there, princess. Something’s happened to Romero.”
“What?” I gasped, leaping forward and scurrying to the door. The beeping stopped just as I threw the door open, facing the stony-faced Russian. Errant strands of golden brown hung over one deep hazel eye. The intensity within them was enough to make my knees knock together. “What happened to him?” I asked in a rush.
“We don’t yet know,” he said. “The alarm that sounded is triggered only by himself when his life is threatened. Death will also trigger it, but the tone is different,” he added the last part in haste when my eyes doubled in size.
“Where is he, we have to find him, he could be hurt or—”
“Calm yourself, radnaya. That was just the signal. He will call when he has news.”
When I opened my mouth to protest yet again, he reached out, running the back of his fingers down my cheek. That shut me up instantly. “Our orders were to stay here and protect you.”
“I don’t care,” I said, weaker than I’d meant to sound. “What if he’s dying and he needs someone?”
“Aaron is trying to make contact now. For many years he was Romero’s right-hand man. Please come sit with us. We’ll answer whatever questions you have.”
I nodded, then followed the impressively gentle man to the living room. The others looked up before I’d made it down the stairs. Kieran sat on the couch, leaning his arms onto his knees while supporting his chin with his clasped fists. His arctic eyes met mine.
I held his gaze, determined not to cower beneath his or the others’ scrutiny. They might be dangerous, but Romero taught me how to fight off guys like him. Not only that, but they had mentioned my being under Romero’s protection. And not even they would get away with harming me, would they?
I had to trust that when it came to the man who cared for me so much he drove my high school bully’s entire family from the state, his most trusted friends would keep me safe as well.
A movie played on the TV though it was clearly muted. Eli’s eyes were locked on the screen as he bounced a knee with agitation. Darren paced back and forth, glancing at me every so often.
Aaron was nowhere to be seen.
I padded through the hall and into the kitchen, finding him behind the island, typing furiously on his phone. He didn’t look up when I entered, but somehow, I knew he could sense me.
“Anything?” I asked softly.
Aaron’s brows dipped, anger flashing across his ridiculously handsome face. “Not yet,” he ground out, still stabbing his screen like it was somehow responsible for whatever Romero was currently enduring.
I sucked in a slow, calming breath, which did little for the frantic rhythm of my heart.
I stalked away, feeling like my heart was going to burst. I didn’t stop in the living room, climbing the stairs and trying to just breathe.
Rafael—now sandwiched between Eli and Kieran—snapped his head in my direction.
