She released her grip on me and held out the small, clear bag in her hand. “These were on him when he arrived. I thought you might want to hold onto them.”
I took his personal effects from her and nodded, offering her a grateful smile. She quickly checked his vitals, then left us alone again. I wrapped Sani’s jacket around me, finding a small amount of comfort in his scent, and gazed out into the darkness of the night. Resting my chin in my hand, I battled the overwhelming urge to break down. I couldn’t see how this could possibly end well.
What evidence did they have to genuinely believe Santino was behind the attack? Could Callum really be capable of this? Or was it someone else sending a message? The same people responsible for breaking into mypapi’shouse. Who had he gotten involved with, or was this about the fact he hadn’t successfully taken down the Buccini’s yet and they were growing impatient?
Glancing down at the plastic zip bag, I rummaged through the contents, feeling my gut twist at the familiar belongings. His watch, his wallet with a picture of me and my mum in it from when I was four years old, and his rings and cufflinks. Then I paused on an item that wasn’t so familiar.
Pulling out the tiny translucent square of glass, I examined it with a frown. What on earth was this? I turned it over and over in my hands and watched the faintest, clear lines shimmer on the surface, arranged in a pattern that resembled a memory card.
I glanced at my father. He must have been planning to give this to Santino tonight. Mypapiwas a clever man; he would have made sure any information wasn’t traceable.
I bolted upright, leaned over, and kissed his forehead. “Thank you,Papi. I’ll be back. I promise.”
Storming back to the waiting room with Belio at my side, I took Max’s hand and placed the small piece of glass in his palm. “Do you know what this is?”
He lifted it, examining it with a thoughtful expression before his eyes widened. “Si. It’s an encrypted nano-drive. This was on yourpapi?” I nodded. “I’ll take it to Nero.”
“I’m coming with you. I need to know what’s on it.”
“You have no choice but to come with me,” he chuckled. “I made my cousin a promise that I wouldn’t let you out of my sight. When you marry into this family, you’re stuck with the rest of us, sweetheart.”
My lips lifted slightly. “Then let’s go.”
The Wrong Man
“This is fucking BULLSHIT,” I shouted in a sing-song voice, rising with each word to match my agitation. Nothing but the grey four walls surrounding me were listening as I paced back and forth in the holding cell. I’d been in there for hours. Waiting. How was it, after every fucked-up thing I’d done in my life, every life I’d taken or line I’d crossed, this was the thing they locked me up for.
The one thing I didn’t do.
I let out a humourless laugh as I shook my head and paced back towards the steel door. If this was how karma worked, it could suck my huge, pierced dick.
I didn’t give a fuck that they’d arrested me. I’d always assumed I’d end up behind bars at some point, just like mypapinearly had. I’d grown up expecting it. Whatever they thought they had on me wouldn’t stick. My family would see to that. But the question was, how long would it take?
Every second I was locked in here meant Aria was out there, without me. That was what made me want to tear my skin from my bones. I knew my family and men would surround her and protect her, but that wasn’t the point. They weren’t me.
She neededme.And someone had planned this perfectly. They hadn’t just confined me to a cell; they’d taken me away from her when she needed me most. And more than ever, I was sure that someone was Callum D'Ardenzi.
As soon as I got out, I was coming for him.
“Buccini,” a police officer yelled through the door. “Your lawyer’s here.”
Thank fuck. Finally. We could get this dealt with, and I could return to my wife. The door swung open, and the officer cuffed me again before leading me down the bleak corridor and into a meeting room. One of my family’s most ruthless lawyers from our firm, Salvo Carbone, stood up to greet me with a firm handshake, causing the metal around my wrist to clink together.
I sat down opposite him at the bolted table as he opened his briefcase and pulled out a leather folder.
“They’re moving quickly,” he said, with no need for small talk or greetings. He knew I wouldn’t want to waste time. He opened his folder and slid a document across the table towards me. “They’re charging you with conspiracy to commit terrorism, attempted homicide, and possession of explosive materials and weaponry.”
I leaned forward, skimming it without touching, then sat back.
“Quite the bedtime story. They’re imaginative.”
“They’re confident,” he replied, causing my shoulders to tense. I narrowed my eyes.
“What do they have on me?”
“Purchase records from one of your subsidiary construction companies and a shipment of controlled demolition compound, the same used in the explosive, signed out of your warehouse at the port twenty-four hours ago.”
I scoffed, leaning back slowly. “My shipments from the port are suspended, so that’s laughable. Who authorised it?”
