“I’m calling 911,” I inform the hysterical woman.
Just as I’m about to dial the number however, my phone is snatched out of my hand from behind. I whirl around with wide eyes to find dark eyes and full lips pressed into a thin line.
“Not so fast, Ms. Beaumont. No one wants the police getting involved in this.”
I practically growl at the sight of Matteo Vitale. He’s a mobster like the rest of them, brother to the man my best friend just got married to.
“What the hell are you doing? Give me my phone,” I hiss.
He shakes his head, and I can practically feel the coiled tension vibrating through him. I try to grab the phone and he raises it over his head, keeping it away from me. And considering he’s so much taller than me, I resist making a fool of myself by trying to reach for it.
“Relax, princess. Everyone’s fine.”
“Everyone is fine?” I repeat mockingly. “Marco was shot!”
At that, his gaze drops to the two women behind me, “He’s alive. They’re taking him to the hospital now.”
He delivers the news almost coldly, apathy in his tone. Like a robot.
“What about Valentina?” I press.
“The blushing bride is perfectly safe,” he replies, his tone grating.
“I still need to call the police.”
His eyes narrow and I feel the air around me chill. He looks menacing for half a second, and then he blinks, toning it down. Although the chill I felt doesn’t disappear.
I suddenly remember the people I’m dealing with. They murder innocent men and women without a second thought. They’re criminals, and I’m standing right in the middle of their garden.
I think about the number of things that could have flashed through his mind during that brief second.
“I said that’s not happening,” he says dismissively. He raises two fingers and gestures behind him, and two men materialize almost out of thin air. I’m startled by the sight of them. I’d been so focused on the man in front of me that I hadn’t noticed their approach.
“Take Mrs. Marino and her daughter to the hospital so they can see their family,” he commands, his eyes still not leaving mine.
It takes a second for me to realize I was not included in that statement.
“I’m going too,” I protest.
“No, you’re not. I’d actually prefer it if you weren’t found anywhere near my family.”
“Lindsay is Valentina’s best friend,” Mrs. Marino speaks up. “She should be there.”
He finally looks away from me, addressing her. “She’s not going. If you insist on her doing so, I can assure you I will leave you behind, and considering your husband is currently fightingfor his life, I’d assume that would take priority over everything else.”
Mrs. Marino sucks in a sharp breath.
“It’s fine,” I say, glaring at the bastard. “You and Sophia can go. I’ll catch up later.”
“You won’t,” he says assuredly.
I watch as Sophia and her mother are led away toward a parked car. Once they’re gone, I turn back to the man standing unnaturally still in front of me, dark eyes assessing.
“Can I have my phone now?” I ask, trying and failing to sound pleasant, if for no other reason than to get him to stop looking at me like that.
Something about his gaze on me has me struggling for breath. It feels consuming, like I’m in the middle of the ocean with only a pocket of air around me.
“That depends on how cooperative you’ll be with my request that you do not contact the authorities.”
