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“Yes.” He flipped through the paperwork in the envelope he’d brought. “We’ll stop in Italy. I’ll show you where my grandparents are from, and we’ll pick up a few things for Valentina.” His lips turned up at the mention of his wife. She was a kind lady, like my mother. If I ever had a wife, I’d want her to be like them. Except I was never getting married. Everyone always left me. I was better off on my own.
“Daniel Elliott,” the clerk called.
We both stood and followed her to her office. Donato had come up with paperwork showing he was my legal guardian. He’d smashed the only roadblock to my first real form of identification. And when he tried to pay the fee, pride filled his eyes as I shut him down and took the cash from my own wallet. In what seemed like minutes, I had a passport.
“May I have a copy of the approved application?” Donato asked smoothly as we stood to leave the office.
The woman smiled and did it immediately. Someday, people would listen to me just like they did to Donato.
He slung an arm around my shoulders as we headed toward the parking garage. “We leave day after tomorrow.”
“I’ll be ready.”
“You already are.”
I grabbed the helmet off the seat of my motorcycle. He leaned against the side of his Cadillac parked next to me.
“Are you begging for someone to steal that?” His gaze zeroed in on the helmet.
“At least I wear one.” It was nothing for me to drive without a license, yet I wouldn’t break the law about protective gear.
“You need a license. We’ll see to it when we get back.” I shrugged as if indifferent. “Do you have the ticket to get out of the garage?”
I dug in my pocket and produced the green stub with a glare. Shoving it back in, I threw my leg over the seat and straddled the bike with an annoyed huff.
“I don’t want you to ever think of him again. Do you understand me?”
I jerked my head to look at him, my face twisting in confusion. How could I stop? If I could just turn it off, I would.
“You won’t see him again. When you need something you come to me.” There was no room for argument in his tone. I wouldn’t anyway. He didn’t need to tell me not to see that bastard again. If I ever laid eyes on him again, one of us wouldn’t come out alive.
“Yes, sir,” I said, but I silently swore to myself that once I learned everything Donato could teach me, I wouldn’t need anyone but myself.
When I refused to look at him, he stepped closer. “Today was the worst. Tomorrow will be better.”
I glared at Donato as I booted the kickstand and revved the engine to life with all my aggression. What the hell did he know anyway? Today was by far one of the worst, but it would take a miracle to get better from here.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Daniel
Present
“It’s Vinny.I know it is.”
I’d replayed the events of the last few weeks over and over in my head. The culminating events at my apartment cemented what I knew in my gut. That’s why I was at Donato’s in the middle of the night instead of with Vivian. To get this shit resolved.
Donato leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. I’d had my suspicions Vinny was the one who wanted Donato sidelined, but I’d been hesitant to say so to Donato without proof. The two men might not always see eye to eye, but they were brothers. In their family that counted for something. At least on Donato’s part.
Though I still didn’t have concrete evidence, I couldn’t wait any longer to speak up. Secrets had nearly cost me Vivian, and I knew that working together with Donato was the best chance of finding a way out of this mess.
“I’m going on pure instinct,” I continued, drumming my fingers against the arm of the chair. “I want to be wrong, but all the pieces lead to only one place.”
Donato’s breathing was even, the features of his face neutral, but I knew he was listening. I tapped my foot against the carpet, determined to wait him out.
“Alvarez finally did his job and confirmed your suspicions just before you arrived.” He opened his eyes and folded his hands on his desk. I stopped tapping my foot and stared at him, amazed and relieved that it was that simple.
When he spoke again, the sadness was palpable. “What is it about family that blinds us? I’m well aware of everything Vinny’s done to undermine us over the years, yet I still find it hard to believe he would actually turn me in for murder.” Donato sounded disgusted with himself.
