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“What do you want, Emilio?” I ask, sitting back in the chair and making him chuckle.
“Did I ever tell you that you remind me of my daughter?” I think back to hearing the same thing from Theo but just shake my head. I didn’t even know Emilio had kids.
Standing, he paces the room lightly as he speaks.
“Giorgia was her name,” he tells me. “And when she was just ten, her mother died. I loved that woman and couldn’t bear the thought of trying to marry again. But that also meant I would never have a son to take on my legacy. My men all told me I was crazy when I said I would groom Giorgia to walk in my footsteps, but I didn’t listen. I knew that the right woman in charge would be infinitely more ruthless, more calculating, than any man I could possibly bring in.”
Moving towards his desk, he pulls out a faded and tattered photo and hands it to me. A beautiful young woman with dark hair is smiling back at me.
“She is beautiful,” I say as I hand the picture back.
“That she is,” Emilio agrees, smiling fondly at the image before putting it away, “But it was always a problem for her. She constantly had to prove herself to our men, prove that she was capable enough to run the family. To lead men, one must be vicious and calculating, always thinking ahead, not afraid to get their hands dirty. So many doubted her, but not me.”
His posture changes, and he comes and sits back down in front of me. “I believed in Giorgia, and she proved me right. Ruthless bitch she was.” He chuckles lightly. “I have seen you have the same problem, underestimated because you are a woman, but when you took over, I gave you the benefit of the doubt, as I did my own daughter.”
“Thank you,” I say honestly, pausing for a moment. “Why are you telling me this now?”
“When you stabbed that idiot Desmond the other day, you proved me right,” he says, ignoring my question. “You have the ruthlessness required to rule a place of men, but do you have what it takes to do right by them?”
An uneasy feeling creeps up my neck. “Spit it out.” I finally say, knowing what is coming.
“You have to give yourself up,” he says plainly, his face looking pained as he says it. “Even if the inmates don’t give you up first, the guards will come in after you. And many of us will die.”
I frown, putting my cup down and standing.
“I have to go,” I say abruptly, not interested in hearing this again right now. His voice calls from behind me as I walk away.
“I don’t know what you’re planning, Ana. But you can’t take on the guards and win!”
He continues but I don’t hear him as I jerk my head at Brutus and make my way back to my chambers. Fuck.
Eighteen
Axle
My muscles flex with effort as I pull back another boulder from the pile, wiping my head with my forearm as it finally breaks free and falls to my feet. I look up at the rest, trying not to feel as dismayed at the amount we need to get through before we’re even at the grate. I can’t tell the time from down here, but I know we’re going to have to go up and get at least a bit of rest soon. Hopefully tomorrow we can finish, but honestly, I expect at least two more days of this bullshit.
Beside me, Ethan grunts as he pulls another particularly large rock from the wall, stepping back as it crashes to the ground. Even in the shitty lighting we brought with us I can see the sweat pouring off of him, his face red.
“Thank you,” I say, though the words are foreign on my tongue. Uncomfortable, I immediately keep pulling down rocks, but out of the corner of my eye can see Ethan has stopped.
“I—,” he hesitates a moment, apparently unsure of what to say to the unprecedented thanks, “Ax, you know I’d help you and Ana out either way, but me being here isn’t purely altruistic.”
I stop, turning to him, before a lightbulb clicks in my head. He says it before I can.
“I need to know where Sammi is,” he says, wringing his hands together, “I need to get out of here and find her.”
I study him for a moment. I suppose I knew that I certainly knew he was freaking out about that crazy nun, but in the last few days I haven’t really thought of it. My focus has been purely on Ana and getting her the fuck out of here.
“Once we get Ana out of here safe, we’ll help you,” I finally say, echoing my words from the day before. Ethan looks at me like he wants to say something but eventually just nods and we get back to work.
* * *
Eventually we do call it quits for the night and slowly make our way back upstairs. My body and muscles are burning, unused to this level of physical activity. My arms feel heavy and overworked, even just lifting a hand seems difficult. The pain of a deep cut or bruises from a fight, those aches I am used to. This is total bullshit.
When we get through the maze of the sewers and back upstairs, I see the lights are now out. Well, guess I was right about Dick’s timing. Hopefully he waits a full twenty-four hours before shutting the water off too.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” Ethan says before leaving abruptly. I shake my head, still not understanding what his obsession is. Then again, I doubt he understands mine and right now. My body is screaming for Ana.
