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I can feel my frustration rising again, and I am worried that I might grab Mattia through the bars to slam his head into the cold metal.
“I can’t go and get her,” he says nervously.
I clench my jaw and take a step closer to him. “Why not?”
Mattia’s mouth flattens into a tight line. “She made a run for it.”
My head wants to explode with anger. Theoneorder I’d given to my men before I left was to make sure that they don’t lose track of her. I emphasized that they needed to keep a close eye on her. So, how can Mattia stand here now and tell me that he doesn’t have her under his protection?
“She mentioned something about Jay having told her the truth about how you wound up in prison,” he continues. “When she saw the article, she kind of went blank.”
“And at which point exactly did she run?” I growl through gritted teeth.
“Jay and I were trying to decide what we should do when she slipped out behind us and made a run for it,” he says. “Like you, she knew that we would try to stop her if she said something.”
“Does anyone have any idea where she might have gone?” I ask in a panic. “She’s my only hope at getting out of here. We need to find her.”
Mattia sticks his hands in his pocket and sighs, and I already know that I’m not going to like whatever it is that he’s about to say.
“Our man stationed outside the Morino mansion says he saw her arrive in a taxi, and she was escorted inside by his guards,” he says. “Now, I don’t think she has anything to do with this. He says that the guards seemed like they weren’t expecting her.”
“Why would she go there? Doesn’t she know how dangerous it is?” I say, exasperated.
“Why didyougo there?” he asks to counter me. “I can only assume she had the same idea. Only, when she left the penthouse, she seemed like she was more in the mood for confrontation than bargaining.”
“Oh god,” I say, dropping my head into my hands. “She has no idea, her father will stop at nothing to get his way, and the last thing he needs to seal this deal is for her to make a statement saying that she was kidnapped.”
“I’ve been trying to phone her for some time,” he continues. “But there has been no answer on her cell, and our man stationed outside says he has yet to see her leave.”
My heart practically leaps out of my chest. Both of us have fallen into the same fucking trap in an attempt to protect each other. I can’t stand the thought of it. I know he has her in there somewhere. He’s always been so controlling; I won’t be surprised if he just won’t let her go.
“Both her and I are prisoners now,” I say.
“I’m sure that he will not hurt her,” Mattia says. “In the meantime, I’ll work on a plan to get her out of there. It might take some time, though. A stunt like that is very risky.”
“Get it done,” I growl. “I know Gabriele well enough to know that he will stop at nothing to get that statement from her. She is in danger. He stopped caring for her when he kicked her out. He no longer sees her as his daughter.”
I know by the look on Mattia’s face that he agrees with me. He can’t look me in the eyes for very long. He knows that he could have avoided this mess if he and Jay had just done their jobs properly.
“Whatever your plan is, make sure it involves Jay,” I say. “If anyone has to put their life on the line for this, make sure it is the man that was supposed to protect her in the first place.”
“And I am sure that he will do so willingly,” Mattia says. “As we speak, he is on his way to the mansion to gather as much intel as he can.”
“Then leave and get it done,” I say sternly.
“I’m on it, boss,” he says as he turns to leave. “I won’t let you down.”
My foolish actions have put Aria in her own kind of prison, and for that, I couldn’t live with myself. I know that I will do whatever it takes to free her and my unborn child, even if it is at the risk of everything else in my life. If it means that she’d be released from her father’s torment, I’d confess to the kidnapping. I am willing to sacrifice my freedom for hers.
But that’s a last resort. I need to give Mattia some time.
Chapter 15
Aria
Myheadhurtsandmy body aches. I’m so tired that I feel it deep inside my bones, but I still can’t get myself to fall asleep. My father is sending me food, but I don’t have the appetite to eat it. I’m simply too stressed out.
I haven’t seen my father again since he had me locked away. Any belief that he might care for me has completely dissolved from my mind. I am his prisoner, even if this is the house I grew up in.
