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I don’t hear anything else or register his words because I black out and blissful ignorance pushes away the nightmare.
CHAPTER23
MATTEO
We leave one soldier to wait in case Abi heads back to her father’s apartment and waste no time in heading back to my own penthouse. I have instructed my soldiers to sweep the city and leave no stone left unturned, because she must be here somewhere. I have a tail on Mario and am frantically trying to get news on Jefferson. More soldiers are turning his family’s apartment as we speak. If any of them show their faces, we’ll be smashing them in and the only thing that matters is bringing my wife home.
I don’t sleep and use brandy to keep me awake as I pace my apartment waiting for news.
The darkness turns to light and in the early hours, there is still no news of where she is.
I can’t eat and I chain smoke to calm my frayed nerves because something is telling me things are only going to get worse because of what I read in that sick and twisted file.
Mid-morning, I have a visitor and the fact I’m exhausted catches me in a moment’s weakness and I allow Cesare to show my stepmother into the room.
When I see her hovering nervously in the doorway, I’m relieved to discover I feel nothing at all for her.
“What do you want?”
I’m curt and cruel, loving how she winces under my derogatory gaze.
“Please help me, Matty.”
Her voice is soft, and quivers and she looks so pathetic it shocks me.
“Help you! Why the fuck should I?”
I growl, sitting back on the couch, regarding her with a hooded expression.
“I don’t know who to ask.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have made so many enemies.”
I take another slug of brandy and relish the burn as she edges a little closer.
“I’ve missed you, baby.”
I glance up and laugh out loud. “Why don’t I believe you?”
“You should.”
She reaches my side and drops to her knees before me and stares deep into my eyes.
“I thought about you every day since you left.”
“Tell that to someone who cares.”
“I think you do.” I recoil as she rests her hand on my knee and bats her long lashes up at me.
“I was in an impossible situation.”
“Of your own making.” I remind her and she shakes her head. “It was Mario. He is blackmailing me.”
“So, deal with it.”
“I fell in love with you, Matty, and he made me choose.”
“Love.” I bark out a laugh. “You love games, Diana. Manipulation, deceit and stripping a man of his soul. That’s your game and you’re good at it.”
