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“Let her know I’m looking for her if you see her,” I said out loud.
I made sure to keep my expression calm and even. There was no use alarming everyone if she was just taking a nap or getting something to eat. But instead of checking our room again, I headed straight for Noah’s office. As soon as I cleared the doorway and saw Noah’s face, I knew.
“You son of a bitch. What did you do?”
Noah didn’t bother denying it, not that it would have done any good. We’d known each other too long for bullshit. I could tell with just one look that Noah had done something the other man was now regretting.
“She wanted to end it. I couldn’t say no to that. It’s been too hard worrying and wondering when they’ll strike.”
I could feel my rage rising so fast and strong that I wasn’t sure I’d survive it. For years I’d existed as simply a tool. A weapon. Weapons didn’t have families or loved ones or homes. I’d gotten used to not having anything to call my own anymore, Lucia and Nonna long ago banished to the part of my mind that I considered buried. But now that I actually had something of my own, something to protect, the thought of it being taken away was unfathomable.
Simply put, I wasn’t sure I’d survive losing Diana. To lose her after having her love… I might as well lose my own life.
“I’m going to kill you, Noah. If she dies, you die.”
Noah didn’t look shocked by the threat, but then men like us understood vengeance. “She’s protected. I promise you. I would never let her truly be in harm’s way. She’s just drawing them out.”
I could barely get my next words out. “And if things don’t go according to plan?”
Noah’s words were as grave as the expression on his face. “Then God help us all.”
CHAPTERTHIRTY-ONE
Diana
I was starting to reconsider the sanity of what I was doing. There I was in the middle of Central Park like a sitting duck. I knew I was being watched.
You’ve got this. You’re armed. You’ve been trained. Maybe, but I knew just how far my brothers were willing to go. What if I miscalculated?
The plan was simple. Let them catch me. Not even try to run away. They would inevitably take me back to the penthouse where everyone was waiting. Matthias had installed a tracking chip in one of my sneakers. So if Hans and Jakob tried to take me anywhere else, the team would know.
The other good news was that Dylan was somewhere around here undercover. Whether he was the guy jogging in the baseball cap around the park or the other guy playing soccer with a bunch of kids over to my left, he was around here. If my brothers lost their damn minds and tried to kill me in public, he’d hopefully get to them first. I just prayed he was a hell of a shot.
As it turned out, I didn’t have to wait too long. Within thirty minutes of when I sat on a park bench and tried to read a book and look somehow inconspicuous, Jakob sat right next to me. “We’ve missed you, little sister.”
It was hard not to recoil at the sound of his voice. “Oh yeah? Is that why you were trying to kill me?”
My brother sighed. “If I had it my way, we wouldn’t have tried to kill you. But you know Hans. He has a temper. He just wanted you to give him what you found. Instead, you gave him a blank flash drive. That was very naughty.”
“Well, I didn’t know it was blank at the time.” I turned to face my brother and studied his handsome features carefully. They were a more masculine version of my own. He had thicker brows, a stronger nose, and the same light eyes. How could we look so similar but be so different? How could he be a criminal? How could he be someone who hurt people for a living? For money?
“So, where’s Hans? I know he’s lurking around here somewhere.”
He inclined his head toward the exit. “He’s waiting for us. We’re going on a little trip.”
I shook my head. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“Yes. You are.”
It was then I noticed that his hand was in his jacket pocket. He had a weapon on me. What exactly, I couldn’t be sure.
“What makes you think it’s a good idea for me to go with you? Either way you’re going to kill me. So why would I go peacefully?”
“We’re not trying to kill you. We just want what’s ours. That diamond. Uncle Boris is willing to buy it from us. That way we’ll get out of debt with him and still have plenty to invest and grow the businesses Papa started.”
“You call those businesses?” I spat. “You’re trafficking young girls.”
He shrugged. “Whores. They’re a lucrative business. What else are we supposed to do?”
