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“It’s been over a month,” she said. “You can’t go on like this. You’re not sleeping. Not eating.”
“Don’t tell me what I can’t do,” he hissed, and Izzy took a step back as he pinned her with those dead eyes. “He’ll come crawling out of the hole he’s hiding in,” he added. “And when he does...”
I hated to agree, but it made sense. After Dom’s men got Alex and the boyfriend to safety, Mr. X would have gone into hiding. He was smart enough to survive as long as he had with so many enemies wanting him dead. He’d lay low until the dust settled. But what he wouldn’t count on was Dom’s unwavering persistence. For him to be waiting with that gun ready to take him down. I couldn’t help but shudder as my eyes drifted to the weapon, creating a visible bulge under his tight leather jacket.
Dom gave us one last look, then nodded toward the guards, who opened the door and let him out. A whoosh of warm air swept over me, bringing a longing to step outside myself. It was still summer, even though it was hard to feel it, trapped inside the stone walls of the twin’s fortress. Dom’s orders to not let me or Marc outside not only frustrated him, it also made me wish to defy those orders and sneak out through some bottom-story window.
Well, I could have, if they weren’t rigged with black bars keeping potential enemies out—and me in. Since we were attacked, there wasn’t one room without a guard melting into the walls somewhere. Sneaking outside for a forest stroll wasn’t only risky, it was impossible.
Izzy cursed under her breath, pivoting to face me. “I want our brother to pay just as much as Dom does, but I hate what he’s doing to himself.”
“He’ll be fine,” I said. “He’s strong.”
Izzy chuckled, but I caught the sorrowful glint in her dark eyes. “You don’t know the half of it.”
“Tell me.”
I walked with Izzy to the dining room, jumping up on one of the bar stools lining a dark marble counter while she prepared drinks. A tall glass with something pink slid in front of me, and I tasted it. “What’s this?”
Izzy grinned. “Cosmopolitan.”
“It’s delicious.”
Izzy took a long sip from her glass, then chuckled as I did the same. “But strong, take it easy with that.”
I rolled my eyes. “I can handle it.”
Izzy lifted a perfectly trimmed brow in challenge. “Really?”
“Really.”
She grinned, but shook her head. “Marc will kill me if I get you drunk.”
I laughed, somehow not doubting it. I was surprised he let me wander off on my own. Since we were attacked, he, too, never left my side, and if I didn’t know him better, I’d say he was only doing his job as a bodyguard. But it was more than that, and I loved him for his protectiveness.
“Where is he, anyway?” Izzy asked. “Not like him not to be glued to your side.”
I snorted. “On the phone. Something with Johnny.”
Wasn’t it always? When Marc said Johnny was a huge trouble magnet, I thought he exaggerated. He didn’t. I took another gulp of the drink, letting the cold sweet flavor caress my throat, then grimaced at the sting it left in its wake.
Izzy smiled at me, then she looked down at her own glass. “You know, I—I only have Dom.” She looked up, meeting my gaze. “He’s the only family I have left. I don’t want to lose him again.”
Her words touched something deep in me, wakening a sorrow I tried to put to sleep. Izzy and I were a lot alike, and I’d lie if I said I didn’t feel her pain.
“I spent eight years alone while he suffered in jail. Eight years!”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “It must have been hard.”
She nodded. “I mean, I had people around. We moved into this place and renovated it. Me, Max, Roni. But… I think the worst was knowing he was going through hell there, every single day, and there was nothing I could do to help. I felt him. Dying inside.”
I knew prison could be tough. But the way she described it… A shiver rushed down my spine. I didn’t want to know, but I heard myself ask, anyway. “What happened to him?”
“You must have seen his scars?” Izzy said, and I shook my head while my belly twisted into a knot. I saw a few when he was shirtless in the infirmary, but I didn’t think too much about it. Now when she mentioned it… I swallowed the unease.
“Being a Ramirez in a Black River prison is bad.” She swirled the pink liquid in her glass. “I tried to get him transferred to a safer location, but no one listened. No onewantedto. He was nearly killed. Until they realized torturing him was more fun than killing him.”
I kept my eyes on my drink, knowing that if I looked at Izzy, I’d cry too. I didn’t need to see her tears. Her voice betrayed her.
