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He breathed a sigh of relief although it would be short lived. Even if I didn’t follow through with Max’s request, the man would be dead within twenty-four hours, killed by one of Bianchi’s men. I preferred using his death as a teaching tool.
“I’m afraid you were right after all. I had no intentions of allowing you to live, but I’ll ensure your death is as painless as possible. Sound like a good plan?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t have a choice. They didn’t give me a choice.”
“Not true, Carmine. You know that you always had a choice.”
Carmine wasn’t certain whether to be appreciative or horrified. When he started blubbering, I shook my head and patted him on the shoulder. I started to walk away, stopping short by Cay’s shoulder. I lowered my voice. There was no need in terrifying the blubbering man more than necessary.
“Take your time with him. Enjoy honing your skills.”
“Why, thank you, boss. Maybe you need to get some sleep.”
“Yeah, I’m beginning to think you’re right. I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow. We have a new business operation to go over with a fine-tooth comb.”
“I look forward do it, boss man.”
With that, I walked away, satisfied that by morning, the Bianchis would learn we weren’t taking this sitting down.
Then all hell could break loose.
CHAPTER 13
Christiana
I’d always known that one day the life I’d built painstakingly slowly, especially over the last three years, would come to a crashing end. I’d even planned for it, taking precautions to prevent being moved away from the sanctity of my small apartment located in Chicago. While my father and I no longer had a close relationship after the stunt he’d pulled in New York years before, I was still under his protection and his control to a point.
After all, he’d paid for my education, including going to law school. I was in my third year, something that I coveted more than almost anything. I’d worked hard, not bothering to be worried about making him proud. I simply wanted to make a name for myself after graduating.
Little did he know I had plans on bringing down men like him, those who skirted the law with every aspect of their lives.
With my excellent grades and the fact this was the third summer I’d interned for a prominent law firm in the heart of the city, my future looked bright. Because of that and the contacts I’d made, I was almost guaranteed a decent position after I passed the bar exam.
Which I had full intentions of doing. I had one more semester to go, graduating in December. Then I was set to take the exam in January but not in the state I’d grown up in. I had no desire to remain in the city where my father ruled like a savage on a throne. New York held the rest of my dreams, including of finding the one person who’d managed to make me happy.
Someone I had no clue how to find.
I’d rebelled against my former life, even changing my dark hair to bright red, just something else that had gotten under my father’s skin. I’d grown another two inches, which had surprised me, my figure fully rounding out. I was nothing but a shadow of the girl who’d lost more than just her virginity on a stormy night years before, the decision altering everything in my world.
And I’d thought for the better.
There’s been no indication things had changed, my father no surlier than normal. He’d visited my apartment only twice, once to hand me a check for tuition, the other to drop off a birthday present. The recent gesture had shocked me. He’d even had kind words, offering a small olive branch. Considering he was the only family I had, I’d welcomed it.
I should have known my father was nothing but a hunter who’d stalked his own daughter, waiting for the perfect predator to offer the highest bid for his flesh and blood. I’d thought I was tainted enough no one in the world of the mafia would want me. Maybe that’s why my guard had fallen and two of my father’s men had managed to kidnap me in broad daylight.
Not a single person had come to my defense or aid, probably because the two goons were all muscle, both standing at least six foot five inches tall. They’d dumped me in the trunk of the car, worried that I would manage to get away from them.
And I would have. I had skills that my father used to call ridiculous and close to treachery. I knew how to protect myself, could use almost any tool handed to me and had made certain I could fire a weapon. I even carried a Swiss army knife with me, which would have ordinarily allowed me to unlock the trunk from inside the cramped space, but they’d yanked my purse and backpack from me, tossing them inside the main portion of the car.
Now I sat in an upscale rented house in some posh neighborhood of New York, locked inside a beautiful room that was still a prison and nothing else. It was all far too déjà vu.
Since being trapped inside, I’d talked with my father once for five minutes, the man telling me only two things.
One—that I’d been pulled out of law school because I’d no longer need the education.
And two—that I’d follow his rules, or my penance would be severe. I believed him. There was a strange look in my father’s eyes, one of desperation as well as determination. I was sick to my stomach, trying to figure out what he had in mind, although my instinct told me another marriage.
I paced the room, going to the window every few minutes. When I noticed an SUV pulling against the curb in front of the building, a tremor skated down my spine. We were on a lovely, well-lit, and gloriously maintained street in the heart of New York. There were cafés on the two corners, a gorgeous Catholic church almost directly across the street, and the cars lining the wide roadway were all expensive.
