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Yesterday, I called Roxy to pick me up after Dom and Niccolò left me stranded. It was hell not giving her more details than she needed to know. My first priority is always protecting her, and I didn’t want to let her in on too much.
My heart races as the enforcer drags me off the bed I’ve been on and forces me to walk out of the room.
“Move it,” he says.
Groggily, I try to remember what’s happened as I walk.
I do remember trying to calm down once Roxy dropped me off. It couldn’t have been long before they came for me. Maybe an hour. Maybe a few minutes. But not long after Roxy left, I was thrown into the back of a car after a couple of the enforcers for our family yanked me out of my house and brought me to Romeo and Elena’s property. This place is usually a second home but right now, it feels anything but. The house has been eerily quiet since we arrived last night, and no one will look me in the eye.
It makes no sense.
“Move it, traitor,” the enforcer grunts and motions me toward a door.
Traitor.
Everything starts falling into place.
Enzo got caught—and it was before I could tell Romeo so I don’t go down with him.
Fuck.
Romeo’s guard brings me into a room that’s smaller than the one the DeSantis men have kept me locked in since last night.
My bones ache for Giana. For what she’s gone through at the hands of the cartel—the men I heard were responsible for her kidnapping, aside from my husband, that is. I understand why Niccolò left me on the side of the road. We witnessed Giana and another woman being shoved into the white cargo van. Of course he left me to go after her. She’s his sister.
One of the housekeepers who brought up my food last night informed me that Giana was found and resting. She overheard a few of the soldiers talking about what transpired at a storage unit facility and relayed the information to me—although she could be considered a traitor herself for telling me anything, especially now that I’m on the bad side of the family I was just talking and laughing with only a few days ago.
I’ve been locked up at the top of the DeSantis home since last night. I’m assuming as soon as they confirmed it was Enzo who aided in Giana being taken, they decided I was guilty too.
Which was exactly what I was afraid of.
Why I wanted to collect proof and go to Romeo…
An enforcer nudges me down to the floor, and I fall to my knees beside a round table just as the top men in the DeSantis family trickle into the room.
“Please!” I beg, feeling leftover makeup from yesterday running down my cheeks. “Please, please. You have to believe me. I had no idea. Enzo never let me in on any of his business, and I—”
“Enough!” Romeo DeSantis’s deep voice cuts me off as itboomsbetween the walls.
I stay sitting on my knees in the middle of the room, trying to control the fear that is radiating from my body.
“We don’t have to believe anything,” Romeo DeSantis says as he moves to stand in front of me. “Evelina, you know I loved you like my own, but we have no other choice. We cannot be sure you were not involved. Cannot be sure you didn’t play a part in this. You are his wife! We can’t let you go. This is family business. And we can’t allow more mistakes to be made.Basta! Enough.”
I catch Dante’s eye as he looks from Romeo to Leo, and then Francesco, who is the underboss for the DeSantis family. The four men move to stand in a half circle in front of me as I shake my head, willing them to understand.
I just didn’t move quickly enough.
“You didn’t let me finish,” I say as calmly as I can, straightening my spine as I hastily wipe more tears from my cheeks. “Enzo never let me in on any of his business, but I had suspicions something was happening. I didn’t think he was going against you.” I look around at the men who I, only days ago, thought of as family. “I thought I was the only one he was deceiving at first, but then I learned there was much more to his agenda.”
Romeo lights one of his cigars and takes a deep inhale before slowly blowing the smoke out from his lips.
“I’ll tell you everything I knew—everything I know. I’ll prove I had no part in it, too.” It takes everything in me to keep my voice from shaking—to stop the tears from flowing down my cheeks and the rattling of my bones that I swear can be heard for miles.
I know they won’t take Niccolò Amato’s word for anything, especially everything that has transpired between the Amatos and the DeSantises since Dante and Giana decided to be together or die trying.
They won’t take his word for it, but they’ll have to believe me once they hear the audio recordings I have. I’ll tell them about the other tracking I’ve done on Enzo, too…they’ll have no choice but to let me go.
“Let me make one call, and you’ll have all the proof you need.”
