AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Mariana happily puttered around the kitchen and kept up a constant chatter. I smiled at her and tried my best to understand what she was saying, but I was a lost cause. When she looked at me expectantly and all I did was grin back at her, Santino jumped in, taking pity on me once again. Maybe he was warming up to me after all.
“She asked if you like strawberries. She wants to make you dessert for tonight.”
“I love strawberries. But tell her she doesn’t have to go out of her way. I’ll eat whatever she puts in front of me.”
Santino frowned at me. “She likes you and wants to cook for you. Don’t tell her no.”
He said something to Mariana, and she nodded at him.
“Santino?” I asked, my voice wobbly.
He ground his jaw in annoyance and fixed his laser eyes on me.
I nearly lost my courage but went on after he didn’t lash out at me. “Are you going to kill me?”
His face lost some of its fierceness, and he looked almost sad. I took that as a bad sign, and my heart dropped into a free fall.
Note to self: find a way out of here sooner rather than later.
He avoided my eyes and looked over my shoulder instead. “You need to get to work.”
He stood up, and I followed without argument.
“Hasta luego, Mariana. Gracias por la comida.”
I thanked Mariana and hoped I didn’t screw up the Spanish phrase I’d been practicing with Santino who’d reluctantly told me how to say good-bye and thank you for my meal during our short walks. Judging by her expression, I must have done something right, because she clapped her hands in delight.
“Hasta luego, guapa.” She put her hand on my arm when I walked past her. “Todo va a salir bien.”
I nodded at her and followed Santino out of the kitchen and back to my cell, aka office.
6
LUCIUS
I was finally sleeping more than a few hours every couple of days. The relief I felt at being able to close my eyes and drift off was enough to make me lie down next to Everleigh every night. We both stayed on our sides of the bed, and I was gone well before she usually woke up.
“Your aim is off.”
Santino’s voice cut through my thoughts. The still body of the dummy stared at me mockingly. I’d missed the center of his chest by an inch.
I flipped Santino the bird. “Fuck off. He’d still be dead.”
The truth, but I still wasn’t shooting as well as I should have.
Santino raised a brow at me. “You’re not concentrating. And if I had to take a guess, your mind is on our guest, not the target.”
Grinding my teeth, I glared at him. We both knew he was right. Didn’t mean I’d admit it out loud. We might have been best friends once, but a lot happened while I’d been gone. He wasn’t the same person I’d left behind. Just like I wasn’t either.
But we both fought to find our way back to the friendship we once had. Trust was still fragile between us, and I had my suspicions that he was reporting my every move to Maurizio. But this was all temporary. And leaving him a second time—which was exactly what I was planning to do—wouldn’t go down well.
I should have tried harder to find a way to get him to leave with me last time. But he’d been too loyal back then and loved the life we lived. Maurizio had taken him in when he was a little boy, and we grew up together. Became brothers. Did everything together.
This was the only home he’d ever known. He wouldn’t have left without a good reason. And I didn’t blame him. But I also couldn’t stay.
My desire to leave had been greater than our bond, and one night I’d disappeared without a word. I didn’t regret leaving. I regretted not doing it sooner.
But having regrets didn’t help me accomplish what I came here to do. And lamenting about past mistakes wouldn’t help me make decisions in the present, only delay them.
