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Chapter 6
“You could have been killed!” Uncle Robert grounded. He wasn’t yelling, but his tone sent a chill down Neo’s spine. “What would I tell your parents when they return home?”
“I’m still alive, aren’t I?”
They were in his father’s office where his uncle had taken over since arriving the day before. His father’s half smoke cigar sat in an ash tray beside a bottle of expensive bourbon, just the way his father had left it. The only change in the room was his Uncle Robert sitting behind the desk with his laptop open. Robert then stood and came around to stand in front of him.
“Boy, you don’t get it do you?” Uncle Robert replied. “You’re now the head of this DeLuca base. There are hundreds of people depending on you to steer the ship.”
“I never asked for any of this,” he complained.
Uncle Robert grabbed his shoulders. “You knew since the day you were old enough to understand what being a DeLuca was, that you would some day inherit your family empire. So don’t you give me shit about never asking for any of this.”
Neo wrangled from his grasp, walking over to the wall where his parents’ portrait hang. With a stiff hand he ran his fingers through his tight curly hair as he stared up at their smiling faces. “What do you want from me?”
“Stop being a fucking coward and live up to you name!” Uncle Robert grated. “Grow up and stop being a pussy.”
He whipped around to face his uncle. “The fuck you said Uncle?”
“I said, stop being a fucking pussy. You’re a DeLuca, made from the likes of Adriano and Melody. My niece and nephew are depending on their remaining son to get them out of whatever hell hole they are in. And instead of strategizing with your team, you are out trying to get yourself killed. What’s the matter with you boy?”
“I wasn’t trying to get killed, I was trying to clear my head. Moreover, while I was out, I figured out the riddle.”
Uncle Robert sighed, a frown deepening the wrinkles on his forehead as well as his crow’s feet. “What riddle?”
“The woman on the phone gave me a riddle to solve.”
He filled Uncle Robert in on the exchange between the woman on the phone and the results. Since Uncle Robert was not quite familiar with all of Sicily, he couldn’t tell Neo in which church his father was being kept.
“Your captain might know more about your parents’ past,” Uncle Robert offered. “From what I do recall. The only church that coincides with that time period was where they confronted Balthasar.”
“Balthasar?” Neo had never heard the name before.
“That bastard killed one of my kings,” the older man added. “He was your father’s enemy before the accident that put him in a coma. Then when your grandfather died, Balthasar came after your mom. Big mistake. Your mom handled herself like a pro.”
“So, they took him out in a church?”
“Some old church located in the middle of nowhere. That’s how I heard it.”
This was new information and Neo was keen to learn more. “This Balthasar, could he still be alive?”
“I doubt it. Your parents are thorough. They’d never give an enemy the chance to return.”
“I have to find this place.”
Moving away from his uncle, he headed to the door. Uncle Robert was saying something about strategizing and team work, but he’d already started blocking out the man’s voice. Sicily was an island. It couldn’t be that difficult to find the church to which his uncle told him about.
“A church in the middle of nowhere,” he muttered. “That can’t be that difficult to find, can it?”
Leaving the office, Neo headed for the carport where his sports car was parked. The Harley had been written off and the new one he ordered hadn’t been delivered yet. Nearly sixteen hours after the accident, he was now sorer than ever and was walking with a slight limp. He still couldn’t believe that he survived such an impact. Although he was never one to believe in miracles, a small part of him believed that some power, maybe from that church, was responsible for saving him. After all, he was conceived in a church.
“Mom and Dad, you have some explaining to do when I find you,” he murmured as he entered the garage.
A figure leaning on his car caused him to pull up short. Her arms were folded across ample breast as she stared at him. A warm feeling enveloped him as he felt his blood course through his veins. What was it about this woman that angered him so much? They’d only met yesterday, yet whenever they were around each other, he felt agitated.
“Get off my car,” he demanded, pressing the button on the remote to unlock it.
Without a word, she eased from the car, turned and strolled around to the front passenger side, opened the door and slipped into the seat. This took Neo by surprise, confusing him for a second. Rushing around, he yanked the door open and demanded that she exit the car.
