by Stone, Piper
The twins’ birthday celebration was casual, just the five of us enjoying a beautiful afternoon. While there were dozens of presents waiting for them to open, both had wanted nothing more than a day spent in the pool, complete with their favorite alligator and dolphin floats. I couldn’t imagine a more perfect day.
“Which flavor would you like?” I tipped my head, dragging my tongue across his jaw, reaching down and rubbing Elle’s head.
“You will always be a temptress. Why not all four flavors?”
Giving him a playful elbow, I pulled out of his arms, wagging my finger. “You’re a bad influence.”
“You did this to me.”
After blowing him a kiss, I headed into the kitchen, pulling out the recently purchased cartons. I glanced at the birthday cake, grinning. I’d tried my best to create a masterpiece, although I’d been forced to realize that baking wasn’t one of my fortes.
I added three scoops of each flavor to several bowls, remembering the sprinkles Isabella loved so much at the last minute.
When I heard Elle barking, it reminded me that our gorgeous pup should enjoy the celebration as well. Snagging a Frosty Paw from the freezer, I yanked off the lid then gave a nod of approval. This was perfect.
Humming, I walked outside, taken aback by the sight of Michael playing with the kids. I’d never heard him laugh so hard, lifting Alessandro out of the water then tossing him. I stood for a few seconds just watching them until Elle jumped in the pool, creating a moment of utter chaos.
The children squealed, Isabella hanging her arms around the pup’s neck.
“Ice cream!” I half shouted, shaking my head as I walked to the table.
The sight of Michael as he climbed out forced a sigh from my lips. He was the perfect specimen of a man. As he headed in my direction, he didn’t take his eyes off me for a single second. Every time he looked at me, I shuddered.
He peered down at the bowls then shook his head. “You spoil them.”
“Just like you do me.”
“And I intend on doing much more.” A mischievous look crossing his face, he drove his fingers into the middle of the bowl of chocolate ice cream, immediately swiping his hand across my face.
“Oh, you are so bad!”
As Isabella and Alessandro scampered toward us, I heard Isabella’s little voice as she made one of her daily announcements, only this time, her lovely words were ones I would never forget.
“Mommy. Daddy. This is our birthday. Not yours.”
The jarring sound pulsed in my ears. I jerked my head up, taking several deep breaths. I remained disoriented for several seconds.
Until reality rushed into my mind.
The dream was surreal, but not possible.
I’d fallen asleep. Shocked, I struggled to get to my feet, immediately searching the room. The children were still napping, Elle remaining curled up next to Alessandro. The quiet in the cavernous space was horrible, fueling the fear that had already returned. I glared at my watch. Two hours had gone by. What? How could that have happened?
After darting another glance at the children, I left the room, easing up the bank of stairs and pressing my ear against the door. There was no way to hear anything through the thick metal. I stared at the lock, debating whether to open the door a crack.
No. I couldn’t do it.
I had to follow the rules. They’d been given for a reason.
Only it had nothing to do with being the obedient woman who’d been in my dream. This was a matter of life and death.
I slid against the wall, trying to catch my breath. At some point, I would need to make tough decisions if Michael didn’t return, which would mean he was…
Dead.
Oh, God. Oh…
The weight of the circumstances hit me hard. Already Titus had been shot. Maybe there were too many men surrounding the house.
No, I couldn’t think this way. Hissing, I walked down the stairs, moving to the communications device, reaching out then yanking my hand away. This wasn’t the kind of life I could live. Although there was no doubt how much I cared for Michael, I couldn’t allow some irrational feelings of passion and excitement to cloud my ability to see what was really happening.
I paced the floor, praying the twins wouldn’t awaken just yet. There was nothing I could say to them, no amount of comfort that wouldn’t come off as a lie. After several minutes, I checked my watch again. Only an additional fifteen minutes had passed, the longest period of time I’d ever experienced.
I did everything I could not to allow Michael’s face to run through my mind, but as with everything else around and because of him, I failed. As another round of tears formed, I wiped my eyes, fighting to maintain some kind of strength. Then I said a silent prayer. While Michael wasn’t a good man, he didn’t deserve to lose his life.
Especially if I was the reason to blame.
Another fifteen minutes passed, and I was starting to become desperate.
A single beep permeated the room. I raced toward the console, biting back a single noise until I knew.
“Daniella.”
I didn’t need anything other than the few syllables whispered in a husky tone. I pressed the button then took the steps two at a time, doing my best to remain patient. When the lock disengaged, the door swinging open, there was no possibility of stopping my tears. “You’re okay. Oh, God.”
He gave me a half smile before taking me into his arms, his whisper hoarse. “I’m all right, but we’re not out of danger. There will be more of them coming. We’re going to bundle the children and we’re leaving the chalet right now.”
“They’re still out there?”
“No doubt. Just trust me, Daniella. Try and stay calm.”
“Where are we going?” Calm. He had to be kidding me.
“Home. Carlo will gather a few of our things and meet us at the airport. But listen to me. Can you carry Isabella?”
I pulled away, searching his eyes. “Yes, why?”
“Because I need you to shield her eyes. I’ll take Alessandro. I don’t want them to witness any of the carnage. Can you do that?”
My fingers tingled as I touched his face. “Okay.” I was numb inside, reeling from the understanding of what he was telling me.
“Listen to me, Daniella. Follow my rules and my lead. Period. I don’t have time to coddle you. I’m sorry, but I need to make certain you’re going to follow my direction by the letter. They are coming for you and they will not stop until you’ve been taken.” His eyes were imploring, his tone stern.
“Yes. Yes, I will.” Taken.
He tilted his head, obviously trying to figure out if I could handle the situation. “Good. I need your strength.”
My strength. I wasn’t certain I had any of that left.
Everything from there became perfunctory as I woke Isabella, her squeals of delight pulling at my heartstrings. She was so innocent while the rest of the world was riddled with hatred and greed, men and women hungry to take over the world.
Michael included.
Fortunately, the little girl remained sleepy, pressing her head against my shoulder even as I pulled the hood over her head, partially covering her face. I had no idea what I was going to face, but I would follow his lead, his rules.
Rules meant never to be broken.
Rules meant to keep us protected.
Rules meant to keep us alive.
The mantra played out in my head as he led us up the stairs. While he didn’t have a weapon in his hand, I’d seen the glimpse of the cold steel underneath his jacket. I’d also stared at the bloodstains that had soaked into his shirt, the horror of the situation keeping a strangled hold around my throat.
The house was deafeningly quiet, but with every footstep, I caught the slight noise of the creak in the wooden floors, something I hadn’t heard before. My mind was spinning, almost out of control, but I had one job to do—secure and comfort Isabella. I could do this. I could follow orders and…
Th
e first body was draped over the bannister, his arms hanging below. Blood bloomed like a splatter of paint across his back, trickles of red dripping to the floor below in a methodical manner.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
While I couldn’t hear the sound, I knew it was there, just like the way the assailant’s eyes remained open. I pressed my hand against Isabella’s back, sliding against the wall as we continued down the stairs. My throat was closed off, my mind a blank.
He nodded toward the front door. I could already hear an engine running, the sound more joyful than I could have ever believed. I took several deep breaths, almost losing control, a scream bubbling to the surface when I saw the second man. Big and brawny, his body was contorted in a completely unnatural way. I couldn’t stand to look any closer, but I couldn’t help myself, noticing a scar on his face. The man. My God, the man from the school. I almost lost my footing until Michael wrapped his hand around my arm, yanking me from the precipice of hell.
“Come on. Let’s get into the vehicle. Do no turn back. Period.” Michael’s command was unwavering. There was no fear in his voice. There was also no remorse. He remained the man I’d been afraid of in my classroom.
The same man who’d protected me.
I was thrown into a fog, unable to think clearly or even attempt to process what had occurred.
“Come on, boss. Get in. I don’t like this shit,” Carlo said, although his words were barely audible. He shifted his intense gaze in my direction, the look hard and cold. As if all of this was my fault.
Maybe it was. I was the real target in all of this, not Michael. Not his family.
Maybe I was to blame for the fear resonating through all of us, the horrors that we might continue facing.
“You’re going to need to keep them down at least until we’re on the road. Okay, kids. We’re going back home.” There was an instant change in his inflection, softer. Gentler.
“I want to stay here,” Isabella managed, fisting her sleepy eyes.
“We can’t do that, honey. We’ll come back.”
Michael shifted his gaze in my direction, exhaling before closing the door. I sat huddled in the backseat, cradling the twins and contemplating my life.
As well as envisioning my death.
Chapter 13
Michael
Revenge.
As with all things in life, there was a time and a place for everything. Up until this point, I’d done a good job of keeping the perspective in mind. Even after Cassandra’s death, the darkness that had almost consumed me, I’d remembered the powerful words once said by my father. That had allowed me not to destroy the city of New Orleans in my attempt to find the person responsible.
However, for someone to give the order to attack my home with my family inside was far too egregious. A line had been crossed that could never be undone.
No matter how long it took, how many rocks I had to search under, the person responsible was going to die by my hands. While one of the men I’d killed had a scar on his face, I couldn’t be certain he’d been the one they called the Ghost. However, it had been obvious Daniella had seen the man’s face before being led out of the house.
Cristiano’s call to Carlo after being unable to reach me had likely saved our lives. It would seem that Joseph had acted more as a soldier than a Consigliere during his trip to Florida. The pressure he’d placed on Emmanuel had been enough for the dying man to spout off his rage. The morphine had likely been the reason he’d mumbled enough details regarding a hit including the capture of Daniella that Joseph had been able to put the pieces together. It would also seem that Drago’s death hadn’t been entirely in vain, the asshole obviously paid to provide information on my whereabouts.
What I didn’t buy was the coincidence or possibly good fortune of the Santiago Cartel in finding the man responsible for Diego Santiago’s death hiding with the sister of someone who’d betrayed them. There was more going on, and in my mind, the only way to find the answers was in Florida. I refused to be a sitting duck.
I took a deep breath before heading to the door, remaining in the doorway. We’d been home less than eight hours but in the entire time, Daniella had said almost nothing. I’d seen the look of horror on her face, had sensed that she was shutting down. I wasn’t often that someone was forced to face the reality of the monster I truly was.
The only emotion I’d seen out of her since rushing her out of the chalet had been when I’d taken the children to stay with their grandparents. She’d shed several tears, doing her best to keep them hidden. However, I’d felt I had no other choice but to send them away. There was an army surrounding my father’s estate. They were able to protect the twins much better than I could.
Or had.
Fortunately, the two had been little troopers the entire time. I was grateful, yet not at peace. That wouldn’t happen until the asshole was found.
As I walked outside, I maintained my distance, trying to give her as much space as she needed. Elle lifted her head, her tail thumping as always, but she didn’t bother to get us. Carlo remained by her side as required, no longer forced to hide his weapons. There was still a chance that the person responsible would send another assassin, although in calculating the odds, the motherfucker had to know the entire family as well as every soldier in our empire was on high alert, prepared for any kind of attack.
He acknowledged my presence, walking closer. I shifted directions, moving out of Daniella’s hearing distance. “What do you have for me?”
“Your manager at Club Cabana?”
“What about him?”
Carlo pulled out a cigarette, something I rarely saw him do. The stress of not knowing our enemy or our next move had taken a toll on all of us. While my patience was threadbare at this point, all I needed to do was shift my gaze in Daniella’s direction in order to breathe a sigh of relief. She was alive.
After lighting the cancer stick, he took a deep inhale, blowing the smoke away from me. “I don’t know how much you pay the dude. It’s none of my business, but after calling in a couple favors, I found out where he banks. The man has some serious green, a recent cash deposit in the tune of twenty G’s.”
I took a deep breath. “I think we found our leak.”
“You want me to order one of the boys in Key West to handle him?’
“He’s much more valuable alive. I’ll handle it from here.”
“You got it, boss. You need anything else?”
I hated uncertainties, the nagging feelings that remained when I circumstances weren’t proven one hundred percent. There were far too many dangling pieces of evidence for my liking. “I assume you hired the usual cleanup crew to handle the trash at the chalet.”
“You bet. Those boys will do anything for cash.”
I turned to face him, inching closer. “I need to make certain the man with the scar was Puevo Riviera, a man known throughout the Florida as the Ghost.”
“All right. I’ll see what I can do but remember the dudes you hired don’t like loose ends. I doubt they kept any souvenirs. They knew they couldn’t get paid until the chalet was sparkling clean.”
“Just see what you can find. Tell them I’ll pay extra.”
“I’ll take care of it, boss.” After shooting a glance toward Daniella, he took the opportunity to walk the perimeter of the pool.
It would seem loyalty was becoming increasingly difficult to come by. I walked closer, cognizant she hadn’t bothered to look in my direction even once. When I was only a few feet from her, I shoved my hands into my pockets, enjoying the warm day.
“Elle is an incredible dog.”
Her words surprised me. “Yes, I adore her.”
“A present for the children?”
Sighing, I studied the rippling water for a few seconds before answering. “A gift for Cassandra. She always adored dogs. Elle is taken with you.”
“I don’t think I could have survived the ordeal without her.” Daniella la
ughed, the sound haunted.
“You’re much stronger than you think you are.”
“What are you going to do with me, Michael?” she asked. Even the tone of her voice was entirely different, hollow and riddled with sadness. What she’d seen had likely given her nightmares that would continue into the future.
“What do you mean?”
She tilted her head, her jaw clenching. “You know perfectly well what it means. This is all because of whatever issue my brother created with owing money or blood or something to the Santiago cretins. I almost destroyed your family. I’m certain you’re blaming me and that’s fine. I should have known what my brother was capable of the day he walked out of my apartment, blaming the world for his lot in life, threatening me that he’d remember my betrayal. He was strung out. He’d stolen money from me, and I kicked him out. I guess you were right. Blood doesn’t matter when money is involved.”
Sighing, I walked closer, crouching down by her side. “I’m so sorry about your brother. I can tell how important family is to you. You are well aware by now how important my children are in my life. You did nothing to deserve what happened and from what I’ve learned, while your capture was a part of their mission, the eradication of my family was the ultimate goal.”
She shivered visibly, closing her eyes. “Just let me go, Michael. I mean nothing to you.”
I took her hand, refusing to allow her to jerk it away. She bristled, her lips pursing as she clenched her jaw. “I’m not letting you go anywhere.”
“Why?”
“I think you know why. You’re still in danger, even more so at this point.”
She gave a hard jerk, managing to free her hand. “I see. I do appreciate your protection. Carlo has been my shadow. In truth, I’ve never felt more protected in my life, but I can’t remain here as your prisoner.”
“You’re no longer my prisoner.”
“Okay. Then what would you call this arrangement? You’re hot and cold. You want me then you don’t. You let down your guard then it’s yanked back into position. I do understand you have a serious situation to contend with. I’m no prima donna expecting a glorious fairytale, but I also can’t stay behind locked doors forever. I don’t want to be with someone who sees me as a bitter reminder of everything he lost. That’s not fair to me. That’s also not fair to you.”
