by Bella J.
“I can’t stay, Kate. I can’t.”
She crouched in front of me, her hands on my knees while staring at me with pleading eyes. “Talk to him. Find out if what Dad said is true.”
I wiped away a tear. “Dad has no reason to lie. He’s stuck in prison, and whether or not I stay makes no difference to him.”
“He’s a liar, Layla. Dad never does anything unless he gets something out of it.”
I picked up the photos and shoved them in front of her. “How is he getting something out of this? Someone sent him these pictures of Dante and me, proving that we—that I am being watched. I can’t see that Dad would have any reason to send me these other than to warn me.”
Kate straightened, pulling her hands through her wavy blonde hair. “I don’t trust him, Layla. Everything he’s ever done was motivated by greed, and nothing else. He never gave a shit about us. Why now?”
I tossed the pictures on the floor and stared at the evidence of how my privacy had been invaded—of how my life had been invaded because the man I fell in love with wasn’t who he pretended to be. Dante was a mobster. His father a criminal mafia boss. Pity I hadn’t been in town long enough to know who the Valentis really were.
Kate started pacing, her shoulders slumped, and her cheeks pale with worry.
As if I didn’t feel bad enough about her being saddled with me ever since Mom died. Kate lived her life around me, planned her life around me. And now I just managed to dump a whole new can of shit on her all because I lived my life as if fairy tales actually existed.
No more.
I couldn’t do this to her anymore.
I got up, stepped on the pictures of Dante and me walking around town hand in hand and snuggling up, just being nauseatingly happy, then grabbed my suitcase.
“Layla, stop.” Kate grabbed the case, but I jerked it back.
“No! I’m leaving. I won’t be the cause of putting your life on hold any longer.”
She shook her head. “That’s not true.”
“I can’t do it anymore, Kate. You gave up everything for me, and look how I repaid you. By falling for a man who kills people for a living. By having sex with a man whose family leeches off other people.” I placed my hand on my belly. “And now that I’m in too deep, I won’t drag you down with me.”
Kate stared at me in silence. She couldn’t hide her emotions from me. It was there, in her eyes, causing her so much pain, so much worry.
Gently, she reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “Don’t blame yourself because you fell in love, Layla.”
I bit my bottom lip, and my heart cracked in two. For months, Dante had been my world. He was the sun in my life, our love the air I breathed. He was everything…until I opened my father’s letter, discovering the truth about the man I had given my heart.
“Talk to him first, Layla. Maybe there’s a reasonable explanation for all this.”
“And so what if there is? So what if he has a hundred different reasons for keeping this part of his life a secret from me? It doesn’t change anything. His family is selling drugs on the streets, living off dirty money. And if half of what Dad is saying in his letter is true, then I—we are no longer safe here. It’s not just about me and him anymore, Kate.” I glanced at the bedside table. “It’s about so much more than just us now.”
Silence surrounded us, and I knew just by looking at her that Kate understood. There was no need for her to say anything. The decision had been made for us.
The familiar sound of the engine of his Audi as he parked in front of the house made me aware of the time.
“Shit. It’s him. He’s here.” I took Kate’s hands in mine. “He can’t know, Kate. Promise me you will never tell him. Promise me!”
Eyes that mirrored my own blinked with unshed tears. It fucking broke my heart to know I had caused my sister so much trouble.
“I promise,” she whispered, and I pulled her in for a hug.
“Thank you.”
She pulled back, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand. “What do I tell him?”
I grabbed a pen and a piece of paper and started writing. Short and sweet, just like our time together had been.
“Here.” I handed her the envelope. “Give him this. You don’t have to say anything. Everything that needs to be said is in here.”
Her hand shook as she took the envelope from me. “When I come back, you won’t be here anymore…will you?”
Dear God, it killed me. It killed me that I had to do this to her. But I thanked the heavens that my father’s letter got to me in time, before I had a chance to tell Dante my secret.
I shook my head, and Kate whimpered softly before pulling me in for a hug.
“Where will you go?”
I wrapped my arms around her. “Dad gave me a name of someone who can help me.”
She leaned back to look at me. “Who?”
“Don’t, Kate. The less you know, the better.”
She sucked in her bottom lip and closed her eyes for a second. “I don’t like this, Layla. I don’t trust any of this.”
“I know. But I have no other option. If Dante’s family is half as bad as they seem, I have to make sure we’re not a part of it.”
Footsteps came from the front porch, my heart and stomach both fighting for a way up my throat. “He’s here. Please, Kate.”
“Dear God, why is this happening? How will I know you’re safe?”
“I don’t know. I’ll try to figure something out. Right now, I just need to get out of there before he finds me. Kate, if I see him, if I look into his eyes, I won’t be strong enough to leave. I love him too much.”
“Then stay,” she pleaded. “Stay. Talk to him.”
“No.” I stepped back. “I can’t. I can’t risk it. Loving Dante is no longer an option for me.”
More footsteps.
“Kate, please!”
“Okay.” She stepped up to me and placed a kiss on my forehead. “I love you, Layla.”
“I love you too.”
Her lips remained for a few more seconds…and then she left, walking out my bedroom door.
I sucked in a breath, and my insides knotted and twisted with pain as if wrapped in barbed wire. I leaned against the wall and listened as Kate opened the front door.
“Layla?” His voice was like a dagger through my heart, and I had to place my hand in front of my mouth as sobs threatened to escape.
“I’m sorry, Dante,” Kate said.
“Where is she?”
“Dante—”
“Where the fuck is Layla, Kate?” I heard the desperation in his voice, and it sliced through every bone, piercing the marrow of my soul. I loved him. No matter the secrets he kept from me. I loved him with every breath I took. But loving him hurt too goddamn much, especially now.
I glanced at my bedside table and slowly moved forward while staring at the one thing that changed everything within the span of only a few seconds. Just like Kate when she adopted me after Mom died, my life was no longer my own. So no matter how much it pained me to leave, how hard I wished it was only his secrets that threatened our love…it wasn’t. His secrets, I could forgive…but chancing a future which was now my responsibility wasn’t something I could do.
“I’m sorry, Dante, but Layla isn’t here. She asked me to give you this.”
With my eyes closed, I imagined Dante holding the envelope in his hands. The piece of paper which would rip our lives apart…forever.
“Where is she?” Dante’s voice was hard, desperate…unforgiving.
“I can’t tell you that, Dante.”
“When did she leave?”
“I can’t tell you that, either.”
“Why the fuck not?”
Quietly, I grabbed my suitcase and stepped up to my bedroom door, listening.
“Kate, will you fucking look at me and tell me what the fuck is going on?”
“I don’t know, okay?” I could hear in her voice that she was f
ighting back the tears, and I prayed she would manage to keep it together just a little while longer. “All I know is she left, and she asked me to give you the goddamn envelope.”
“What else did she say? Jesus Christ, Kate!”
“She’s not coming back!”
I held my breath when Kate shouted at Dante, directing all the pain and anger at him. But he didn’t have a clue. He had no idea. And I hoped it would stay that way…forever.
Slowly, quietly, I stalked down the hall, careful not to make a sound while Kate continued to speak with Dante at the front door.
“My little sister is not coming back. Not to me. Not to you. Never. I don’t know what you did, Dante. All I know is because of you, I will never see my fucking sister again.”
The front door slammed just as I reached the back door by the kitchen. I stilled for a moment. Only a second. One heartbeat.
This was it. The last chance if I wanted to change my mind. It was now or never.
With my palm flat on my belly, I closed my eyes.
A deep breath. A final tear.
A final goodbye…and I prayed I would not regret it.
The memory squeezed the final life out of my already shattered heart. Turned out, I did regret it. I regretted it with every ounce of my being.
I should have opened that door.
I should have said the words.
I should have stayed.
Blinking back tears, I stared out the window, watching the scenery fly by in one big blur. “I was young. Naïve. Stupid. I thought I was doing the right thing.”
Antonio didn’t respond. I was expecting him to agree with me, to tell me that I was incredibly stupid and selfish for making the decision I did. But he didn’t. It sort of gave me the impression that maybe, just maybe, he understood. That he agreed.
“Antonio?”
He looked at me.
“Take care of him. It’s going to take Dante a long time to come to terms with everything, so he’ll need someone to help him through it.”
The atmosphere around us was so heavy, it felt like there was a ten-ton boulder hanging over us inside Antonio’s tiny sportscar. Because of one mistake, one wrong decision, I had caused a lot of people to carry unwanted burdens today.
Antonio.
Kate.
Dante.
Lucio.
I smiled. “Lucio sure knows how to act.” I tried to play it down, tried to cast some light in the darkness.
Antonio nodded with a smirk. “He’s one talented SOB, that’s for sure.”
“Thank you for allowing him to protect my sister.”
He shrugged. “We can’t afford for them to be alone and unprotected right now. Not until…” He looked my way with an immense amount of pity in his eyes.
I smiled bravely. “Until I’m back with Matteo.”
Antonio made a sharp turn to the right. “I totally get why you prefer Dante not being part of this plan. But fuck, I wish we could have told him.”
“It’s the only way. As you said, he’ll understand once he finds out the truth. And if everything goes the way we plan, it will be before sundown today.”
“Maybe if we—”
“No.” I stopped him before he could continue his sentence. “I will not be the cause of a war between you and them.”
“As my brother said the other day, we’ve been at war with the Mancusos for years now.”
I turned in my seat, determined to get my point across. “If I don’t go back, Matteo won’t stop until he’s destroyed everyone I love.”
“But this isn’t about you, Layla. It’s about Dante. About us. It’s never been about you. You are just a pawn he’s using to put our family in checkmate. It’s Dante they want to destroy. It’s our family they want to wipe out. Even if you go back and give your life in order to stop all of this, it won’t. It will never stop.”
“I know this war between you and the Mancusos will probably never end, but I will no longer be used as a weapon to torture Dante. You and I both know Dante will put himself in harm’s way as long as Matteo has me. Your brother will never stop, and I’ve been the cause of Dante’s pain for too long.” I shook my head as tears welled up. “No more. No more, Antonio. I can’t do it anymore.”
When I looked up, Antonino’s eyebrows almost reached his hairline as he pieced it together. “No.”
“Yes. It’s the only way. I can’t stop the war, but I can stop Matteo from torturing Dante.”
Antonio swerved the car to the side before turning back onto the road. “You can’t do this, Layla. It will kill Dante.”
I smiled halfheartedly. “He’ll have a new reason to live.”
“This is insane.” Antonio paled, roughing his hands through his ink black hair.
“This is the only way.” He shook his head, but I continued. “I’m going to try to eliminate Matteo best I can.”
“What?” Antonio’s gaze shot to mine. “That’s insane.”
“If I kill Matteo, Stefano won’t have much left to fight with. Enzio is dead, and once Matteo is too, Stefano will have nothing, and the war would be over.” I sat back in my seat. “And then they will be safe.”
Antonio didn’t argue. He was intelligent enough to know my plan had the potential to work in favor of everyone…even me. With the knowledge that my family was safe, I would die a happy woman. Without the shadow of a doubt, I would gladly give up my life for them…for them both.
The last four years had only been a preparation for this day. From the day I stepped out of that house, running from Dante, I had sealed my fate. This was what it all would boil down to.
Antonio parked the car at the side of the road. Matteo’s black Bentley was already there waiting. Bile threatened to push up my throat, my stomach twisted and heavy. The blood running through my veins would have been nothing but ice if it hadn’t been burning with a lust for poison.
I righted myself and tucked blonde strands behind my ears. “Okay, this is it.” But Antonio grabbed my hand and turned to me, his gaze penetrating straight to my soul.
“I was so incredibly wrong about you, Layla. And I’m sorry for that.” His gaze was filled with sincerity, and it warmed my heart to finally know Antonio no longer saw me as a threat. That he knew how much I had loved his brother.
I smiled even though fear was tightening around my gut like a vise. “Just promise me you will do your part.”
He nodded. “I won’t let you down. I’ll take care of him, I promise.”
Just as I started to get out of the car, Antonio grabbed my elbow. “Take this.” He placed a tiny blade in the palm of my hand. “It’s not much, but it’s something, at least. It’s small enough to hide…just in case.”
I shot him a grin. “Thanks.” I placed the blade on the inside of my sleeve.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. This was probably the last time I would see Antonio or any of the Valentis. In my mind, I thought of Dante, his face, his touch, his kiss. I embraced the memories we had made the night before and made sure I would hold onto them forever.
I exhaled. “Goodbye, Antonio.” And then I got out of the car just as Matteo emerged from his. He stared at me victoriously as I walked across the road to him. That smug grin on his face and the evil that lurked in his eyes made my skin crawl. It caused my bravery to falter—just for a second, until I reached for a memory where I saw his face, a face I hadn’t seen in months. A face I would never see again. A face which was the reason behind every decision I had ever made. It was also the face of the one who had defined my life, changing it forever.
He was the one who deserved my sacrifice. The one who made it all worthwhile.
He was my son.
Chapter 17
Dante
I was going to kill him.
I was going to take my knife and drive it through his fucking heart. That was what it felt like to me when Antonio drove away with my woman.
“Where is he taking her?”
Lucio shrugged
. “Fuck me if I know. I’ll get a car and see if I can track him.” He rushed back into the house just as my dad came out.
“What the hell is going on?”
I kicked at the ground. “Your fucking oldest son just signed his own goddamn death warrant.”
“What?”
I stalked up to him, clenching my teeth. “Hear me now, Father. If Antonio is taking her back to Mancuso, I will kill him. I swear to God, I will slit his throat.”
He didn’t say anything as I stomped back into the house. All I thought about was Castello’s words. I would slit the throat of anyone who threatened my woman…even if it was my own fucking blood.
From outside, I heard another car speed across the asphalt. By the way the car was revved, I knew it was Lucio. He was going to try to track Antonio. And me? I was getting fucking answers.
“Kate!” I yelled like an enraged demon. The rage, the anger, it felt like I could slam my fist through a brick wall.
“Kate!” I screamed, my fury echoing through the halls. “Kate! Where the fuck are you?”
Lorik came storming around the corner. “What the fuck is going on?”
“Where’s Kate?”
“Layla’s sister?”
I brushed past him, knocking against his shoulder. “Yes, Layla’s sister.”
“Oh, I saw her get into a car with Lucio.”
I stilled. “What?”
“Yeah. They left, like, two seconds ago.”
My heart, my brain, my lungs, everything inside me leaped into a fucking frenzy of fury.
I had been angered by many before. I had killed more men than I could count. But nothing—and I meant nothing—compared to the rage that pulsed through my body right at that very moment. The lethal mix of betrayal and wrath slithered along every bone.
“Fuck!” I screamed. I screamed so loud, I couldn’t even hear the bash of my fist against the wall.
“Jesus Christ, Dante.” Lorik stepped back, the shiner on his face practically begging him to get away from me. “What the fuck is going on?”
I bit the inside of my cheek. My mind couldn’t form one coherent thought because all I saw was red. Both Antonio and Lucio had betrayed me. A few minutes ago, I was in my father’s study with one of the most feared men in our world supporting me. Now it felt like I had nothing, like I stood alone.
