Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92071 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 460(@200wpm)___ 368(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
I had to remind myself to stay calm. Dante had warned me about this. He had also insisted that he would be fine. There was no need for me to panic. But right now, I had to question if this was actually true, or if it was just another way he was protecting me.
I took a deep breath and impulsively hugged her. “He expected this, Marie. He said he’ll be fine.”
She nodded, but I could tell there was more she was withholding.
“What is it?”
“He was not arrested because of his case,” she muttered.
“What do you mean?”
“He was arrested for kidnapping.”
My eyes widened. “What? Kidnapping?”
She nodded worriedly.
I took a deep breath. Once again, he had warned me this was coming. That they would play dirty. The organization would do anything to absolve themselves of blame for my disappearance. They had decided to pin it on him instead. This was exactly the kind of mess that had haunted me so far. I knew there was no way in hell Dante was going to admit to anyone he had me because doing so was sure to inform Ugo as well.
It was a checkmate for Dante.
Just then we heard a call. I looked up to see one of the staff with a man in a suit heading over. I assumed it was Dante’s lawyer and it brought me a deep sense of relief to see him. Marie took her leave while the lawyer introduced himself as Foster Fuentes and shook my hand. His palm was cool and soft and he seemed calm and professional. Unfortunately, that did very little to assure me. He did not care. He did not care the way my father did. He was an excellent lawyer being paid to defend his client. He was no more and no less.
He smiled smoothly at me. “Nice to finally meet you, Miss Leone.”
“I just heard Dante was arrested.”
A momentary look of surprise and annoyance crossed his face before he could hide it. “You saw it on the news?”
“No. Marie just informed me.”
“Oh! Good,” he said and smiled suavely. He was relieved I had not seen it on the news.
“How is he?” I asked anxiously. It was the only thing I wanted to know.
“He’s fine. I'm here because he told me to personally come over and speak to you. He said he had already warned you that things could get complicated, but he expected you to still worry, so he sent me to assure you there is nothing to be worried about.”
My eyebrows rose. “Nothing to worry about?”
“Absolutely,” he said with great assurance. “I would have gotten him out already, but one of Ugo’s men has turned informant, and as a result, I can’t get him out before twenty-four hours elapse. But rest assured I will get him out. There is absolutely nothing to worry about.”
His words should have comforted me, but something felt off. Wrong. I frowned. “So he’ll be fine …”
“Of course,” he confirmed instantly, assertively, but I knew. He was not telling me the whole story. It was not as simple as he was making out. Dante was in danger.
“Well, then.” He got to his feet. “I should be going. I’ll call you tomorrow and give you an update. Don’t worry you should be seeing him in no time.”
“Alright,” I said, and once again he gave me his hand. It was slightly sweaty. I watched him walk away until he disappeared out of sight.
One of Ugo’s men had turned! That didn’t sound like ‘nothing to worry about’. That was a game changer.
Now, I was 100% certain Dante had only given me one of two pieces of the whole picture. No doubt he was doing it to protect me. I was beginning to realize he truly would do anything to protect me.
But I didn’t want that.
I didn’t want him to take on more risk because of me. Already, his business was affected, and now his personal safety was. While he was being at the government’s pleasure, he didn’t have his own protection service. He could be in danger. What if Ugo had his men inside the force? They had corrupted Sarah, what if they were others in the police force? I loved Dante too much to put him in danger. I couldn’t lose him. Not him. Not now. I had to protect him with the same selfless dedication with which he protected me. I knew exactly what I must do. He won’t like it, but this was my decision. I had only met her once, but I memorized her number. She was the person who had stood in once for Sarah. She had been kind to me and I liked her. I dialed her number.
“Detective Mellor?” I asked when her phone was answered.
“Yes,” her voice was wary.
“It’s me, Zola.”
The line went completely silent for a few seconds. “Are you alright?” she asked urgently.