Page 65 of Runaway Queen

Renato’s jaw was clenched tightly. He looked in the direction his father had gone.

“Nikolai Chernov. We need to talk.”

“About?”

“Sofia.”

* * *

We wentto a diner off the highway somewhere. Renato looked out of place. He was as effortlessly classy as his sister. He was the kind who could blend seamlessly into high-profile events. He could probably sneak up on a senator in plain sight and cap him in the bathroom, something I’d never be able to do. The air of violence that clung to my shoulders was too strong, not to mention my dead eyes and tattoos. In prison, I had turned my body into a lethal weapon, and everyone with half a brain stayed back. Apparently, that rule didn’t apply to the De Sanctis family.

Renato ordered an expresso and watched in shock as I ordered pancakes.

“You’re seriously going to eat pancakes right now?” His deep, dry voice made me grin.

“You ordered a double expresso in a highway diner, and I’m the crazy one?”

Renato watched me, and I watched him right back.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked after a moment.

“You remind me of her. You’re very similar.”

“I don’t look as good in a dress,” Renato said.

“True. Your sister looks good in everything she wears,” I chuckled.

“You meantlookedgood, right?” Renato said.

“Did I?”

He tilted his head to the side, studying me. “You’ve already found her, haven’t you?”

“What do you think? There’s nowhere Sofia can hide from me. If I didn’t find her in the afterlife, I’d come right back to this world and look. It was pointless to try to and conceal her. All it did was piss me off.”

“Have you hurt her? Know that if you have, this conversation is about to go downhill.”

I smirked at him. “You get points for that. I’ve spent seven years deciding if you should die for failing her, and then weeks deciding if leaving her alone, and allowing your father to threaten her makes you worthy of dying… your stock just went up a minuscule amount.”

“I take that to mean that you haven’t hurt her.”

“You can take it to mean that I will kill any man who does, including myself,” I stated flatly.

Renato stared at me for a long moment. It was the stare of a brother sizing up his future brother-in-law.

He nodded at length. “I never wanted her to disappear. I never wanted to lie, but my father holds a lot of power in the family. It wasn’t time yet to take over from him. I honestly thought he had a year at most. He was so ill after his first heart attack. But somehow, he’s managed seven years. Sometimes I think he’s never going to die.”

“Oh, he’s going to die, and soon. I promise you.”

The waitress put down my pancakes and Renato’s expresso. He took a sip and grimaced, while I cut into my first buttery, sweet mouthful. Since finding Sofia, even food tasted better. It was like I was slowly coming back to life.

“So, you’re going to kill him?” he asked.

“Why, you want me to? Don’t tell me you’re going to be the kind of man who waits around for someone else to do the dirty work? A boss like that won’t be respected.”

“Don’t teach me rules about a family you have no knowledge about. We aren’t like you. In my family, respect to the one who has gone before is the most important thing. With age comes wisdom, and it’s the mark of a strong capo. Antonio is old and still has supporters. Alone, it would be difficult to unseat him.”

He let out a deep, pained breath, his fingers tapping the table in a tattoo.

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