Page 69 of Little Rabbit

“Understood,” Mario replies, his soldier’s eyes dark and cold. “Alonzo has already called and said he’s off to help. I thought I heard him cursing at someone, but then the call cut off so I’m not sure what’s happening with him.”

I curse. “Fuck, I forgot about Rori. I’ll find them and get her to safety as well.” Then I’m heading for the stairs, my gun raised and ready to fire at anyone who tries to get in my way.

Alonzo is never going to forgive me if he’s stuck protecting Rori instead of fighting.

31

SIENNA

“Sofia!” Gia cries suddenly, making me turn to see her running toward us through a side passage, face grim and gun in hand. That’s when I realize that she’s not alone. Behind her are Rori and Hades, and Rori is wearing a look that I know all too well. She’s both pissed and excited.

“Looks like I got here just in time,” Rori remarks when she and Sofia reach us. Hades leans into my leg and then goes over to Gia, nudging at her hand in comfort. “Though that overgrown asshole out there clearly hasn’t figured out that I’m not a damsel to hide away, considering how fast he pushed me in here.”

“Darling, you might as well get used to that,” Sofia informs her with a slight smile, though I see the tension in her body. “The men do the fighting, and we’re expected to sit back and let them.”

“And you follow that?” Rori demands incredulously.

Sofia’s smile turns sharp. “What do you think?” Rori chuckles and they share a conspiratorial smile. I nearly roll my eyes but manage to stop myself. I’m trying not to freak out about what is going on just outside these walls. It’s soundproof in here so we can’t hear anything, which I suppose is a good thing, but I’m terrified that something is going to happen to Alessio.

When I saw him smiling as the passage door closed, I felt a sense of dread. What will happen if I never see that smile again? The thought makes my heart clench, and I realize just how much trouble I’m in. I should be focusing on keeping myself and Gia safe in case someone breaches the passages somehow, but here I am worrying about a man that clearly knows what he’s doing.

Probably because he does this every other week.

I smirk to myself, but then look back at the other women and say, “We need more weapons than just a couple of guns, in case they get in here. Is there somewhere we can get more weapons without anyone catching us?” I look at Sofia expectantly.

She nods. “We can try and get to the armoury, but there’s a good chance it’s been cleaned out. The other options we have are either Gia’s old room or the master bedroom. There are weapons all through there. There are some in other rooms as well, but those two are our best bet.”

“Armoury first it is,” Rori says with a nod. She looks around. “How the hell are we going to find our way through this maze? I mean, as fun as this is, I don’t relish the idea of opening up a door along the way and coming face to face with someone on the other side.”

“I mapped it out,” Sofia says briskly, jerking her head for us to follow her. “It’s going to be a bit of a hike, but at least we don’t have to worry about anyone getting in here. Nico and Dante have the passageways secured so that only those with biometric permissions can get in. Right now, that’s Nico, Dante, Gia, and myself. No one else, not even the guards, can get in here.”

“Damn, I would say that’s kind of paranoid, but considering our situation, thank fuck,” Rori remarks.

“I still need you to show me how to get to different rooms through here,” Gia tells Sofia softly. “I only know how to get from the ballroom to my old room, or my old room to Nico’s. Oh, and how to get down to the side door from Nico’s, but even that’s a bit fuzzy since I was so nervous about Nico catching me.”

“Why would you be nervous about that?” Rori asks, looking at her curiously, but her gaze is sharp. If I’m honest, I’m a bit curious myself.

Gia grins, and the worry eases. “Oh, that. See, I was playing a game of sorts with Nico. We have this thing about me trying to get away from him and him having to catch me. So I left him a note on the bathroom mirror and told him to catch me, knowing he was going to check the cameras. Sofia helped me stow away on the Caruso’s plane when they left the last time. He had to find me in Sicily, where we had our honeymoon.”

Rori grins wickedly. “Oooh, now that’s hot. When he caught up to you, did he ravish you?”

Gia blushes and Sofia gives a wicked laugh. “He didn’t let her leave the guest house for a full day, and when she did, she could barely walk. We had to tell the guards to ignore her screams, because they went on for a long time. The men were commenting on Nico’s stamina for over a week.”

Rori twists her body and leans around me, holding up her hand for a high-five. “My girl, you and I are going to be good friends. Because, shit, that’s hot as hell. What I wouldn’t give for a man to do that to me.”

I snort, and she gives me a bland look. “You left out the part where you love to be chased, but that you love to fight back when you get caught. Or have you forgotten that time in college when that quarterback you were screwing chased you down and pinned you to the ground to fuck you? I thought for sure I was going to have to distract the cops, you were screaming so loud.”

Gia stares at her incredulously, even as Rori gets a dreamy look in her eyes. “God, he was something,” she says wistfully. “It’s all consensual, and he knew that. And he definitely played his part.” She wiggles her brows suggestively.

“Sounds like you and Alonzo will get along well,” Sofia smirks as we make another turn down another passage. Maybe I should have been dropping crumbs behind us along the way, because there is no way I won’t get lost if we have to find our way back to Nico’s office.

Rori arches a brow. “Wait, as his sister, how the hell do you know that he likes the primal shit?”” she asks curiously.

Sofia sighs and leads us to a set of stairs. Wow, this place is insane. What next, an elevator? “Because I grew up in a house full of men and I know far more about my brothers than I care to. That includes the Caruso boys, who I also see as my brothers,” she explains patiently. “And this particular brother enjoys things a bit darker in his love life, if you know what I mean.” Then she grins. “It’s been far too long since a woman kept him on his toes, and I want to see just how far you can push him.”

“I have no intention of sleeping with him,” Rori tells her firmly.

Sofia shrugs. “I don’t care if you do. My brother’s a big boy and can handle himself.” Then she mutters, “If only they would recognize that about me.”