Page 99 of Capuleto

"We'll see," my father-in-law commented, twirling a pen between his fingers.

"Regarding what happened at the funeral," continued Don Giuliano, "my man has continued with the investigations. Someone claims that you were alone with the motorcycles." I looked at Don Giuliano's man and then at him.

"What?! Is it April Fool’s Day and I didn’t get the memo?" I turned to R. "Tell them I was on the bridge with you the whole time!" I exclaimed, looking at R.

"Yes, I've already told them that, but they're not referring to that." He squinted for a second. But what the hell? What did that blink mean?

"Romeo?"

"Isn't it true, Mrs. Koroleva, that it took you a few minutes to get to the bridge with the others and you stayed alone with the motorcycles?" Álvaro San Juan threw the accusation.

"What is this?! A fucking trial?! Should I call my lawyer?" No one responded except Romeo.

"Calm down, Nikita. My family just wants to tie up loose ends."

"I got a call!" I burst out.

"A very timely one, that you forgot to mention in your story when we asked you," Salvatore criticized.

"I didn’t think it was important!" I exclaimed, annoyed.

"It was if it left you alone with the vehicles for a certain time." That rattlesnake in the form of my husband's cousin was really pissing me off.

"Shut up, no one asked for your opinion!" It was a complete setup. It seemed like everyone wanted me to confess to a crime I hadn’t committed. "You can check my calls without a problem. Sarka called me to discuss something, as soon as I resolved her question, I hung up. You can verify that."

"We already have," Massimo clarified. "That doesn’t rule out that you could have placed explosives under the motorcycles meanwhile. It's easy to hold the phone with your ear and do something else with your hands. Besides, remember they didn't blow up until you and my son arrived."

"And is that my fault?!" I shouted.

"With your attitude, you only make us suspect more," said Don Giuliano. "We all know that those types of remote-controlled mechanisms only work within a few meters. It's logical that we suspect."

"You suspect?!" I roared. "This seems unbelievable, really. And what’s my motive, Don Giuliano? Enlighten me."

"To bring down the ‘Ndrangheta on the Costa del Sol. To shift the focus towards the Chinese when we have the enemy sleeping in my nephew’s bed."

"Your beauty could have been a double-edged sword, and my cousin is a hotshot who you might have charmed," Salvatore added.

"I can't believe it! Did I also kidnap myself and get sold to a trafficking network?!" I said exasperatedly.

"You could have planned it to make it seem like it wasn't what it was."

"Enough!" roared Romeo. "That makes no sense. I believe in my wife."

I didn’t know what hurt more, the suspicion they harbored against me, that they had come so close to the scorching truth, or that Romeo defended me when he didn’t know about my double game. Right now, I felt awful, even though my expression didn't show it. What was it? What was I doing? I felt like a damn projectile weapon in Yuri's hands, and I had just thrown myself to the wolves.

I thought very carefully about what to say before speaking. I had to find a crack deep enough to sow doubt and make them believe me. If I told them about Yuri now, they wouldn't believe it; they'd shoot me before I could finish explaining.

I needed time, as well as to gather enough evidence so that R would believe me if I chose to switch sides.

I rummaged through my mind and found just what I needed. I looked at my husband with something akin to an apology that I was capable of emitting and addressed the rest.

"If I wanted to screw you over, I would have done it already. I have in my possession some documents that I could have signed to dissociate myself from all of you without getting my hands dirty. Tell them what you proposed, Romeo."

It was my only play. R tensed his body, and I saw the shadow of disappointment cross his gaze, in part, I had betrayed him in front of his family, but I needed a rope to cling to.

"What does she mean?" insisted Massimo. He clenched his jaw.

"I offered her the possibility of divorce. That she could take back her life and her empire with the accounts cleared."

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