Page 91 of Fiercely Protective

Blaze stepped forward. “Well, that was anticlimactic.”

“I don’t have the time nor am I in the mood for dramatics.”

Blaze grinned. “Tomas and Alessio made certain we didn’t miss anything, no security cameras, there was no one else in the house, nothing to connect us with being here, and I have some of Petro’s blood and his identification to leave somewhere here in the house. I can easily make it look as if the two of them argued and Petros killed Sevan before fleeing the country and as Petros’ body will never be found, it should be an easy sell.”

I sighed before putting my pistol back inside my coat. “Let’s just get it done and get back to Chicago.”

About thirty minutes later my phone rang. “I know you are impatient, Alessio, but you could give us just a bit more time.”

“You need to get back to the plane now!”

The urgency in his voice caused me to immediately pick up my pace toward the waiting car. “What’s happened?”

“I just received a phone call from Frankie Ballentine. It’s Galante, he doesn’t know where he is. He discovered that his safe had been broken into sometime yesterday and Tony stole somewhere around a hundred grand. Frankie wanted to warn you. He doesn’t think he will return to Chicago and go after Bri, but I wouldn’t want to take that chance if I were you.”

I hung up the phone and immediately tried to call Michael, but the call failed. Something was wrong. I could feel it. I had given Bri her phone when I left, but when I dialed the number, the call wouldn’t go through.

I sprinted the rest of the way to the car with Blaze right behind me. I had promised Bri that I would protect her, keep her safe. I had told her that Tony wasn’t a threat anymore, that he had left Chicago. And now I wasn’t there to protect her from the monster who had hurt her. The prospect of that bastard putting his hands on her, hurting my angel again was enough to make me commit murder a hundred times over. My fury intensified at the thought. If Galante was foolish enough to go after Bri again, I would show no mercy. His death would not be an easy one.

Bri

I had spent most of the day learning my way around Rogue’s ridiculously large mansion. He did not return that night and I had not heard anything from him since he left me. Michael had assured me that I had nothing to worry about, but how could I not worry?

“Did you want to change and practice some of the moves you have been learning? It might help take your mind off things.”

I turned and saw Michael walking toward me. It was odd seeing him dressed normally, not as a priest.

“Have you heard anything?”

He shook his head. “No, but my phone hasn’t worked all day. There must be a tower down somewhere.”

I took the phone from my pocket and stared at the blank screen. “Yeah, mine isn’t working either.”

“I normally would try to be more sympathetic and understanding but you look as if you could use some tough love. Go get changed and meet me in the gym. If you can manage to hold your own, I will teach you something new.”

“Something new?”

His grin stretched wider across his face. “Rogue has a target range in the basement. I thought you might like to try your hand at shooting. You did say you wanted to learn.”

I returned his smile. “Rogue knows that you are going to teach me to shoot?”

“No, but he isn’t here right now. But just so we are clear, you only get to go to the range if you manage to hold your own on the mat, and I have no plans of letting you off easy.”

I slipped my phone back into my pocket. “For a priest, you certainly aren’t being very encouraging, but I think I might surprise you. Will Eden be joining us?”

“She is napping and since Tomas is not here to supervise, I think I will steer clear of throwing around Alessio Messina’s wife. It could be dangerous to my health. Now go change, I’ll be in the gym.”

While I missed Rogue, I did enjoy spending time with Father Michael. He made me laugh and there was something about him that made all of this feel normal. “I’ll meet you there in fifteen minutes.”

I hurried up the stairs to the master suite to change, tossed my phone on the table by the bed, and turned back toward the closet.

“Hello, Brielle.”

The voice from my past caused me to freeze in fear. “Tony.”

He took a step closer, and I felt as if my feet were glued to the floor.

“I thought you had forgotten all about me, sweetheart. You gave me more of a chase than I expected.”

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