Page 104 of Mafioso's Muse

‘And I’m supposed to trust that?’

That made Antonio visibly angry.

‘Then explain to me how this happened,’ Vaughn pushed.

‘The structure was sound. We didn’t touch it.’ He said the words with absolute sincerity.

Vaughn stared hard at him while his mind explored other possibilities. If what Antonio was saying was true, then what the hell had happened? ‘Is it possible that the structure waslesssound after the work was carried out?’

Antonio rubbed his forehead. ‘I don’t know. I suppose it’s possible. Sometimes things just go wrong. Not everything’s within our control all the time—despite what you like to think.’

Vaughn took a deep drag and exhaled slowly, watching the smoke. While Antonio was right, that did little to quell the storm raging within him.

The glass doors at the hospital’s entrance opened, and Lili walked out. She frowned at the brothers as she headed towards them. Despite the poor lighting, Vaughn could see her eyes were shadowed by exhaustion.

‘You can’t smoke here.’ Those were the first words from her mouth. ‘It’s a hospital, for God’s sake.’

Vaughn dropped his cigarette onto the ground and crushed it underfoot. ‘How is she?’

‘Sore.’ Lili stopped a few feet away and crossed her arms. ‘She has a fractured rib, ten stitches in her head, and fourteen in her leg.’

Antonio dropped his gaze to the ground.

‘I want to see her,’ Vaughn said, looking past her.

Lili exhaled. ‘Well, you can’t. You need to go home.’

He couldn’t leave without at least laying eyes on her. ‘I just want to make sure she’s okay.’

Lili’s gaze was unwavering. ‘She doesn’t want to see you.’

A few beats of silence played out between them as he considered whether there was any truth to that.

‘It’s only now sinking in what’s happened,’ she continued, ‘but she’s putting the pieces together.’ She gave Antonio an accusing glance. ‘The last thing she needs is you two loitering out here. She has enough to deal with.’

A storm of emotions churned inside Vaughn, but the guilt was the worst. He understood that Lili was being the friend Willow needed in the moment, so as much as he wanted to argue and muscle his way inside, he didn’t do that.

‘Okay,’ he said, looking past her again to the doors. ‘I’ll call you in the morning and see how she’s doing.’

Lili sighed. ‘Vaughn?—’

‘Just take care of her. Okay?’ It came out sounding like a plea.

‘Of course.’ She paused. ‘I don’t want her mixed up in what’s coming.’

He knew exactly what she was referring to. The fallout.

The glass doors opened again, and this time Harrison walked through them. Every muscle in Vaughn’s body went rigid. He hadn’t realised Harrison had been inside the hospital the whole time, but it made sense given the number of injured dancers in there and his position within the company.

‘You two have a lot of nerve showing up here,’ Harrison said, glaring at the brothers as he came to a stop beside Lili.

Antonio shifted his weight, prompting Vaughn to raise his hand in a calming gesture. His brother was aware of their history and wouldn’t hesitate to knock the guy out—with or without a contract. Antonio crossed his arms, a signal that he would behave.

The sight of Harrison standing beside Lili, like her protector, did nothing to improve Vaughn’s mood. He stretched out his fingers and tried not to imagine how good it would feel to punch the smug director in the face.

‘Make sure he’s supervised around Willow,’ Vaughn said to Lili. ‘We all know how he likes to take advantage of vulnerable females.’

Lili pressed her eyes closed. ‘That’s not going to help.’

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