Page 55 of The Forbidden Husband

Owl’s flat tone replied. “We have the information, and it’s urgent.”

I glanced down at the screen and took note of the time. “It’s barely four in the morning. What the fuck is relevant at four?”

“We intercepted communications between Alonzo Bianchi and Aria Bianchi. It’s fragmented, but it’s enough.”

He paused as if waiting for me to understand what he was saying. “And?”

“She’s a double agent, Boss.”

I had only felt this surge of emotion one other time in my life. The moment I learned about the death of my parents, the floor fell out from under me and every muscle in my body had involuntarily contracted. Everything about the news had been soul-shattering, yet somehow this felt worse.

“She’s not a double agent,” I told him.

She couldn’t be.

I had told her about my mother, and she knew about my greatest insecurities. She knew why I had never planned on being with a woman on an emotional level, and she had seemed so empathetic. Hell, she had sworn that she wasn’t my mother.

It wasn’tpossiblethat she had played me so well.

“I’m pulling up to your house.”

The call ended, and headlights beamed through the windows as Owl parked in the driveway and came straight through the front door. He didn’t wait for me to say anything or invite him inside as he approached.

He immediately handed me a tablet with messages encrypted between two numbers. I read through them, finding small details on our numbers and manpower delivered through text. Information that only Aria could have gathered. None of it had any significance, but it was still information.

“What makes you think she sent this?”

“The phone was tracked to your house, and the only people in your house are Jaimie and Aria.”

“Did you talk to Jaimie?”

My words trailed off as I realized what I was saying. Jaimie had been loyal for years. She had never given any indication of disloyalty, and I had trusted her with information that could have ruined our most significant businesses.

Aria hadn’t been tried or tested.

I read one small exchange, and my teeth ground when I saw the informant refer to Alonzo as “dad.”

Every thought—every emotion—fell away.

Only the facts in front of me and the betrayal she had dealt me settled. It settled like a weight deep in my chest. A weight that I couldn’t shake no matter how hard I breathed.

Owl handed me a syringe, and I looked down at it, shock still overshadowing everything.

“It’s a sedative. We can string her up and question her.”

“No,” I said. I palmed the syringe and turned toward my bedroom. I moved quietly inside and found her lying on her stomach in the same position as I had left her. Soft snores filled the room. The arch of her back was partially concealed by a white sheet.

I stood over her for a second, weighing the needle in my hand.

“Aria.”

She jerked awake, her wild eyes rising and meeting mine. When they settled on me, they softened. “What are you doing awake?”

I didn’t say anything as I looked over every crevice of her face. How could she do this after swearing she would never. After assuring me that she was nothing like my mother. She couldn’t have betrayed me so much.

“Enzo?” she asked, her voice hoarse.

“What did you do?”

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