Page 90 of Fight Me Little Pearl

“Then give the phone to her,” I say impatiently.

There’s a shuffle on Vance’s end, then I hear him say, “La Signora Barone, the Boss wants to speak to you.”

To my shock, Francesca shuts him down in a cold voice. “Get that phone away from me and tell your boss to fuck off.”

The blood in my veins turns to ice. Her harsh words crush my heart. What the fuck? Where did that come from? What has happened to cause such venom? When I left home this morning, we were happy. What could have happened between the time I left the house and now?

“Did you hear that, Boss?” Vance asks sheepishly.

“Yeah, step away from her,” I order.

“Hmmm… she’s gone back upstairs.” Vance sounds upset, and I know it’s because Francesca has openly disrespected me and my authority. If it were someone else, they'd be dead by now, but he knows better than to touch Francesca.

“What the fuck happened?” I growl at Vance. “Did she leave the house?”

“No, Boss.” He pauses. “Boss?”

“What?”

“Federico came by the house. He left his phone on the dining table and she saw something on it. A video.”

“A video? What was it about?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t see it, but it must have been bad because she changed after watching it. I made him delete it from his phone.”

I run a hand down my face. There’s no way in hell I’ll remain in Italy because it’s Matteo’s last wish to see me when Francesca is mad at me. I don’t know what she saw on that phone, but Imust fix it before it festers and she closes up and becomes the Francesca she was when we first married.

“Don’t let her leave the house. I'm on my way.”

“Okay.”

I head for the door, forgetting there are others in the room with me until they speak.

“You’re leaving?” Zio Marco asks.

“Yes. I have urgent matters to attend to,” I answer as I rush outside.

I cannot believe I’m flying back to New York when I only just got here, but there’s nothing that’s going to keep me from Francesca. Nothing! I see Dutch flicking glances at me through the rearview mirror, but I ignore him and dial Federico’s number. It rings for a long time before he takes the call.

“When I call you, Federico, you do not keep me waiting. The next time this happens, I’ll make sure you don’t have a hand to take calls again in your miserable life.”

There’s a pause on the other end of the line before Federico slurs. “Yes, Boss. What can I do for you?”

I realize the bastard is blind drunk or high on something.

“What video did Francesca see on your phone?” I demand furiously.

“What video? What phone?” he asks groggily. In the background, a woman’s voice says, “Come on, baby.”

I’m wasting my time. He is too gone. Cursing, I hang up and call Roberto.

“What’s up?” Roberto asks.

“Go to my house. Keep watch until I return.”

“Is everything alright?” he asks worriedly.

“I’m not sure.” I swallow my vulnerability and get into boss mode again. “Do as I say, ask me questions later.”

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