Page 10 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

Don Cattaneo watched his son, his expression unreadable. “You need to focus on your recovery, Raz. We’ll handle everything else.”

“If you say that bullshit to me one more time, we’re going to have problems. I want the truth. That’s it. The rest of that shit is irrelevant.”

“Raz,” his father warned, but Orazio ignored him.

“Tell me what happened to her!” he shouted, his voice echoing through the room.

He didn’t like this feeling that was coming over him. It was fear, anger, and frustration all mixed together, and it was leaving a bitter taste in his mouth.

“Dad, if you don’t...”

“Enough!” Don Cattaneo yelled. “Right now, our priority is getting you and Cas back on your feet, then dealing with the Tatums. As for that woman... we’re looking into it.”

“Looking into it?” Orazio repeated, his heart pounding like a sledgehammer against his already sore ribcage.

His father’s expression had him feeling uneasy. He could feel the distance between them growing like an invisible wall slowly being built brick by brick – lie by lie. He hoped he was wrong.

But if he wasn’t, if his father had something to do with Monique’s disappearance, things would never be the same between them again.

“If I learn you’re behind her disappearance,” Raz muttered, voice low. “Our relationship will never be the same again, dad. You and I, we’ll never be good again.”

“Are you serious right now?” The don asked, frowning.

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

“I have nothing to do with that woman’s disappearance. What could I possibly gain by doing something to her?”

“You tell me.”

“There’s nothing in it for me. I know how much you love her. I have no reason to hurt her, son.”

Was his dad lying?Shit. He couldn’t tell. But something in him believed his father wasn’t telling him everything he knew.

"Trust me, Orazio," Don Cattaneo started. “We will find her. And when we do, we’ll make those who took her pay. And if you want to help with that, you must be ready. Which means you need to heal. Rest, son, so you can go find your woman.”

Raz swallowed. “I can’t lose her, dad.”

His father sighed. “I know, son. Trust me, I see how much she means to you. She almost means more to you than your family does.”

Raz cocked his head to the side and glared at his father. “What?”

“I’m just being observant, son. Rest.”

Raz chuckled.

“Why are you laughing?” the don asked.

This lying motherfucker almost had him believing that he really had nothing to do with Monique going missing. Orazio’s eyes narrowed, his chest tightening with anger.

“The more you lie to me, the more distant I feel from you,” he forced through clenched teeth.

“Son, I’m not lying,” his father insisted. “I’m looking into it. Leo is taking care of things personally.”

Leo!Was that supposed to reassure him? Raz glanced around the room, searching for his phone. He was desperate to hear Monique’s voice, anything to quell the anxiety gnawing at him. Hesitating, he decided against asking his father where his phone was.

His dad was probably the one hiding it from him. Had Rosa tried to call him? Was she thinking he’d turned his back on her? That thought sent pain lancing through his chest that had nothing to do with the wreck.

Since he couldn’t ask his dad for his phone, he reached for the landline instead, cursing himself for never memorizing Monique’s number. He’d told himself he would. But he hadn’t. And now, he couldn’t remember what the number was.

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