Page 24 of Born a Queen

Giovanni shook his head and waved his hand in the air. "I’ve known of Gutierrez’s reputation for a long time now. Had I been able to employ him I would have. But your stepfather keeps him close at hand, utilizing his skills only for himself and the Sotza Empire. Mateo is the best tracker in the world. He’s unparalleled. I have heard that his skill is like magic, the uncanny ability to know where his victims are hiding."

A chill slithered down Raina’s spine. "Then that would mean that he always knew where I was. That he chose to allow me to travel the world for those two years. That he has now chosen to come and collect me."

Raina wanted Giovanni to deny her words, to tell her that wasn’t Mateo's plan. That somehow he managed to find her in the nick of time to stop Antonio's men from killing her. She knew better. She'd been stupid to think otherwise. Naïve.

"He will find you wherever you choose to go next. That is why I implore you to choose carefully. Don’t try to hide or evade him, because it won't work. He'll find you, he'll scoop you up and he'll take you home. If you wish to make the most of the few days you have left of freedom, choose a destination that truly means something to you."

Wise words, Raina thought to herself. Where should she go? If Mateo was going to follow her, then maybe she should give up and hand herself over. Because there was a part of her heart that was in Venezuela, that longed to go back.

Then it hit her. She knew exactly where she was going to go and it wasn't straight into Mateo's arms. Not yet. That was a future problem. She was going to run one more time, with Giovanni's help.

Then another thought occurred to her. She looked at Giovanni with concern. "Your son."

She didn't say more than that, she didn't need to. Giovanni had told them that his son was hidden away and Mateo wouldn't find him. But today he was telling her that Mateo could track anyone. And Giovanni was about to lose Raina as his leverage.

Giovanni seemed to slump in his seat, aging somewhat. He was about to lose his only child and there was nothing he could do but stand by and accept the loss, because his son had committed the grave error of attempting to kill Sotza’s princess.

Raina's heart ached for him and for the decisions he'd had to make in the past few days. He was an intelligent man. He probably realized from the moment he intended to let Raina go that he was signing his own child's death warrant. She didn't understand why he didn't fight harder for the life of his son and it wasn't her place to ask him.

Giovanni leaned over and kissed her cheek before sitting back in his seat. "God speed on your journey, my young friend."

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