Page 9 of Born a Queen

Chapter Five

This was a bad idea and she was probably going to die.

Raina was sitting in the back seat of a vehicle driven by one of Savino's henchmen and sitting next to another. Savino’s men retrieved the car at the parking lot near the Venice train station and were driving through Mestre, a borough of Venice. They were making sure that she wasn't going anywhere. She was starting to realize that by going to Savino she had leapt out of the frying pan and right into the fire. At least with Mateo she could be 99% positive that he wasn't going to kill her on sight.

She eyed the massive mansion as it came into view when the car rounded the long, winding, curved driveway. She heard the buzz of the gates as they closed. Savino's estate was surrounded by a wall and though everything was shrouded in shadows, she thought she could make out spikes on top of the fence. The mansion itself was big, dark and gloomy. From her vantage point, pulling up to the front of the mansion, she couldn't see a single light on inside.

Think logically, she thought to herself.

If they were going to kill her, they would take her out to the middle of nowhere and put a bullet in her head. Not bring her back to the fancy mansion where bloodstains on the Oriental rugs would probably not come out.

The car halted and her door was opened for her. A hand reached inside. Raina hesitated for a few seconds before taking it and allowing the person to help her out. She gripped her side as it twinged in pain. Her back was on fire. But there was nothing she could do about that at the moment, not until she a bed and got some rest.

She was escorted up to the mansion doors by no less than three very large men. Apparently, it took this kind of muscle to escort one small helpless injured twenty-one-year-old woman. For some reason, Savino really didn't want to lose her, which was a frightening thought.

Her intent in going to the Italian Godfather was to brazen her way out of Italy. She had planned to use her stepfather's name to get herself safe passage through checkpoints. Instead, she somehow managed to intrigue Savino enough to gain herself entry into his private sanctum. On the upside, her stepfather likely didn't know about this yet. Possibly she could still wiggle her way out of the situation.

The door swung open and she stepped inside the mansion. It was the fanciest house she'd ever seen. Sotza’s Venezuelan home was incredible too; a beautiful mix of rustic and modern coming together in an almost old English style. For the brief time that she lived there, she had enjoyed exploring the many rooms and the gorgeous gardens beyond the house.

Savino’s home was different. It was bigger than Sotza’s. Raina couldn't begin to guess how many rooms would be in this building. But it had a cold feel to it, an unused feel. The entryway was dark. No one greeted them and no lights were turned on. It was spooky.

"This way." Her escort waved her down the hallway on the right.

Raina nodded and trailed after him, squinting into the different nooks and crannies to try to get an idea of what the place looked like. It was really quite dark in the hallway and she might have actually lost her footing if it weren't for the vague shape of the man in front of her. He led her past several doors before opening one on the end and waving her inside. As she stepped through the door, she heaved a sigh of relief. Now this room she could work with.

It was big and cozy, lined with bookshelves, dominated by a huge masculine desk and leather chair. French balcony doors led outside, but she couldn't see anything in the darkness beyond. If she had to guess, there was probably a well-manicured lawn and garden out there. A roaring fire in the fireplace beckoned to her and she turned towards it holding her hands out. The door closed softly behind her and she looked over her shoulder in time to hear a click.

Raina checked the door, rattling the handle. Locked. She thought about getting angry; she thought about beating on the door and screaming for help. Like the damsel in distress from the movies.

Perhaps it was the gunshot wound, but she didn’t have it in her to throw a fuss. All she could muster at the moment was mild curiosity. Why had she been brought to Savino's home? And why was she locked inside what was probably his office?

Though she was fairly certain that the answers to those questions couldn't be anything good, she also didn't believe she was in any immediate danger. Savino's response to her at the club would have been much different if he'd intended her harm. If he'd hated her on sight, or worse, been indifferent, she’d probably be floating face-down in a canal.

Drawn to the warmth of the fire, she sat in one of two giant leather chairs. She kicked off her shoes, pulled her knees up and tucked her feet underneath her. Her back gave a painful twinge, but she was so relaxed and comfy that she didn't want to move. It seemed strange to feel this at ease in the home of someone she should probably consider an enemy. But she didn't. There was something about the dark cold mansion with the one warm and friendly room. The house projected a kind of loneliness. She couldn't hate lonely.

Raina considered herself an extroverted introvert. She loved being at home alone, reading her books, and working on her graphic art. But she also loved going out. She loved dancing, dating and talking to people. Her work in forgery gave her the opportunity to meet all kinds of people. She got a small peek into the illicit lives of others as she worked on their fake documents. She loved those glimpses and held each interaction close to her heart. She would never betray a customer. Unless that customer was Antonio Savino and he'd had her shot.

Raina's eyes grew heavy as she sat in the chair waiting. What exactly she was waiting for, she didn't know, but she may as well have a snooze while she waited. She pulled a pillow out from behind her back and curled it into her stomach, wiggling in the chair until she found a comfortable position. She fell asleep like that and didn’t wake until the door rattled.

By the time Raina came fully awake Savino was already in the office and striding toward her. She shoved a handful of blonde hair out of her face and blinked sleepily up at him smothering a yawn with her hand.

"Signore Savino," she said softly. "Thank you for bringing me to your home. It's quite lovely."

“Call me Giovanni, please.” He sat in the chair opposite her, crossing one leg over the other and watching her with interest. "My apologies for not warning you about this mausoleum. It’s hardly the proper place to bring a young woman such as yourself, but there was no other safe haven that I could think of. My son has as much access to the city as I do, it wouldn't take him long to find you. In fact, he will find you here."

Raina shivered at that thought. Her fight or flight instinct was telling her to get up and start running, to burst through those French doors, race across the lawn and scale what she suspected was a razor-sharp fence. Of course, she couldn't do that.

“Am I going to be alright here?” she asked unsteadily.

Giovanni ignored her question, instead calling loudly toward the hallway, "Doctor, please come in." A thin and wiry man wearing a sweater over a pair of dark brown pants drew Raina's attention. "Dr. Danilo will examine your injury."

Raina thought about denying them, but Giovanni hadn't exactly given her an option. And it probably wouldn't hurt to get her wound looked at by a real doctor.

Raina attempted to stand, but the doctor put his hand on her shoulder. "No need to get up. I understand the wound is on your back. Lean forward in the chair and point at where it is."

Raina did as he asked, clutching the arm of the chair and leaning against it. She turned her face into the side and rubbed the softness of the chair against her cheek. She pointed at the spot on her back where the bullet hole was.

"It's already been sutured," she told him as he used medical scissors to slice through the gauze wrapped around her middle. She winced as he peeled the wad of gauze from her skin. It hurt like a bitch.

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