Page 10 of Soulmate of the Mafia King
“I think I have to go make a call,” I said. “I’ll be back.”
I walked into the bedroom and dialed Sera.
“Oh, my God, hi!” she chirped. “I was wondering if you were gonna call. How is everything? How are you? Do you know what the plan is? Have you talked to Killian today? Do you know where he’s going to be during the fighting? What’s it like being back in Cairo? When?—”
“Slow down, and I can answer!” I laughed.
She sucked in a deep breath. “Yes. Right. Fair.”
I told her everything I knew, which wasn’t much, but I’d gotten a few texts from Tom. There’d be two fronts of the fighting. Teams hadn’t been assigned.
“Killian is safe. Tom is safe. I’m safe. And being back here is?—”
Resonant singing cut me off. My breath caught. The afternoon call to prayer. I’d slept through all the rest. I sat down sharply on the bed as tears filled my eyes. On my last night with the bastard here, he hadn’t even stopped to pray. Phantom pain fired through my limbs as I remembered the sound.
“Paige?” Sera asked. “Are you okay?”
I couldn’t move my mouth. I just sat there, frozen, until the call ended.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “For everything.”
“What? Paige?—”
I hung up before she could ask me anything else. I couldn’t think. I just wandered back out to the common room on numb legs to find Sam, Rico, and Harry playing a different card game. Sam caught my eye, said something to the other two, and hopped up.
“Hey,” he said. “Are you okay?”
I started to say “yes,” but my mouth froze again, so I just shook my head.
He angled us away from the other guards, giving me a shred of privacy in the open room. “Amalia’d thank you if you decided to stick to the hotel. I’d even let you kick my ass at poker again.”
I looked up at him with tears in my eyes. “Did Tom tell you to say that?”
He shook his head. “I’m here to keep you safe. I’d love to drop some of the scum we’re here to clean up, trust me, but you come first.”
I nodded. “I’ve made my decision.”
CHAPTER 8
TOMMASO
The taxi stopped at a street corner a few blocks away from Zahur’s palace, and Killian paid the man. We got out together and looked around for a moment. The island neighborhood in the middle of the city reeked of diesel like everywhere else, but I could see parks, and there were occasional breaks in the constant stream of traffic. By comparison, it was almost peaceful.
“It’s almost Manhattan.” Killian grimaced.
I shook my head with a smile. “I think Manhattan might smell better.”
He laughed sarcastically. “Now I know why people say you’re funny.”
“Dickhead.”
Killian looked around at the total lack of cover. “I’ve got an idea.”
He walked confidently into a several-story bank. The powerful air conditioner shocked my system, but I followed his lead. He marched up to the counter.
“Hello, I’m an international investor, and I need to see your roof.”
The woman frowned, then called in Arabic to another teller. The man hurried over.
