Page 74 of Covert
I lock eyes with him so he can see my sincerity. "I am." I am ready. Only, my family consists of three tattoo artists and a biker. And I'm more than ready to fulfil my obligation to them.
"Perfect. I've been in contact with Giovanni Vitale, who is willing to honor the contract we originally had with his father. You'll get married next month and we'll be able to combine territories and resources with the Vitales, instead of competing with them," he says, staring me down, looking for any hint or tell that I'm going to be a problem.
I simply nod. I expected as much. "I'm ready."
He narrows his eyes, but doesn't challenge me. "You'll get with Becky to plan the wedding, and you'll be a good wife to him, do you understand?" My aunt Becky is the closest thing I have to a mother. Her husband was part of our mafia operations, but he was killed one night during a shootout. Becky's been in and out of our lives since then, but Angelo and I made sure she was taken care of financially.
I nod again. "Yes, Father. I'm grown now. I know I need to be useful for la famiglia. I'm ready."
He seems to consider this for a moment, as we sit in uncomfortable silence. Heat starts to creep up my neck the longer he looks at me, trying to detect the lie.
He folds his hands on his table and sits back, then. "And can I ask why you've taken one of my maids as your own?"
Crap. I wasn't prepared to be questioned about Natalie. I swallow and think on my feet. "Angelo has his seconds to do things for him. I didn't think you'd mind if I took one of the maids as my own."
He waves a hand dismissively. "It's fine. We've got more coming in anyway." My throat tightens at the flippant way he talks about an entire human being. I want to press him on what he means by that. Does he regularly steal women off the street? Where is he getting more people?We've got more coming in anyway.
I'm dying to question him, but I'm being dismissed, and I cannot raise suspicions.
"I'll get with Becky, then," I say again, before standing and retreating.
I need to ask Angelo what our father meant by that.
Chapter forty-six
Axel
It's been weeks. It's been weeks since I slept for more than a couple of hours. Since I've eaten a meal that consists of more than Twizzlers and Dr. Pepper. Since any of us has seen her. I know Maddox and Diesel saw her. I'm tempted to camp out at the strip club, knowing she goes there sometimes, but she was explicit when she told Maddox to stay away. And I know I could never just see her and not hold her, not have her with me. I've never felt lonelier. I've never felt more hopeless.
My phone pings with a text message, but I barely register it. I'm numb to the outside world right now. I've downloaded every scrap of information I can find on the Riccis, their operations, their property, their banking. There are rumors on the dark web about them buying and selling women, but nothing concrete. I pray they won't try to sell Nikki. She wouldn't allow it, right? Her brother wouldn't allow that. Right?
The love I saw between them when he picked her up seemed real, but it's been ten years. What if he's changed? What if he's not the guy she thought he was? A lot can change a man over a decade.
I numbly unlock my phone to read the text message. It's from a blocked number.
Blocked: Natalie is safe and with Nikki
And then a URL.
The mention of Nikki and Natalie in the same sentence kick-starts my heart again. Natalie. Natalie is safe? And with Nikki? How?
I stumble out of my chair to find Maddox.
"Mads!" I shout into the hallway. I have no idea what time it is, or if he's even home. I click the URL as I rush down the hallway.
"Mads!" I shout again, stumbling into his empty bedroom first. I check the kitchen and living room before I see the light in the gym is on. I barrel in. He's lying on the mats on the floor on his back, simply staring at the ceiling. We're all crumbling in our own ways.
"They've got her. Natalie. They've got her and Nikki. Nikki's with Natalie," I ramble, my brain sluggish. He raises to an elbow.
"What?"
"I just got a text," I say, waving my phone at him. "From a blocked number. That Natalie's somehow with Nikki and that she's safe."
I look back down at my phone and bring it closer to my face. For a moment I don't understand what I'm looking at, and then it clicks. A sigh whooshes from my lungs. It's a map. With a neon green dot in the middle.
Her tracker.
I collapse onto the mat next to Maddox and simply stare at the blinking green dot. I zoom out until I recognize the map. She's at her house. Or, her father's home. Her home is here, with us.
