Page 94 of Thorns of Silence
“You wouldn’t!”
I squared my shoulders and flashed a cold smile. I wondered if I looked as terrifying and unhinged as Dante Leone, but then I immediately shoved the thought out of my mind. There was no room for him, not when I needed this plan to succeed. Failure might actually kill me.
“Don’t test me.”
Grandma’s blue eyes started to shimmer as she held back her tears. A better person would cave, but I didn’t. She was an actress through and through. I was done being the victim.
“Phoenix, please don’t do this.”
“You hold all the cards, Grandma.” The first tear rolled down her plastic-filled cheekbones, but I didn’t—couldn’t—feel sorry for her. “Give me what I need, and I’ll be on my way. I need it tonight.”
Maybe I had more of Papà in me than I thought, or maybe I’d just reached my tipping point. I didn’t know. What I did know was that I couldn’t be a sitting duck. If Amon took Reina and the two married, I was bound to be a replacement and get caught in the crossfire of the Leone and Romero contract.
He didn’t want to marrymeas his first choice. Fine. I didn’t wanthimas his second choice. So round and round we went.
“I can give you two million, but you’ll have to go to the U.K. to withdraw it.”
“Fine.” Two million would support my daughter and me until I turned twenty-five, and then I’d be cleared to receive the rest. “I want to know where she is.”
THIRTY-SIX
DANTE
“Yours?” Darius appeared out of nowhere, his tone smooth as he watched firemen extinguish the fire. The car was history. “Bummer.”
“At least he didn’t end up in the hospital this time,” Cesar grumbled, and I shot him a warning look which he apparently didn’t understand. “I bet you she wanted to set the car on fire with you in it.”
I really needed to tape his mouth shut.
“Who?” Darius’s interest was clearly piqued. “Reina?”
“Why would Reina want to set me on fire?” I spat, annoyed with both of them. “We barely talk.”
He shrugged. “Dunno. She doesn’t seem keen on marrying you.”
“As if I give a fuck,” I muttered under my breath. My phone buzzed and I slid it open. It was a text from Marchetti.
Reina and Phoenix have disappeared.
I typed my reply, heart pounding.
When? How do you know?
It took a minute before Marchetti’s reply came in.
Raven messaged Isla. She happened to go into Phoenix’s room and found a note. She also seems to think Reina wasn’t home when they got there. Didn’t Amon take her home?
And so it began. I suspected my brother must have grabbed Reina, but Nix’s disappearance was an unexpected wrench in my plans. Maybe Reina convinced my brother to take her sister along. It was a plausible explanation.
I dialed up Amon, but it went straight to voicemail. Fuck! I tried again, then tried to pin his location. We always shared locations, no matter what. My brows furrowed.Nothing.That seemed wrong.
“Everything okay?” Darius must have picked up my strained expression.
“Reina never got home.”
His shoulders tensed. “It’s not the Brazilians, right?” What an odd comment to make. He must have read my confusion because he said, “My gym was attacked. Reina happened to be there. I didn’t think anything of it, but after questioning one of the men, it seemed they were after her.”
I gritted my teeth. “You didn’t think to mention that earlier?”
