Page 97 of Mafiosa
I rolled it on to my head, tugging it down at the back and leaving it folded on to the front of my hair. ‘Yeah,’ I said. ‘I’m ready.’
‘You look ready now. It suits you.’
I offered him a grim smile. I supposed that was his idea of a compliment. ‘Thanks.’
His smile was easy. A trickle of tension left my body. We were being cordial; we were getting back to the way we were. ‘Look, Nic, I don’t want there to be any hard feelings…’ I trailed off. ‘You know, with everything…’
He released an uneasy laugh, his feet shuffling slightly. ‘It’s fine,’ he said, a little too breezily. ‘I get it, you didn’t want me.’
‘It wasn’t about that,’ I said quietly. ‘I didn’t want anyone.’
‘You wanted him.’
‘In the end, yes,’ I admitted.
Something flitted across his face – too quick to catch, but it twisted his lips. ‘It’s kind of messed-up,’ he said. ‘Because after today, he won’t want you any more.’ He gestured at me, his finger leaving an invisible trail of ice down my front. ‘Heonly loves you because you’re innocent. He’s fascinated by it.’
‘Nic, let’s not do this.’
He held my gaze. ‘I would have loved you either way.’
I ran my hand across the ridge of the balaclava, trying not to feel self-conscious. ‘You always wanted me like this,’ I pointed out.
‘The way you’re supposed to be.’
‘Can we be civil?’ I pushed away from the topic of Luca. I didn’t want to be mad at Nic today. ‘Can we put everything behind us?’
His laugh was sharp. ‘Why? In case I die?’
‘In case of anything.’
He stuck out his hand. ‘OK. Friends,’ he said, in a low voice. I slipped my hand into his and shook it. He tightened his grip on my wrist and pulled me into his chest – into the hotness of his breath, the smell of his aftershave. ‘Let me promise you this, Sophie.’ He was looking down on me, his eyes blazing with intensity. ‘You and I are getting out of that house alive.’
I pushed against him, and he dropped my hand and stepped back, as if remembering himself. ‘I’m not worried about how we get out,’ I said, schooling my annoyance. ‘I’m worried about how we go in.’
‘We’re fine,’ he said. ‘I promise.’
I took that kernel of forgiveness, and smothered my anger with it. Of course he was still bitter about Luca. Of course he would say those things about him. He didn’t want us to be together. He would prefer me alone than with his brother.
Felice strode downstairs. He was dressed in a shiny silver suit, his balaclava clenched tightly in one hand. ‘Lovers’ tiff?’ he called over the banister. ‘Has she realized the error of herways yet, Nicolò?’
Nic rolled his eyes.
Felice’s shoes tapped the stairs on the way down. ‘It was a joke,’ he said, noticing my scowl.
‘Next time you tell a joke you should try and make it funny, so there’s no confusion.’
He reached the bottom and sniffed the air. ‘It feels like a good day to kill a Marino, doesn’t it?’ he said, leering at me.
I sniffed the air, too, my fingers curling on the gun inside my jacket pocket. ‘It feels like a good day to die, doesn’t it, Felice?’
He arched one perfect silver brow. ‘I’m sure our boss would agree with you.’
I narrowed my eyes at him. ‘Your family loyalty needs a lot of work.’
His thin lips spread wide, his mouth curving into a shark’s grin. ‘Not as much as yours does, Marino.’
‘It’s Falcone,’ I corrected him.
