Page 45 of Their Reckless Thief
“I’m not asking. Set it up.”
Luca stared at me for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Then, with a sharp nod, he stood and left the room. He might not like it, but he knew as well as I did that it was necessary.
I turned to Dorian, who was still studying the vial. “Take it to the lab. Make sure Adriano handles it. No one else lays a finger on it except him. I want every diagnostic test done on it. He needs to figure out what’s in this shit. And I want him, and only him, to test every batch we create before it hits the streets. Anything that isn’t perfect, gets destroyed.”
Dorian nodded. “Adriano’s the best. If there’s something in this that can give us a clue where it’s coming from, he’ll find it.”
“Good.” I exhaled slowly as I ran a hand through my hair. “This isn’t going to end here, Dorian. The drugs, the missing women… It’s all connected. We’re up against something bigger than we’ve ever dealt with.”
Dorian’s lips twisted into a dark smile, but there was no humor behind it. “Sounds like fun.”
I couldn’t help letting out a low growl. “This isn’t fun, Dorian. We’re in a fucking war.”
“I know.” He stood up. “But you forget… I love a good fight.”
With that, he grabbed the package and walked out, leaving me alone in the office.
I leaned back against the desk, the weight of everything pressing down on me. The Shadow was coming for us, and the only way to stop him was to meet him head-on.
But first, I needed to make sure my house was in order.
And I needed to get Celeste out of my fucking head.
13
CELESTE
As soon asI pushed the door open to my apartment, a wave of emotions I wasn’t prepared for hit me. Vivian stood there, her chest heaving as if she’d just sprinted down from the roof, eyes wild and frantic. The relief in her expression was quickly followed by a wave of fury so hot, my skin felt like it was on fire.
“Oh my god, Celeste!” she half-shouted, half-sobbed as she rushed toward me. “Where thehellhave you been?”
Before I could get a word out, Vivian pulled me into a bone-crushing hug, clutching the back of my shirt in her fists. She held me so tight I could barely breathe, and though I winced from the pressure on my sore ribs, I hugged her back just as fiercely.
“I… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you.”
She pulled back, her green eyes narrowing as she looked me up and down. “You didn’t mean toworry me? You’ve beengonefor days! I thought… I thought something horrible had happened. I was ready to tear the entire city apart looking for you.”
When her voice cracked, guilt settled in my stomach even though there was nothing I could have done to change it.
“I’m okay, I swear,” I said, but even I didn’t believe myself. I could barely stand, and my body felt like it had been through a meat grinder. “I’m here now.”
Vivian gripped my shoulders. “I did everything I could… kept trying to get back into the security cameras to see if you were okay. They must’ve figured it out and put up safeguards because I haven’t been able to get back in. What the fuck happened, Celeste? I heard those assholes talking, then the connection went dead.”
A rustling behind her caught my attention, and I looked up to see Will’s lanky form stepping into view. He stood awkwardly in the hallway, his tousled brown hair even messier than usual. His wide, fear-filled eyes were stark against his pale face, but the moment he saw me, relief washed over his features.
“Celeste,” he breathed, and the next thing I knew, he wrapped his arms around Vivian and me, pulling us into a clumsy group hug. He was only eighteen, still a kid in so many ways, but he’d been my family ever since Roberto pulled him off the streets and put him to work.
Vivian had found him in an alley ten years ago, shivering, cold and begging for money or food. She pleaded with Roberto to break his “girls only” rule and take Will in. I suspected the only reason Roberto had acquiesced was because, like him, Will was a stray.
Vivian had been like a mother hen to him ever since. The three of us were like siblings.
“I thought we’d lost you,” Will mumbled into my hair, that vulnerability he usually tried to hide breaking through in the hitch of his voice. “I didn’t know what to do.”
Guilt crept up my spine, digging its thorns into my heart. What had I been thinking, trying to drown myself in Vincenzo’s bathtub? Gods, I was a selfish bitch. I would’ve abandonedVivian and Will, and they never would have known what happened to me.
I squeezed both of them tightly. “I’m here, okay? I’m sorry.”
Will let out a shaky breath as he pulled back. “Viv was about to drag me out on some half-baked rescue mission to The Below. We thought we’d have to break down some fucking mafia doors or something.”
