Page 30 of Checkmate

“No worries, I’ll make it into a breakfast burrito to go for you,” she tells me. But I don’t miss the worried look in her eyes or the way she bites down on her bottom lip.

I toss the suit on the bed and make my way to her. I pull her into my arms and breathe her in. “What is it?” She shakes her head. “Is it about your father?”

“No, I know you think that taking him and his operation down is going to bother me, but honestly, it doesn’t. It seems odd to be okay with it, but I’m relieved, actually. I’m just worried about you,” she admits quietly.

“Oh, Firecracker, I’m not going anywhere except to work. Everything will go down in a couple of days, but I’ll have all the backup I could need, so it’ll be okay. Don’t worry,” I tell her, as I kiss the top of her head.

She pulls back and stares up at me before she rises on her tiptoes. I still have to meet her halfway without her heels. Her lips meet mine and I taste the vanilla coffee on her tongue. She pulls away. “I might just love you someday, Luca Healey.”

“Good. Because someday I might want your last name to be Healey,” I joke back, only it’s the truth and I think we both know it.

****

Leaving Vivianna with that worried look on her face was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. She had handed me a burrito wrapped in foil, a stack of napkins and a cup of to-go coffee before giving me one last kiss. I headed down and climbed into my car. I’m currently sitting in traffic, eating the best damn breakfast burrito I’ve ever had while listening to my country music.

It’s funny how quickly things can change in life. A few days ago, I felt as if all hope was gone. I was wondering about Vivianna and what she might be up to, but now I have my hope back and I know what she’s up to. It’s like a complete turn around and, despite everything going on around me, I can’t help but be happy.

I pull behind the casino, park in the employee parking, and head for the back door of the building. Luz is waiting for me, his face solemn. “You okay?” I ask him, as I approach.

He just nods his head before turning to open the door and ushering me inside.

Thirty-One

Vivianna

I’m just about to hop in the shower when I hear the front door close again. Instantly, I stop and wait for Luca to say something. He always announces himself when he comes in, but an eerie silence comes over the area. I leave the shower running while making a dash for the closet, but not before I grab my phone and send a quick SOS text to Foster and Frank. Something is wrong, I can feel it.

I tuck myself back into the corner of the closet. There’s good coverage here right now with all of Luca’s suits and muted lighting. I probably should have turned the shower off, but at the time I was more worried about hiding somewhere. I hear the bedroom door open and some male voices whispering, but I can’t make out what they’re saying. My heart thunders in my chest, sweat breaks over my brow, and my entire body is shaking with fear. I grabbed my damn phone, but not a weapon when I had an entire bag at my disposal. What the hell was I thinking?

I’m so scared that my teeth literally start chattering and tears burn the back of my eyes. I close my eyes and pray, which is not something I’ve done often in my life. Luca’s scent, though, surrounds me from his suits and it gives me a little bit of comfort. As I’m standing there, it dawns on me that the alarm system never went off when these men came into the apartment which means that my father is probably in control of the alarm system. If he controls the alarm system and he disarmed it so these guys could come in, that means one of two things. Either my father knows the truth about Luca, or he knows I’m here.

Suddenly, two groans fill the silence followed by two distinct thuds. I’d heard sounds similar to this before. If I had to guess, two men just hit the floor. I cover my mouth with my hand to keep from screaming as the fear claws its way up my throat. The closet door opens, and someone says, “Vivianna Giordano, are you in here?” I don’t reply because how do I know this isn’t some kind of set up? “I’m Ratliff, I work with Luca and Frank. Foster’s dad texted me and said you sent an SOS out to him.” I still remain hidden in the shadows and silent. “I’m going to dial Frank now and put him on speaker, so you’ll know that it’s safe.”

I listen as the man tells his phone to dial Frank McCall. Frank answers asking if he got to me in time. The Ratliff man tells him he’s here, but can’t find me yet, but wanted him to clarify that Frank sent him to help me. Frank does confirm that he sent Ratliff and in the back of my memory, I remember Luca mentioning the name briefly when we were trying to come up with a plan. Slowly and on shaky legs, I step out of the darkened corner and see an older African American man standing in the doorway of the closet. “Found her,” he tells Frank.

“Vivianna? You okay?” Franks asks.

I nod my head but can’t seem to find my voice. “I think she might be in a little bit of shock. Let me get this all handled and once she finds her tongue, she’ll call you.” Ratliff hangs up the phone. “Do you need me to get you anything?” I shake my head. “Do you want to see if you know these guys in the bedroom? I didn’t kill them. I just used a tranquilizer gun on them. I need to secure them before they come to.”

I follow him out of the closet and sure enough, two of the younger guys that I had seen during my brief time at the Giordano estate are lying on the floor unconscious. I nod my head. “They work for my father,” I tell him in a whisper.

Ratliff grabs some cuffs while securing them to the bed frame. “Well, you got any idea why they came here out of the blue with guns drawn, and where in the hell is Luca?”

“One of my father’s men called and told him to meet him at the casino in an hour. He left about half an hour ago, why?” I ask.

“Shit,” Ratliff mumbles.

“What?” I ask.

Ratliff shakes his head. “It just worries me is all. Look, why don’t you get dressed and I’ll track down Luca using the GPS on his phone.”

“Okay,” I tell him, as he leaves the room. I go to the bathroom and turn off the shower. I dress quickly in jeans, a cranberry long-sleeved t-shirt, and brown boots. Pulling my hair up in a ponytail, I head out to find a worried looking Ratliff. “What’s wrong?”

“His GPS is dead,” he tells me.

“What? What does that mean?” I ask, as panic starts to rise in my chest.

Ratliff sighs. “Either he had to kill it to keep his cover, or someone has killed it for him.”

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