Page 57 of Hired By the Consigliere

I tried the handle on the door, but it wouldn’t open. Domenico grabbed my wrist, but I swung at him, punching, clawing, and kicking to try to keep him away from me. The driver swerved and the man in the passenger seat turned around to help wrangle me in.

I wasn’t sure what good it would do. I couldn’t get my door open. I was trapped in the car, but my desperation told me that I had to do something. The driver swerved to the side of the road and slammed on the brakes. I hit the unlock button and tugged at my door handle again. It released, swinging open and I leaped just as Domenico grabbed a fist full of my hair and hurled me back into the seat.

I cried out, gripping his hand in my hair, clawing and struggling to pry his fingers free as the shorter man jumped out of the car and shut my door again. Domenico didn’t let go of my hair as he used his body to pin me to the seat of the car.

He hovered over me, scratches bleeding down his face, and fury in his eyes. “Big mistake,troia.I’m done being—shityou're lucky you're his daughter.” he muttered the last part more to himself than to me, but I didn’t have time to give his words much thought.

He gripped my hair tighter, lifting my head and slamming it back onto the leather seat out of frustration which was dizzying but didn’t actually hurt beyond the sharp tug at my scalp. He released my hair and pointed his finger at me angrily. “Don’t you fucking move until I tell you to.”

Every part of me wanted to sit up. Laying on my back on the seat was awkward and made me feel far too vulnerable but I didn’t dare move.

I couldn't see where we were going but we had been driving longer than it would have taken to go back to the same hideout as before. I squirmed slightly, hoping that he wouldn't notice, as I tried to calm my continually heightening nerves. The longer we drove, the more nervous I got. I wondered where they were taking me and wished that I could ask but I knew better. Enzo had looked so helpless as he tried to get to me.

I was angry at him. That's why I left with Domenico in the first place. He had been talking to someone. He still saw me as just a prostitute.Then why was he willing to withdraw and throw everything he had been working for away for your safety?

Maybe he really had tried to go back on his withdrawal. Maybe Ludovic’s interruption had been planned. If that was the case, then it was his fault that I was still with them. I wished that I knew he would come looking for me but maybe that was it? Maybe he was done with me and with our whole facade. His words from earlier that evening ran through my mind. He didn't care. He wasn't coming for me. Tears stung my eyes and I blinked to try to fight them back as one stray tear ran down the corner of my eye.

I squirmed again, this time getting Domenico’s attention. “Sit up. Just don't try anything,” He commanded.

Timidly, I sat up and looked at him. He nodded once and turned his attention back to looking out the window.

I searched for anything recognizable but there was nothing there. The buildings and shops were strange to me. I searched for a familiar street sign, something to give me an idea of where we were but they were different.

“Where are we going?” I finally asked, bracing myself for his anger.

“To meet an old friend.”

“An...” I started but decided not to push my luck. So instead, I kept busy staring out the window, trying to remember every landmark in case, in the unlikely event, I was able to get away.

We passed elegant, expensive mansions built on top of rolling hills. Wherever we were, it wasn’t like anything I’d ever seen before. The car maneuvered down a winding drive up one hill until we came to a large, intricately designed iron gate that opened as we neared it. Once the gate closed behind us, armed guards suddenly surrounded us.

“Who are you and what is your business here?” The head guard barked.

“We’re here to see Don Fabbri,” Domenico called out to the guard through the cracked window.

“On what business?”

“We have his daughter.”

Chapter 24

Enzo

“I almost had her. She was right there,” I roared as Teo, Luca, Alessandro, and I raced down the highway in the direction that Romano’s car had fled.

“We’ll find her,” Luca assured me.

My hand ached, reminding me of my recently-fired pistol gripped too tightly on my thigh. After the explosion, I'd pulled my gun and shot toward Romano’s men as they neared Aurora, but I'd had to stop or risk hitting her.

I loosened my grip slightly before tucking my gun back into my waistband.

“How? We don’t know where they were headed or if they turned off somewhere.”

“I’ve got Marco hacking into the traffic cameras to see if he can spot their car. He’s going to call me back as soon as he sees something, until then, we keep going in the general direction, so we don’t fall too far behind,” Teo answered from the front passenger seat while Alessandro kept his attention on weaving through traffic.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to snap, it’s just...”

“We know.” Luca gave me a tight smile, sincerity in his eyes as he nodded.

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