Page 136 of My Mafia Queen

She kills the engine, and the car door groans as she slips outside.

“Be careful,” I say quietly. “And try not to make any noise.”

“All right,” she says quietly as well.

A few moments pass, and my chest is tight with apprehension.

“The house looks okay…” she murmurs as if talking to herself. “Oh…”

“What?”

“The curtains are torn down in the living room.”

The cadence of her words expresses surprise and tension.

“Do you think someone’s in the house?” she asks.

Dark thoughts swirl in my head, stopping me from saying words that make sense.

“There’s a chance…” I say, my voice lined with ice.

What could they do with the drapes?

And I suddenly see my little sister gagged, with her hands tied behind her back and her body wrapped in those curtains.

I so don’t want this to be true.

“Should I go inside?” she asks, and I realize I need to give her an answer that doesn’t put her life at risk.

At this point, I doubt either Jen or Tina are in the house.

“Or should I call the police?” she mutters.

“No. No police. Besides, you need to see if something’s wrong inside before you call the police.”

A few moments pass and then another door creaks, but this time, she’s at the back entrance, trying to get into the house.

“I don’t think there’s anyone here,” she says nervously.

I say nothing, my eyes on the restaurant entrance.

“I’m in the house,” my aunt says, and I realize she’s no longer keeping her voice down, which only confirms what we’ve both suspected.

A second later, her words make it official.

“No one is in the house,” she says, and my body turns to ice.

“Okay. Let me call you back,” I say in a strangely calm voice, just as commotion happens at the restaurant door and Damaso exits the restaurant.

I was right. He had a meeting.

It’s not only him and his men. I see other people.

His face is dark with concern when he heads straight to the car. I open the door and push out of the seat to toss the first few words to him.

“They got Tina,” I say.

“Who’s they?” he asks.

---