33
Dante
“Open the gate,” I say to the guard standing at the post.
From the front window, I watch Nikki leave. She scoots out past the wrought iron and runs.
How far will she get?
Where will she go? Back to her father who poisoned her?
Moreno walks over toward me, and I swear he’s wearing a smug smile behind his façade.
“Don’t say a word,” I warn. I’m not in the mood to deal with his bullshit or anyone else’s today.
“We can go to the club, find a nice pretty girl to take your mind off of her,” he suggests.
I huff under my breath. “That’s what got me into this damned mess.”
He was there. Moreno ought to remember the night I met Nikki. Although he did a decent job of pretending not to notice Nikki and me fucking in my club.
“I want a pair of eyes on her at all times,” I say. “It’s for her own protection.”
Moreno doesn’t question my motives. He knows better and gives a sharp nod. “On it. You want me to send one of our soldiers?”
“I want you to do it,” I say. With heavy footfalls, I stomp into my office.
My head is spinning, and I’m about ready to puke.
Why the hell did I let her go? What was I thinking?
I unbutton the top two buttons on my dress shirt. Sweat trickles across my forehead. My shirt is suffocating.
Hell, this room is suffocating.
“Boss, she’ll recognize me.”
He isn’t wrong. Nikki has spent enough time around Moreno to know that I sent him to follow her.
“Good.” I’m not hiding the fact that we’re keeping tabs on her. She left with my child growing inside of her.
He exhales a loud sigh. “You know I’d do anything you asked of me, Boss. I just want to state that this is a bad idea.”
In my office, on the long wooden cabinet against the wall, there’s a decanter with whiskey. I flip over a glass and pour the amber liquid.
“Noted.” I don’t care what he thinks. Maybe I should. He is the one person I trust to be honest with me, blatantly so. But at the end of the day, I’m the one who makes the rules and enforces them.
I swirl the liquid around the edge of the glass before downing it in one gulp. The burn as it glides down my throat is the only satisfaction that I get today.
“What are you waiting for?” I shoot over my shoulder, not so much as turning around to look at him.
“Right. I’ll report back on her whereabouts,” Moreno says. He tears out of the office.
Will she steal another vehicle in her effort to escape?
I run a hand through my hair before pouring a second glass of whiskey—the pangs of anger rip at my gut.
Why did I let her go?
I down the drink and throw the glass across the room. It shatters as it hits the wall and descends onto the floor into tiny shards.
With it, my heart splinters.
Nikki is gone.
Defeat crushes me but doesn’t hold me down.
I’ll bring her back, even if she’s kicking and screaming.