“I lied.”
“You son of a bitch. There’s always something else I have to do, or else. What is it going to take to get you to let go of me and give me Avery?"
"Do you have the information I asked for?" His tone grows more casual. "If you don't get me what I want, I'll do everything in my power to ensure you never see her again."
My guts twist, bile rises in my throat, and I almost throw up. I push the back of my head against the door, close my eyes, and count backward from ten… nine… eight. The world slowly stops spinning. My breathing normalizes.
"Elsa?" His voice cuts through the noise in my head, "You there?"
"Don’t make me do this. I can't go through with this... farce."
"Then forget about ever seeing Avery again, you—"
"No." I grip the phone so tightly that pain screeches up my arm.
I push aside the emotions that threaten to overwhelm me, then draw in another breath. "Forty-eight hours," I say in a hard voice, "and you’ll get what you need."
"Good," his voice brightens, "I knew I could count on you. Knew I made the right choice when I married you. I—"
"Two days. I get you the information, and then you walk away from us. You never look back."
"First get me what I need, then we'll see."
I grit my teeth. This is so pointless. He always uses Avery to get me to do his bidding, and I always agree to his demands in the hope that he might allow me to see my daughter more often. But he's already filed for full custody. He won't stop until he’s stripped me of all of my rights to be with my own daughter. He’ll just keep using her against me. He'll always use Avery to make my life a living hell. Worse than what it is now.Not if I can help it.
I‘m giving Fabio one last chance to come through. I‘m going to deliver on what he asked of me. Who am I kidding? Demanded of me. I’m going to get closer to Seb, then use my proximity to spy on the Sovranos. I'll get my ex the information he needs. And if he still doesn't walk away from me and Avery? Then I’m going to fight him with every bone in my body, with my last living breath. I’m going to find a way to protect my daughter from him.
"You take good care of her, you hear me? I’m only leaving her with you because I don’t have a choice, you—"
The phone cuts out. My heart twists in my throat and the blood pounds so hard at my temples that specks of black flutter at the edges of my vision.Focus, focus, you can’t faint. Not now. Not when Avery is counting on you. Not when you need to get through this evening.Apparently, I’m one step ahead of my bastard ex. I already found the perfect way to accelerate events. All I have to do is see this through, and everything will be okay.
There’s a touch on my shoulder and I scream. I snap my eyes open, find Adrian holding up his hands, palms facing me.
"Whoa, you okay?" He peers into my features. "You look pale. Did something happen?" He glances up and down the road.
"I’m fine," I clear my throat, "just taking a breather."
"Hmm..." He glances at the phone then back at me. "Seb sent me to pick you up."
Which is perfect. I couldn’t have planned this better. I pocket the phone, and paste a smile on my face. "That’s great."
"Are you sure you’re okay?" His voice softens, "Anything I can help you with?"
Of the seven, Adrian definitely comes across as the most understanding. He’s as good-looking as the other Sovrano brothers, as macho in appearance, but something in his eyes hints at more patience. There's a hurt there which seems to stem from something that may have happened to him… Something in his past may have tempered him, so while he’s as dangerous as his brothers, there's an empathy in his attitude which invites you to confide in him.
Not that I trust him to keep my secrets. Quite the opposite. I’m confident whatever I tell him will be reported back to Seb. The Sovranos have each other’s backs. No matter how much they fight amongst themselves, it’s clear that, when it comes to taking care of each other’s interests, they’ll be there for the other.
It’s what gives me the confidence to lower my gaze and say in a low voice, "As a matter of fact, there is something you can help me with."
21
Seb
"She did what?" I tighten my fingers around the phone with such force, pain shoots up my arm. "You mean, she’s there, on her own?"
I listen as Adrian tells me my wife-to-be—my fiancée—is at a nightclub. And it’s not just any night club, but an S&M Club. One owned by theCamorra,our fiercest rivals.
"She wanted to go," he states in a mild voice.