“An American man rented a small yacht. He’s still parked at the docks waiting until the weather changes to take her out.
“I have some information for you too, sir.” Stefano hands me a stack of papers.
I read through how Cody set himself up as bosun on the yacht with McKenna but was also searching for jobs as a hitman. He has no kills under his belt but bragged about some, using some of mine as hits he did. I’m going to kill this fucker for not only posing as me but for taking my girl.
“Do we have anything on who hired him?”
“I don’t,” Stefano says. “But I’ll keep searching.” He tries to redeem himself.
I dial Santi again and ask him if he has the information, but he doesn’t. I hang up, unsure of where to turn next when a thought hits me. I dial the number.
“Hello, cousin.” Her rich, deep voice comes across the line. “To what do I owe this visit?” She chuckles.
“Ana, I need help. My fiancée was taken by a hitman who was posing as me. I need to know who hired him.” I know she has people in the business still. She might run her own organization now, but she still has her fingers in espionage, and her husband was a hitman for the Russian mob.
“You only need that. I’ll take a peek and see what I can find for you. By the way, congratulations. It’s about time you settled down and joined the family business.” She chuckles again and hangs up. I’m glad to hear her happy. There was a time when she didn’t laugh, and I worried that her revenge would finally be her ending.
“Anatonia?” my father asks, and I nod. “This must stop. McKenna has to survive. She’s the true heir here.” His words stop me.
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know how, but I’ll figure it out. McKenna is Katriana Rossi. She somehow survived the attack.” We head out to my father’s car and make our way to the docks.
A memory of the little girl who looked so much like her mother enters my mind. Her body was never found. But all the bodies were barely recognizable after the fire destroyed the car they were put in after they were killed. The only thing any of us has figured out was that Giancarlo was betrayed. Someone close to him killed him, then Kenley, his wife, and then Katriana.
“How do you know?”
“The birthmark. Plus, I had her blood taken at the hospital for a DNA test. It came back that she is Katriana. I should have known when I heard her name though.”
“Wait.” I’m even more confused. “What?”
“Someone is trying to kill her because they wanted me, a Lupo, to take over. That’s the only thing I can figure out. Over the years, I’ve been trying to figure out why the Rossi family would be killed. There was a treaty and we had peace between the families.” He pauses for a moment, and I want to shake more information from him. I need to know why my girl is being targeted. “This person must still be around in order to go after McKenna now. But let’s get her back and then we will discuss this. Maybe the man who was hired to kill her knows who hired him. Also, Anatonia and Vitaly could help with this.”
I look out the window and take in the scenery as we move through the town. I remember the last few weeks and how close we’ve become. How she told me she loved me this morning before I left her. I can’t lose her now. I know if I don’t get her back, I’ll become worse than I was when Luna was taken.
We are in the vehicle, heading for the largest marina. We’ll have to board a boat ourselves to get to them though because cars aren’t allowed on that island.
ChapterNine
McKenna
Muffled voices bring me to, and I instantly feel pain exploding in the back of my head. I open my eyes and the bright light causes more pain. I slam them closed and groan, rolling over to grab the bedside trash can. I vomit until I’m dry heaving. That makes the headache even worse.
My eyes flash open again and I close them as I remember what the doctor said. Sometimes another blow to the head could bring the memories back. I try to think, but nothing comes to me.
The voices get closer, and I realize they are right outside the door of the room I’m in. From the moment I came to and opened my eyes, I knew I was on a boat of some kind.
“Cody, you promised you wouldn’t hurt her.”
“I’m supposed to kill her. Of course, I have to hurt her.” His thick American accented voice comes to me, and I cringe. He’s been trying to kill me.
“What?” Kara screeches, and even through the door the sound hurts my head. “You said we were getting her away from her mob influenced boyfriend, not killing her. I can’t let you do that.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, I will kill her after I’m done with her.”
“I won’t let you. You shouldn’t have hit her in the head. The doctor said that would be bad.”
“Good. You can’t stop me.” I hear a soft popping sound. Like a thwack and then something gurgling. “You have always been a nuisance to me.” Cody groans. I hear him move away, but I don’t hear Kara. It’s then I realize what those sounds were.