“I was—”
“He was with me!” Karina shoved past Dante and put herself in the middle of us and her brothers. “Antonio was with me during that time.”
It felt like she’d literally slapped me in the face.
“Excuse me?”
“Antonio was with me.”
Motherfucker.She was lying without even blinking.
I stepped forward and narrowed my eyes. “Are you sure about that, Miss Valenti?”
Her eyes seemed desperate, silently begging me not to call her bluff. I knew she wasn’t her brother’s alibi. I washergoddamn alibi, since I was buried between her legs for the bulk of the time in question.
She cleared her throat. “Yes. I’m sure.”
Antonio reached for her arm. “Karina…”
She jerked away from him. “I was with my brother the entire time. It couldn’t have been him.” She leaned closer to me. “So, you can focus all your attention on someone else, Detective, because my family has nothing to do with Gio’s murder.”
The hidden message in her words came through loud and clear. She was telling me to back off. And by the way she straightened and steeled herself, determination darkening her eyes, she knew I couldn’t take her on about her blatant lie. Not in front of Anderson. Not in front of her brothers. There was too much at risk, which was why she was currently pulling this stunt. She knew as well as I did that no one could know about what happened between us. It would ruin my credibility in this case, and it would bring down heaps of shit on her since one of the top ten mafia house rules was to never be associated with a cop in any way. And I’d say after last weekend, we were as closely associated as two could come—pun intended.
Chapter 19
KARINA
My heart was about to crawl its way up my throat along with the lie that just came out of my mouth. Lorik knew it; I knew it. I was a liar. But I’d be damned if I stood there and did nothing while they insinuated one of my brothers was a murderer. If anyone knew my family’s doings were far from legit, it was me. But I also knew neither of my brothers killed this Gio character.
Lorik’s eyes narrowed, scrutinizing my face, and I was convinced he was seconds away from calling my bluff. I felt the sweat run down my back, my gut on the verge of twisting upside down. But then he took two steps back and looked at my brothers.
“Okay, then. I guess we’re done here.”
I exhaled and allowed my shoulders to relax, even though I knew this entire situation was far from over. If I knew Lorik at all, I knew he wouldn’t let this lie go so easily.
“Thank you for your time.” Lorik walked toward the door, and I wanted to punch myself for feeling disappointed. I didn’t like the feeling of knowing he was about to walk out that door, and I had no idea when I’d see him again. During the last week, even though it was my decision to call quits on our…whatever you called it, I had been fucking miserable. The last few days, it felt like there was a giant hole inside me, like there was a part of me missing. But how the hell was that even possible, that this man had the power to take such a big part of my soul within so little time?
With a final glance my way, Lorik disappeared out the door, and every fiber of my being was begging me to go after him, not to let him walk away from me. But I didn’t. I couldn’t.
“Karina,” Antonio growled from behind me, “what the hell did you do that for?”
I spun and glared his way, my anger now fully focused on him. “You know what, Antonio, fuck you. I just lied to save your ass from being grilled. A simple thank you would suffice.”
He glanced at the customers before moving closer, afraid of causing a scene in the middle of the restaurant. “I did not ask you to do that.”
“You didn’t have to. That’s what family does.”
He grabbed my elbow and tightened his grip. “Do you know how much shit you’ll be in if they find out you lied? That would push you and me right to the top of their goddamn suspect list.”
“And you think you and Dante aren’t already there? Why the hell do you think they came here in the first place? If you weren’t suspects, they wouldn’t have wanted to know where you were on Saturday night. The only difference is Dante has an alibi, and you don’t. So, now I gave you one.” I jerked my arm out of his tight grip, and if it was possible to shoot daggers through someone’s forehead with a single glare, I would have done it.
“What in God’s name is going on here?” My dad came storming toward us from the back, his face dark with disapproval. “You are making a goddamn scene in my restaurant.”
Antonio backed up. “Sorry, Dad. It was just a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding? I don’t know what the hell is going on between the two of you lately, but you better sort it out.” Dad stepped closer, and my heart sank to the soles of my feet as I saw the disappointment on his face. “We are a family, and this is not how we treat each other.” He turned to face Antonio. “She might be your younger sister, but she is a Valenti woman, and you will treat her with respect. Do you understand?”
Antonio lifted his chin. “Yes, sir.”