Antonio was helping her by taking her back…taking her back to them.
Chapter 16
Layla
I couldn’t stop staring at him in the side mirror.Dante.
My heart broke over and over and over again the longer I stared at him. He looked defeated as he fell down on his knees, screaming after us.
“Layla!”
A tear slipped down my cheek as I closed my eyes. The sound of my name mixed with heart-wrenching desperation in his voice killed me little by little. But he left me no choice. He didn’t know the risk, what really was at stake. And I couldn’t tell him. If I did, it would have only placed him in more danger than he already was.
“He’ll understand.” Antonio’s voice was strong, but the low note of uncertainty echoed through.
I fixed my gaze on the road ahead, the large black gates already open, allowing Antonio to race out of the estate. “I’m not so sure about that.”
Antonio shifted gears. “I am. Once he knows the truth, he will be able to put the pieces together.”
I sighed, the heaviness in my chest making it increasingly difficult to breathe.
“Why me, though? Why ask for my help?”
I gave him a sideways glance. “I’m aware of your dislike for me, Antonio. But even though we never got along, you were always the voice of reason.”
“Things change.”
“What things? Are you going to tell me you’re no longer the one who thinks with his head and not his heart?”
His gaze cut my way before returning to the road. “I was talking about me disliking you.”
Surprised, I kept looking at him for a few seconds. I never thought I’d see the day when Antonio Valenti would actually start liking me.
He cleared his throat. “I disliked you because I thought you were making my brother choose between you and his family. And then I disliked you even more when you broke his heart.” He snorted. “You have no idea what that did to him. It turned him into…” His voice trailed off. “Never mind. The point is, I understand now.”
I smiled through my heartache. “I knew you would. Dante can’t help but think with his heart when it comes to me—to us. Unfortunately, that is his blessing and his curse. I couldn’t chance it by telling him the truth. Not before I know everyone is safe.”
As Antonio sped through the streets of Boston, I didn’t even bother to look out the window. I had no interest in anything other than making sure my family was safe. The people on the streets were going on with their lives, completely unaware that I was about to sacrifice mine. I envied them the simplicity. My life was anything but simple. But it was the price I paid for falling for a man like Dante. Yet I was convinced that no matter the outcome if I had to do it all over again, I would still give him my heart. Only I wouldn’t have run. It was a foolish mistake…a mistake I would pay for in full.
“Are you sure it will work?” Antonio’s voice was no longer hard, but rather soft and compassionate.
I bit my bottom lip, doubt poking out its ugly head. “I’m not sure about anything anymore. But I have no choice but to believe it will.”
He turned to me, his gaze settling on the hollow at my inner arm. “And what about that?”
“That’s not my biggest problem right now.”
“When was your last hit?”
“I said I can handle it,” I snapped at him. Truth was I had beenhandlingit since last night. Dante thought I was just restless in my sleep, but I was restless because my veins felt like they were pumping lava instead of blood. Sweat trickled down the side of my face, and I wiped it away.
“I might be a junkie, Antonio, but when it comes to him, my instinct to protect is much stronger than my craving for a hit.” And that was the God’s honest truth. He was the only reason I was doing this. He was the only reason I was still staying strong, determined to see this through. Matteo underestimated me by thinking the heroin would control me and persuade me to do his bidding. But I was stronger than that.Hemade me stronger than that.
I rubbed my elbow, my skin starting to itch. “You have the address Kate gave you?”
“Yes.”
I breathed out. “Good. You’ll go straight there after?”