31
NICOLO
My foot taps impatiently as I sit in the intimate dining establishment of Oriole, one of the chicest fine-dining restaurants Chicago has to offer. I have to admit, I’m more nervous about this date than any I’ve put together before. Tonight, I want to do something I know Anya will like–as a kind of thank-you for the way she’s helped me get through my stress over the thwarted attack on my sister. Not that anyone will ever be able to get to Silvia again with the level of security my father and I have put around her. But still, the thought that one of our enemies got so close to harming her has been more than a small hurdle for me to overcome. And through it all, Anya has been there.
She’s come at whatever hour I need, given herself to me in a way that has eased my tension, and even listened to me when I couldn’t get my brain to turn off late at night. The fact that she’s even given me several deep insights that have helped me find my balance once again.
And after the way she danced for me at school this week, I find I’m more driven to reward her than ever. Something about how she responded to me that day has me craving her approval, something I’ve never sought in the girls I’ve dated. I sense that our relationship has shifted somehow, and now I’m inclined to treat her with the respect she has so grudgingly forced from me. I’m starting by showing her that I can find pleasure in the things she likes too. So tonight, I’m taking her to seeDraculaat the Civic Opera House. It’s a ballet, and at some point in our conversations, she mentioned how much she enjoyed seeing them as a child.
Reaching for my glass of wine, I take another sip and realize it’s empty.Where the hell is she?She should be here by now. It’s nearing five o’clock, and my driver was supposed to pick her up at four. Glancing at my watch yet again, I confirm the time.
It irks me that she’s making me wait, and a niggling thought that she might have stood me up worms into the back of my mind. She wouldn’t dare. Not when she’s seen how far I’m willing to go to punish her.Would she? I’ve even conceded to her keeping her new dance partner, so why would she choose to piss me off now?
Picking up my phone off the table, I dial Anya for the third time in the last twenty minutes and wait as it rings. And rings. And rings. I grind my teeth when I get her voicemail once again, and I pound the red button to end the call with unnecessary force. No one makes me wait over a half hour–definitely not my pet, who’s finally earned a reward from me. If this is how she’s going to behave, perhaps I was too hasty to think she deserved something nice.
This time, when I call a number, it’s my driver, who was supposed to pick her up.
“Where are you?” I growl when he answers on the third ring. “Why are you making me wait? If she’s taking this long, go up to Anya’s apartment and drag her out by her hair.”
“This is Seb.”
My bodyguard’s deep voice rumbles gravely across the line, giving me pause.Why would he be answering my driver’s phone?
“I’m sorry, sir. Just as we were pulling around the corner to pick up Miss Orlov, she was getting into a strange vehicle. It looked like one belonging to the Gattis.”
My stomach drops as the air leaves my lungs in a whoosh.
“We’re in pursuit now. We won’t lose sight of her, sir.”
“What direction are they heading?” I demand.
“South, toward the shipping yard if I had to guess.”
“Keep me informed. I’ll meet you there,” I growl and hang up before he can respond.
The next number I dial is my father’s, and I give him a rapid-fire explanation of the situation. “I’m going after them,” I finish gruffly, brooking no argument.
“Good. No one takes something that belongs to the Marchetti's and gets away with it,” my father says. “I’m sending men for reinforcements.”
If there’s one good thing I can say about my father, it’s that he never fails to back me up when it comes to situations where a demonstration of strength is necessary. He has always backed me in times where violence is the best answer–in our line of work, it’s often the only answer.
I don’t even count the bills as I toss them onto the table and make a beeline for the door. I don’t wait for the valet to bring me my car, either. Snatching my Maserati’s keys off the board, I stride out into the cold evening air and head straight for the parking garage.
Thanking my lucky stars that my car is built for speed, I floor it as soon as I’m free of the parking structure and race down the city streets of Chicago, weaving in and out of traffic without batting an eye when I run a red light.
I thought I’d been furious with Anya for making me wait. All kinds of elaborate punishments had flashed through my mind as I sat there, feeling her rejection with every passing moment. But now that I know she’s in danger, that I could lose her, all that pent-up rage is laser-focused on the men responsible. I will kill every last one of the Gattis for what they’ve done.
If I’d had a doubt in my mind that they were responsible for Silvia’s attack, I’m confident now. And I plan on ripping them limb from limb when I find them. A location pings on my phone a moment later, Seb dropping a pin at the warehouse just blocks from the shipping yard.
“Fuck!” I shout, slamming my hand against the steering wheel as I urge my car faster down Highway 41. The warehouses there are perfect spots to kill victims and dispose of them without getting caught. They’re practically abandoned and far enough from traffic to avoid notice.
Anxiety chokes my throat in an iron grip as I think about Anya in the hands of the Gattis. I killed their father, and I have no doubts they took Anya to exact revenge because they couldn’t get their hands on Silvia. I did this. I put Anya in danger, and if something happens to her, I will never forgive myself.
Putting my phone on speaker as I race the clock across town, I call Seb directly.
“Talk to me,” I demand as soon as he picks up.
“They’re parked outside the warehouses. Haven’t gone in yet. We’re just down the street, watching to see which building they enter. I don’t think they know we’re here, so that will give us a slight advantage. You give the word, boss, and we’ll make a move.”