I was finally ready to surrender to the cards I was dealt.
Zeno Gianni De la Croix seemed like the kind of man who would burn down the world for you.
CHAPTER 10
Forty-Eight Hours
Darla
Dinner at the Hills was usually a quiet affair, the innate silence broken up by the sound of our cutleries hitting the plate at light intervals.
Tonight, however, there was a strong tension encasing the atmosphere as Mother went to pour herself another glass of Cabernet.
Diane usually limited herself to one drink with her salad. She thought intoxicated people were weak people.
Dacia sent me a concerning look over the table before glancing at Mother, who furiously stabbed a forkful of food into her mouth with no finesse.
I choked on my water when Dacia kicked me under the table.
“Do something”, she mouthed.
Dabbing the corners of my mouth with a napkin, I pasted a tiny smile and turned to Mother. It fell when she slammed her wine glass on the table, her thumb almost breaking the stem.
Dacia and I flinched.
“Is everything okay?” You always had to be careful around Diane Hill—she was the most sensitive creature I’d ever met despite her tough façade. “You seem to be in a mood.”
Mother folded her hands underneath her chin. The look on her face had anxiety simmering in my gut.
Dacia lowered her fork back on the lip of her spaghetti plate. “Okay, I’ve had enough. What’s wrong?”
Mother inhaled a deep breath. “We are in a bit of a predicament.”
“Who’s we?” Dacia asked.
“We three.Allof us.”
The heavy churning in my stomach intensified. “Neither of us is following.”
“I got an unfriendly visit today from a man who delivered me the kind of news that could ruin everything we’ve built.”
“Ruin?” My hackles rose at the mention of an unfriendly visit from a man.
Was she talking about Zeno?
“As we know, we are not without our flaws. We have all made mistakes and they’ve finally caught up to us.” Mother’s gaze fixed far away into the distance. “Zeno De la Croix can bury us all six feet beneath the ground if we don’t play by his rules.”
My breath hitched and I froze.
“The De la Croixes are very powerful—practically royalty—and their reach is beyond anything imaginable. They’re known for being key players in the underworld and one of the strongest crime families in Canada and France…And their eldest son Zeno is under suspicion for Armel’s murder.”
Cold sweats broke over my skin.
Dacia cursed. “Did this man actually kill Armel?”
I stared helplessly into my pasta, too shocked to say anything.
Mother swallowed with difficulty. “The MPD received an anonymous tip with Zeno’s name. He was brought in for questioning, but without enough evidence, he was let go. Unfortunately, we dug a little too deep around the De la Croixes and they took offense. Hence why Zeno paid me a visit today and ordered me to have the case closed.”