“We have to go, now.” I run past him.
The soldiers from the other families let us pass, but it’ll only be a few seconds before they try to come after us.
“Where’s Lucretia?” I bellow as I hurry down the stairs.
“Here.” Benny gestures to the love seat.
“We have to go.” I take her arm and pull her up. “Now.”
“No. I’m not going with you.” She sounds dazed.
The shouting upstairs grows louder, and the soldiers start to cascade down the stairs.
“Princess, we can’t—”
She slaps me. Hard. “You killed him!” She screams and jumps on me, her nails digging into my cheek.
“Lucretia!” Benny tries to pull her off.
“Leave her!” I yell and wrap my arms around her tightly, then take off running.
She’s still fighting me, slapping and scratching, pulling my fucking hair, but I don’t let her go as I make a mad dash through the foyer and out the front.
Benny and Red are behind me, their guns out as I run like hell to the car.
Lucretia is screaming, her body writhing as she tries to hurt me.
“Stop!” I yell and shake her.
She wails, and I put her on her feet to open her car door. When she tries to run, I grab her around her waist and drag her back. “Princess, get in the fucking car.”
“Get away from me!” she screams.
I manhandle her into the passenger seat and slam the door, then run around.
She’s already trying to open her door when I get in, so I reach over and grab her shoulder, keeping her in place as I shift with my left hand and take off, sideswiping the Lambo ahead of me.
The front steps are swarming now, soldiers and power players all looking for me. I gas it down the driveway and glance in the rear view, relieved to see Benny and Red keeping up behind me. The only one unaccounted for is Sonny, but the other families would never let Sarita take my consigliere. Murdering each other? Sure. Kidnapping one of our lawyers? Never.
Lucretia is still screaming, still fighting me even though I have a death grip on her shoulder.
I don’t know what’s happened, what’s made her like this, and I can’t get a word in. I pull my hand away to shift, then wrench the wheel to the left as we reach the main road.
“Lucretia!” I bar her arms, keeping her from swinging at me. “Tell me what’s wrong.”
“You bastard. You bastard.” She’s crying now, the fight draining from her as huge sobs bubble up. “How could you?”
“I don’t know what you think I’ve done, but I love you, Lucretia. I love you.”
“No you don’t!” she screams and tries for the door handle again.
“Don’t!” I’m going at least 100 miles an hour. She wouldn’t survive if she opens that door.
I lunge across her, grab her seat belt, and yank it across her body, then wrap it around my wrist to keep her in place.
“Let me go!” She can barely speak through her tears. “Please let me go.”
“Never!” I yell back at her. Then shake my head and force myself to lower my voice. “Tell me, Lucretia. Tell me so I can fix it.”
She shakes her head, tears dripping onto her dress. “You can’t fix it. You can’t bring him back.”
“Who?” I almost miss the turn onto the freeway and spin the wheel just in time to avoid hitting the water tanks along the median. Once we’re on the straightaway, passing cars right and left, I can finally turn to look at her. “Who did I kill?”
Her voice breaks on a sob. “Ferdinand.”
28
LUCRETIA
“What?” He acts bewildered.
“My mother told me it was you. You killed him! You had your revenge.” I can barely breathe through the tears and the regret that seethe inside me.
“No.” He yanks on the seatbelt. “I didn’t kill your brother.”
“I don’t believe you.” I look at him with new eyes, ones that see the unrelenting darkness. “You said you stalked my whole family, that you even knew what tree I liked to read under! You kept tabs on all of us.”
“Yes.” He speeds past so many cars that they’re all blurs. “I did. But I didn’t kill your brother. I wanted to—” His jaw clenches. “I did. But it wasn’t me.”
How can I believe him? How can I believe the man who’s seduced me to the point that I thought I loved him? He’s a liar, a really good one. But it all makes sense. He’s had it out for my family for years, and when he started picking us off, Ferdinand was the first to go.
I close my eyes, Ferdinand’s face floating through the ether behind my eyelids. He was always sort of half-smiling at me, as if he was in on some joke. It used to irritate me, but now I’d give anything to see it again.