Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 474(@200wpm)___ 379(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
We ended the call and sat in silence.
“I don’t want you there.” I kept my eyes on my brother. “I invited you here because it’s Florida, and you had the right to know what happened to Mom, but I won’t risk your life or your job.”
“I’m not asking for your approval, Rocco.”
“I don’t even agree with this fucking plan.” I ran my hands down my face again as if it would change the fucked up reality I was living.
“You know this is the only way,” Dean said. “The smartest way.”
“If anything happens to her. . .” The words caught.
God, if anything happened to her, I’d fucking lose it. I stood up and walked out. I needed to do something. Hit something. Or someone. I didn’t trust myself to say anything else to them, and I sure as hell didn’t trust myself with Lenora right now, so I went to the small room we’d designated as our gym. The punching bag would do for now.
Lenora frowned. “Did you go for a run?”
“Punching bag.” I walked to the bathroom and switched on the shower. She followed and stood outside with her arms crossed, watching every move as I washed.
“What happened in the meeting?”
“There’s a plan but I don’t like it. I’m trying to think of another way.” I let my head hang for another moment before switching off the showerhead.
“What’s the plan?” She handed me the towel and took a step back. She looked like she’d been crying again.
I finished drying myself, got dressed, and pulled her to the bed with me.
“Rocco, you’re scaring me,” she whispered, setting her chin on my chest. “What’s the plan?”
“The plan is to take you back to your father with the USB drive and have you act normal for a few days, so basically, be a brat,” I smiled at her, and she pinched my nipple over my shirt. “Fuck, Nora.”
She grinned. “Continue.”
“You go to the church and walk down the aisle so we can take them all out,” I said with a breath.
“Oh.” She sat up and folded her legs, looking at her hands as she thought about it. She looked unsure when she looked twice. “When you say take them all out. . .”
“Someone will take the bystanders somewhere safe.”
“But. . .” She looked down again, folding and unfolding her hands. “You’ll kill Adriano and his men?”
“Yes.”
“What about my mom?”
“She’ll be safe,” I said.
If we ransacked them, they wouldn’t have time to react. By the time they realized what was happening, it would be over. At least, that was how it played out in my head. Even after settling on the plan, I couldn’t shake the uneasiness in my gut. Lenora lay back down, setting her head on my chest. I turned the lights off, closed my eyes, kissed the top of her head, and squeezed her tight, wishing I could cocoon her inside me so she would never get hurt.
“Roc,” she whispered.
“Hm.”
“What about my dad?”
My eyes popped open. I stared at the dark.
“Rocco.”
“What are you asking me, Lenora?”
She sat up. I did, as well. Even though we were in the dark, we were close enough to see each other. “Are you going to. . .” She took a breath. “Are you going to hurt him?”
“Yes.”
“Will you kill him?” she whispered.
“Yes.”
She let out a strangled sob that made my heart sink. I reached for her and she let me. She let me wrap her in my arms and hold her as she cried. When she was finished, she took a few gasping breaths and wiped her face.
“Please don’t kill him.”
I tensed. “You can’t ask that of me. I’ll give you the world, anything you fucking want, but you can’t ask that of me.”
“Rocco,” she shouted, crying again. “I know he’s a monster. I know he deserves to pay for what he’s done. But there are other ways. There has to be another way to get payback.”
“This is the only way I know.”
“No.” Her tortured voice was a knife to my heart. “Please.”
“What would you have me do, Lenora? What’s the alternative?”
“He could go to jail. He’ll serve life. He’ll rot there, but at least he’ll still be. . .alive,” she whispered.
I shook my head. “This is how it has to be.”
“It doesn’t.” She pulled away and got out of bed. “Who made the rules? Why does death have to be the price everyone pays?”
“Come back to bed.” I reached out for her, but she took another step back. “Not until you promise.” She gasped another sob. “Not until you promise you’ll try another way.”
I put my hands over my face and sighed deeply. I couldn’t do that. I was a lot of things, including a liar, but I wouldn’t lie to her. This would be our downfall, the thing that would eventually tear us apart. She stormed out of the room, slamming the door shut as she left. The room felt cold, dreadful in her absence. I wondered if I should make peace with it, and whether this would be the beginning of the end.