Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 126060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 630(@200wpm)___ 504(@250wpm)___ 420(@300wpm)
“I was sent to Croatia to investigate,” Amaranthe admitted. “I had a bad feeling the murderers weren’t finished. I believed eventually they planned to go back and kill the rest of the family. I wasn’t certain why they left, but I’m positive they plan to go back.”
“You believe, like Brielle, that their intention is to wipe out the shadow riders. All shadow riders,” Elie said. “Her conclusion isn’t in the report, but privately she conveyed that worry to me.”
Amaranthe nodded. “They planned this out very carefully, from developing weapons that can be carried into the shadows to a compound that paralyzes their victim so they can’t move but keeps them awake so they know what is happening to them. They want them to see their partner killed before they’re murdered. Every single step was planned with patience and cunning.”
“Why wait eighteen years? Why now?” Stefano asked.
There was a long silence. Beside Geno, Amaranthe moved restlessly, very unlike her. Geno glanced down at her. Her fingernails dug into his palm.
“You may as well tell us what you think, Danzatrice Ombra,” he said. “We know it’s speculation.”
“I honestly believe they want to come after all the shadow riders eventually. Whoever is running the show has a taste for power and even for killing now. The hatred toward the Ferraro family really stands out.” Amaranthe hesitated briefly and then stated her opinion. “I think Francesca was the catalyst.”
Stefano’s head went up alertly. “You’re just now telling me that?” He demanded. His eyes slashed at her, furious. “That would make her a target for these maniacs.”
“It just now occurred to me when I was putting everything together,” Amara returned calmly. “In the shadow tube, when the Australian was confronting me, he seemed as if he wanted to allow me to go, almost as if he thought I was being taken in by all of you. But I made the mistake of saying something about having Geno’s baby. The moment I did, he turned on me and there was no going back. He wanted me dead.”
“This all is beginning to make sense,” Salvatore said. “Shadow riders couldn’t find one another and were slowly dying out naturally. Not just here but everywhere. We couldn’t find our partners. But Stefano found Francesca, a natural love match. They were happy, more than happy, and they had Crispino. Then little Luciana. That wasn’t to be tolerated. A Ferraro, happy? After Stefano found Francesca, every one of his brothers found a love match. Elie did. Now Geno.”
“That had to have been a blow to them if they wanted the riders to die out,” Lucca said.
“I think the worst blow was that Stefano and Francesca were happy and had children,” Amaranthe said. “I’m just judging by how quickly the Australian changed his entire demeanor when I said the word children.”
“I’ve texted my brothers. They’ll put extra guards on the women,” Stefano said. “And take precautions as well.”
“The next step is to find out who is still alive from the Boutler coastal and inland families,” Lucca said.
“Brielle has that information listed,” Dario said. “From the coast, a set of twins is still alive, Cooper and Calen. They are in their midforties. Their sister, Rowina, married a man in Greece, but after a visit from her brothers, she died by her own hand.” There was speculation in his voice. “Until then, she seemed to have had a happy marriage.”
“There’s no way to tell, but my guess would be they assaulted her son. The preference seems to run to boys,” Valentino said. “She knew it when she left home, and she thought she was done with her family.”
Unfortunately, Geno’s gut was telling him they weren’t wrong. He rubbed the back of his neck in an effort to ease some of the tension.
Salvatore took up the findings in the report. “The inland Boutlers faired better. Mostly because they left the area and were under the radar, I think. Lewis and Rogan would both be in their sixties. Nate was their brother. Lewis has one son, Lincoln, and he’s still alive. According to this, he’s forty-two and has never been married.”
“Rogan has three sons,” Lucca continued. “Neil is thirty-nine, the oldest, Owen is thirty-six and Parker is thirty-four. The sons never married.”
Geno sighed and shoved his forehead into the heel of his hand. “If what we suspect is true, communication would have prevented so much damage, both to the Boutler family and to so many children. There seems to be a code of silence surrounding sexual assault.”
Stefano nodded his agreement. “Not that I think much can be done to save these men when it’s been so ingrained in them, handed down for generations.”
“We’ll need up-to-the-minute tracking on each of the Boutler family members left alive,” Geno said. “Ask the investigators to track any additional cousins no matter how distant they might be. Look into Rowina’s family just in case. Also, tell them not to overlook Rachel Boutler. She went to Italy, married and had children. That doesn’t mean she wasn’t loyal to her family when they all started dying. Her children might be capable of shadow riding. We’ll need to find out if they are.”