Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23013 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 115(@200wpm)___ 92(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23013 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 115(@200wpm)___ 92(@250wpm)___ 77(@300wpm)
The only thing that matters now is keeping Pru safe. As long as she’s protected, then I can handle anything her father wants to throw at me.
After I’ve said goodbye to everyone, I go over to Gianna. She makes me promise she can come over tomorrow to talk to Pru about wedding details. It’s fine with me; the sooner the better, in my opinion.
“Oh, and by the way,” Gianna says and she lowers her voice. “That friend of hers might be good to keep close.”
“She works in the gardens at Renzo’s house,” I say. “I’m sure she might have some useful information, but it’s probably nothing Pru doesn’t already know.”
I’ve toyed with the idea of asking Pru if she thought her friend would work for me. More than anything, I’d need her to go back to the Benecci house and get information. It would be helpful to know if he plans to move against me. At the very least, I want to talk to Nolia. I didn’t expect her to show up here tonight or for this opportunity to be presented so quickly.
“I think Luca would be more than happy to guard her,” Gianna says with a wink before she takes a seat at the table and goes back to her conversation with one of the wives. Every now and again, Gianna likes reminding me that she’s my best source of information.
I walk to the back of the restaurant where the lounge is located. As I approach the door, I see it’s partly open, and Luca is inside. He’s watching Pru and Nolia, who are whispering to one another on the couch. When I touch the door, Luca turns, and I notice there’s something different in the way he’s standing.
I’m good at reading people, and he’s tense, maybe more alert than usual, which is odd. “Is everything all right?” I ask him, and the women stop whispering. Before Luca can answer me, Pru gets up from the couch.
“We need to bring Nolia with us. She’s not safe to go back to work or be on her own.”
“Does Renzo know that she was the one that dropped you off?” I ask Pru, and she nods.
“He doesn’t know for sure,” Nolia disagrees. “I think you’re the only one that actually saw the two of us together. He may suspect something, but he doesn’t know for certain.”
“Hmm,” I say, thinking it over. “If we bring you home with us, then he will know you’ve chosen our side.”
“Vitaly, we don’t have a choice. She’s like a sister to me,” Pru pleads, and although I want to give her this, I know that having information on Renzo will keep her safe. That’s my top priority.
“I can’t let my father stay there alone,” Nolia tells me as she stands up and joins Pru. “I’ve told you this. He won’t leave, and if they find out I helped you escape, they’ll punish him to get to me. It’s better that I go back and pretend that nothing is wrong.”
“What about everyone that saw you here tonight?” Pru asks.
“No one there will talk,” I say with certainty. “But she’s right, Pru. They’ll use her father to get to her.”
“And if she goes back and they use her to get to me?” Pru’s cheeks flush with anger, and I hate how much it turns me on.
“Then I will eliminate the threat,” I say simply, and she rolls her eyes.
“You can’t just walk in there and kill everyone to solve a problem,” she tells me.
“I believe I can.”
“Wait,” Luca interrupts. “Why don’t I go with her?”
“What?” Pru, Nolia, and I all say at once.
“I could say that I didn’t like how things went down tonight. I could pretend to switch sides and join Renzo. He’ll know who I am and that I’ve got information. It would be easy for me to play the part. I could give just enough information to make me useful but not enough to put you or Pru in danger.”
“It’s an interesting idea.” It would help me take down Renzo from the inside.
“It would let me keep an eye on Nolia,” Luca tells Pru. “And it would keep the spotlight off of her. If she comes with us now, there’s no hiding her guilt, and her father is as good as dead.”
“Please,” Nolia says to Pru. “I can’t let anything happen to him.”
Pru looks at me with pleading eyes. She wants me to make everything okay, but this is probably the best-case scenario for her friend. She would be going back into the home of the enemy, but she would have the best protection possible.
“Do it,” I say to Luca, who nods in agreement.
Pru’s eyes fill with tears as she says goodbye to her friend, and Luca promises to send updates as regularly as he’s able to.