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I turned to Fiorentino. Unlike the asshole before him, he withstood the torture I subjected him to. After two more recruits, I excused myself and went to the changing area. I texted Renato and asked him if he had time to go out for drinks tonight. I fucking needed to get shit-faced. Then I told Emma I had too much work to do to be home for dinner.
Dad joined me.
“If Emma asks Mom or you, I’m working late tonight.”
Dad’s expression tightened with disapproval. “But you’re not.”
“I’m heading out with Renato. I need to take my mind off things.”
“In one of Renato’s establishments?”
“I’m faithful to Emma, Dad, no need for that disappointed voice. I’m not a boy.”
“Are things going well?” Dad asked quietly.
I looked around with a frown. “They are.” Dad nodded, then returned to the recruits. I took a small flask from my gym bag, briefly hesitated when I remembered Emma’s concern regarding my drinking habits, then took a few gulps from the vodka before I screwed the top back on and returned to the knife fight area. Two recruits broke down under torture today, especially the first younger one… what a day. I knew my night would be filled with familiar horrors if I didn’t manage to drink myself into a stupor.
Something crashed downstairs, ripping me from sleep. I sat up and turned on the lights. Another crash sounded. Samuel wasn’t home yet. What was going on?
Fear filled me. I knew I was never alone. If Samuel wasn’t home, there was at least one bodyguard on the premises, but I still wished he were here.
An even louder crash, followed by a curse. It wasn’t Samuel’s voice that had cursed. Anxiety filled my belly. A code was required to enter our home, so it had to be someone Samuel trusted who had entered. He’d never give the code to someone he didn’t trust, even if he was drunk. Plus, a guard team surveyed the entrance area and backyard. I hoisted myself in my wheelchair and moved to the elevator. When I arrived down in the foyer, I found Renato supporting Samuel, who seemed incapable of standing on his legs. His gaze was unfocused. Theymust have stumbled against the big decorative vases beside the entrance door, broken both, plus whipped the glass decoration from Murano off the sideboard. The mirror above it had a crack in it too. As I wheeled closer, a cloud of alcohol hit me.
“What happened?”
Renato shrugged, his gaze sliding over me. I realized I was only in my nightgown and crossed my arms over my chest. He finally looked away and focused on my face. “Nothing. He had a bit too much to drink. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
I gave him a disbelieving look, motioning at how Samuel hung in his grasp. “This isn’t normal. This isn’t just a bit too much to drink. He’s completely out of it.”
Renato took a step toward the staircase, obviously struggling with Samuel’s weight. “We had some fun. He can usually handle his liquor better.”
Because he had lots of practice. I pressed my lips together, trying to bottle up my anger. “As a friend, you shouldn’t let this happen.”
Renato scoffed, his eyes hard and mocking as they settled on me. “He’s an adult, a grown man. I won’t tell him what to do, and neither should you.”
My mouth opened. “Let’s agree to disagree.” Surprise crossed his face, then he shook his head. Luckily for us, he kept whatever crossed his mind to himself.
“Help me take Samuel upstairs,” I said simply and wheeled back into the elevator. Renato followed me without a word, still supporting Samuel who seemed to have passed out completely by now. “I’ll go up first. All three of us won’t fit inside.”
Once I was upstairs, I waited for the elevator to come up again.
“I didn’t think you’d be like this,” Renato said as he staggered out of the elevator.
“Like what?” I asked as I led him to our bedroom and watched as he dropped Samuel unceremoniously onto the bed. Samuel didn’t stir, and I was beginning to worry.
He straightened and watched as I moved toward the bed. “So opinionated and outspoken.”
I felt Samuel’s throat for a pulse and relaxed when I found it. “Because I’m a woman or a woman in a wheelchair?”
Renato gave me a caught smile, obviously realizing he’d overstepped his boundaries. Usually, I wasn’t this easily affronted. I’d heard too much to take other people’s opinions of me to heart, but my worry for Samuel was making me a tad touchy.
“I’m worried about Samuel,” I said simply. I didn’t want to get into an argument with one of Samuel’s best friends. Maybe his only friend, as I’d never seen him with anyone else.
Renato waved me off. “He’ll be fine. Just pop a couple of painkillers into his mouth and give him a strong coffee in the morning.”
“Can you help me get him out of his clothes?”
“Just let him sleep in them. That’s what I do.”