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Zach’s eyes narrowed. “What’s wrong?”
“Cramp. Probably pulled something unloading supplies.” She forced a breath. “I need to make a call for a patient. If you see Caleb, tell him I’ll be right there.”
She left the room, heart hammering, half expecting Zach to follow.
This plan to lure Vincente to the rez? Madness.
He would come with plenty of his soldiers. People would die.
Caleb.
Zach.
You know what you have to do.
She stepped into her office. Locked the door. Pulled her phone from her pocket.
It slipped from her sweaty fingers and clattered to the desk.
“Breathe.” She closed her eyes, filled her lungs, and reached for sorely needed composure.
This was insane.
But not doing it was worse.
She tapped out the first nine digits of Vincente’s number. Her finger hovered, shaking, over the last one.
All this time, silence had been her shield. Protecting herself and—she’d told herself—others. But wasn’t that just an excuse?
Look at Caleb. His scars—both visible and invisible—were proof you could survive the jagged edges of life and come out stronger for it.
Her own scars were self-inflicted, a reminder she’d chosen fear and silence over courage and truth.
Enough letting fear keep her small. If this was a war. She’d fight too.
She pressed the final digit.
Vincente answered on the fourth ring. “Hello? Who is this?”
Of course he answered. Very few people had his personal number. He’d be curious.
Her heart beat like a bird desperately trying to escape its cage. “It’s Abigail.”
“Ah, Abigail. Or Gianna I should say. That’s your real name, after all.”
His purr raised the hairs on the back of her neck. “So many secrets,mi amor. So many lies.”
She knew that tone. It never ended well for the other person.
“I changed my name before I met you. Don’t take it personally.”
“Are you ready to come home? You aren’t safe, you know. My family doesn’t like loose ends.”
Her blood chilled. She was a loose end. One who put everyone around her in danger.
If she hadn’t truly understood that before, she did now.
“As my wife, they wouldn’t dare move against you.” His voice dropped, menace threading his words. “I’ll even overlook your association with Caleb Varella if you return to Miami immediately.”