Page 10

10

Allegra

I ’ve never been turned on by a death threat, but Bonnie’s promise to gut me in my sleep still rattles around my head four hours later, and the low throb still beats its tiny drum, making me clench my thighs together.

I’ve since spent my time in my office, catching up on paperwork. Everything is fine. The business practically runs itself under my rule. I’ll still be glad to leave this awful place, though. English Heritage décor is not my thing at all. It’s dark and oppressive.

Lorenzo hasn’t left his office yet, which would usually cause concern, but I suppose he needs time to adjust to Bonnie being in his life. My guess is he has a lot of old issues resurfacing and needs to be alone.

The radio crackles to life, signalling Bonnie’s parents’ arrival. I wonder if they’re going to be as troublesome as their daughter. God, I hope not. Packing away the paperwork in my satchel, I call for Mia to box up the office. I want to leave as soon as humanly possible once Bonnie’s dads are onboard.

I’m just about to make my way to the main hall when Lorenzo steps out and waves me over. “Will you ask Mark and Phillip to come here first? I know they’ll be eager to see Bonnie, but I think we need to have a frank discussion before emotions cloud their judgement.”

“I’ll fetch them now.”

Mark and Phillip stand, hand-in-hand, in the main hall. They look nervous but meet my eyes with a determination I’ve seen in Bonnie.

“Where is our daughter?”

I’ve studied Bonnie’s life, so I know Phillip is the one addressing me. After my talk with Lorenzo, I did my own research. That’s why I left my chat with Kelley and Bonnie until this morning. I wanted to have all the pertinent information before this shitshow went any further.

Phillip and Mark Moorside are both psychologists working at a prestigious university. Phillip is fifty-two with short dark hair, a titanium knee, and a penchant for cigars, which Mark dislikes.

Mark is fifty-four with black hair that’s closely cropped because he is starting to go bald. He likes baking and wool cardigans. No surprise Bonnie has such awful taste in clothes. Together, they have a nice four-bed house close to Bonnie’s apartment. They talk daily with their daughter and enjoy garden parties.

For all intents and purposes, they have a very vanilla life and are happy. I try to ignore the pang of jealousy, but it’s hard. As much as this family is all I’ve ever known, as is the lifestyle, I admit I’ve wondered what it would be like to live a boring suburban life.

“Bonnie is with her friend. She’ll be brought to you shortly. First, Don Ferrante would like to talk. Please follow me.”

The mention of Lorenzo’s formal title doesn’t even elicit the smallest of reactions, so I know they are aware of him. The fact I’m still in the dark pisses me off. Considering Bonnie’s adoption was closed, I’d like to know how Mark and Phillip are acquainted with Lorenzo. And why he’s never told me? I know I’ve never met Bonnie’s parents, so if they have had cause to interact, Lorenzo has kept it a secret from me.

They follow me down the hall and to the office. Lorenzo is pouring three drinks. I gesture for Mark and Phillip to sit on the couch before moving to the drinks table and pouring a fourth tumbler of brandy.

“I’m staying,” I say quietly. Lorenzo gives a small nod.

“I’m sorry we’re meeting like this,” Lorenzo says, his back still turned away from the two men. I slink over to the other side of the room and lean against the wall. “You know I never meant for this to happen.”

Well, that answers my question then. They know each other.

“You promised we’d never have to meet, Lorenzo. You swore Bonnie would be safe.”

Well, isn’t that interesting? Not only do they know Lorenzo by name, but they seem to have an understanding of what this is, or should I say, who the Don is.

Taking a second to steel himself, Lorenzo shoots a quick look my way before turning around. “You’re right. I’ve not kept my word, and you’ll never know how sorry I am for that. But we have to look past my failure and protect Bonnie.”

Phillip stands and begins pacing. “Who is threatening her?”

“Giani Arello,” Lorenzo replies. I’m surprised he’s being so open, to be honest. “He…” Another side eye at me. I’m not going to like what I hear. “He was Maria’s fiancé.”

I sling back the brandy in one gulp before heading back to grab the bottle. After everything I said yesterday, Lorenzo is still keeping important information from me. My blood is boiling, but I have to keep it under wraps for now. I’ll beat the living shit out of something later.

Mark gently guides his husband back to the couch. “How do you plan on dealing with this, Lorenzo?”

“I will deal with it,” I interject. “No harm will come to your daughter, I swear it. But we need your help. Bonnie is less than happy to be here. A fact I take responsibility for. The way we met was less than ideal, but I didn’t have all the facts,” I say, scowling at Lorenzo, who at least has the decency to look ashamed. “The truth is, to keep you safe, we need to take you to Italy. Bonnie is understandably quite angry and is fighting me all the way.”

I see a smirk take over Phillip’s face. “That’s our Bonnie. She’s never liked being told what to do.”

“That may be so, but this time, I need her to fall in line. She’s agreed to come to Sicily if you are on board.”

Mark takes Phillip’s hand. “And this is the only way?”

“It is,” Lorenzo chokes. “I’m so sorry.”

I’ve never seen Lorenzo cry, and the fact he has tears streaming down his face makes me want to scream with discomfort. As much as Lorenzo showed me love growing up, we were never very demonstrative.

“Our villa is like Fort Knox, but prettier,” I say with a smile. “You’ll all want for nothing. I’ll deal with Giani as swiftly as possible.”

Mark and Phillip exchange looks before nodding. “We’ll convince her to play nice.”

“You should probably know…” Ugh, why do I care what these people think? “Kelley was injured. I sort of shot her.”

I don’t know why I’m explaining myself. I’d never dream of doing it with anyone else, but something in my gut tells me I need to be honest with them.

Mark’s eyes go wide, and Phillip stands back up. “You did what?”

Lorenzo stands next and holds his hands up. “It’s my fault.”

“No, I shot her. All I can say is I didn’t know who Bonnie was. She was planning to escape when we picked her up, and to teach her a lesson, I shot Kelley.”

“Jesus Christ,” Mark gasps.

“I apologised,” I say somewhat meekly.

“And you want me to entrust my daughter’s life in your hands?” Phillip barks.

“Yes,” I state. “I will never hurt Bonnie.” Those few words cause an avalanche of emotion I’ve never experienced before to slam into my stomach.

“Allegra is the best at her job. She protects the family at all costs, and Bonnie is—albeit reluctantly—a part of it. Please, Phillip, this really is all my fault.”

Phillip scrubs his face. “I want to see her! Now!”

The talking portion of the day is over. I’m not sure if they will still help convince Bonnie to come with us or not. I should have probably kept my mouth shut, but then again, I’m sure Bonnie will waste no time informing her parents of how beastly I am.

Leading them out of the office, I take them to Kelley’s room, where Bonnie remained after refusing to leave.

“I really am sorry,” I say before pushing the door open.

Bonnie lets out a sob and runs into her dads’ arms. I watch from the doorway at the outpouring of love. It’s too much. I need to be anywhere but in this room. Turning, I head to the gym. Rosa is in the ring with Toni. She sees me enter and breaks away, patting his shoulder. Toni looks ready to drop, so he’s more than happy to take a break.

“Hey, you up for a few rounds?” she asks.

“Yes. Give me a second to change.”

The good thing about Rosa is she knows my body language. Not just because we were lovers, but because we’ve worked closely together in some harrowing circumstances. I trust her with my life in a fight.

We go head-to-head for a few hours until neither of us can lift our arms any longer, yet I’m still left with this strange energy in the pit of my stomach. My mind keeps wandering to the Moorsides upstairs. Have Phillip and Mark managed to convince Bonnie that Italy is the only safe option?

Walking to my room, I spare a glance at the door opposite me. I know Bonnie isn’t there. Shaking my head, I shower and change. There are still a few more daylight hours, which means I need to work. Having taken care of the business side of things, I direct my energy towards Giani and Gisto. I need to know where they are and what they’re doing. I’m sick and tired of being one step behind.

Picking up my phone, I call Luke. He’s a young Australian who set up a bar in our local village five years ago. He’s been on our payroll the entire time and keeps me in the loop regarding the Arellos.

“Hey, boss,” he calls, “I thought you’d be back by now.”

Me too .

“Soon. We’re getting ready to head back in the next couple of days. How are things your end?” He knows I’m not asking for idle gossip. I want details on Giani.

“Quiet. He hasn’t been to the bar in a few days, which is strange. He has to be running out of cigarettes by now. I’ve got a new shipment in the back waiting for him. I can’t sell the nasty things to anyone else. He’s the only one on the island who wants them!”

Damn, that is strange. Giani has claimed Luke’s Bar as his local watering hole and spends at least two hours a day there, drinking. So why the disruption of his schedule? It’s definitely odd he’s not champing at the bit to collect his gold-lined cigarettes. The man smokes two packs a day.

“And Gisto?”

“Yeah, he’s here now, actually. Got a shiner on his face. His dad’s handiwork, I guess.”

So, Giani is pissed. Nothing new there, I guess. But pairing Gisto’s black eye with the fact Giani has skipped his time at the bar has my hackles up.

“Thanks, Luke. We’ll talk soon.” A gut feeling tells me we got to Bonnie just in time.

I sit, deliberating what to do next. Bonnie is safe here for the time being. We have enough family around to guard her. She doesn’t need me babysitting. My time would be better spent figuring out what the Arellos are up to.

Jogging to Lorenzo’s office, I knock before entering. He’s standing by the window again looking…sad. He turns to briefly look at me before staring back out the window.

“I’m going back tonight,” I announce.

That gets his attention. “What’s happened?”

“Nothing as of yet, but something’s stirring. I can feel it. I need to get back now. You can follow with Bonnie and her parents in a couple of days once I’ve made sure it’s safe to return.”

“But—”

“No buts, Lorenzo. It’s happening. You need to snap out of whatever the hell this is,” I say, waving my hand around the office. “Hiding away isn’t helping.”

“It’s not that simple,” he begins.

“I don’t want to hear it,” I snap. “I’ve got too much on my plate to worry about you right now.”

Harsh, but true. This wilting sad sack is no use to me. I need Don Ferrante to step up and help me. Lorenzo has always reacted better to the truth, no matter how hard it is to say or hear.

He studies me for a second before pulling at his shirt sleeves. Once they are fixed, he does the same to his tie. “You’re right. And yes, I’m aware of how many times I’ve said that lately.”

I grin. “I’ll call you when I arrive.”

“Be safe, Allegra.”

“Always.”

Taking a deep breath, I leave and head straight to my room to pack.

I’m going home.