Page 175 of Ruin Me With Lies

Short story even shorter,it didn’t work.

But what gutted me most was finding out Vale had launched his own sex trafficking ring.Right inside the fucking cathedral.

He used our recruiter Vivienne to pull in women from shelters, under the guise of giving them safety, food, and boarding at a nunnery.Instead, he assaulted, tortured, and abused them.Held them hostage.

That’sthe part that ignites my rage.Because less than a year ago, Vale asked me to exclude the cathedral from our routine checks, said he wanted to preserve its sanctity.And I agreed.Out of sacred respect.

Those women were taken and brutalized because of my blind spot with blood relatives.

In one of Raya’s videos, she explained what happened after Luca’s death.She made contact with the agency Vale used to hire mercenaries and offered them double the price to pull their men out of Vegas.

Once they left, Raya’s team slipped in, posing as the agents.Yeah, the little liar had a goddamnteam.

They sabotaged from the inside.Tampered with the weapons and ammo.Freed the women held captive at the Cathedral.Burned the operation down.Enraged him to the point that he would go after someone I cared about.Though they thought it would’ve been Lorenzo, it turned out to be her.But they were prepared.

During that entire showdown at the casino, most of the men were hers, interspersed with several traitorous Uppers and Soldatis who’d switched sides.The turncoats, unaware their guns had been loaded with blanks, were the only ones lying lifeless on the floor when the smoke cleared.

The second flash drive contained just one file.

Only44You.mp4.

Her message to me was short, dispassionate, to the point.:

“You’ll want to know why I came.Why I lied.Why I helped.And the simple answer is: because I cared.That’s it.I care about you, Stefano Castello.I found out you were about to be in trouble, and I wanted to help.You were a king in distress, and I wanted to be your Knightress in Shining Armor.That’s all there is to it.

“Now my job is done, and I have to leave.Don’t come looking for me.You won’t find me.It’s been an honor to serve you, my king.You are more…so much more, than I could’ve ever imagined.I’ll cherish that weekend forever.Goodbye.”

I punched a hole through the wall after watching that video.Then I watched it again.Half a dozen times.Just to stare at her face.And another dozen times, searching for hints, clues,anything.But there was nothing.

Nothing else mattered after that night.After that message.All I could think about was finding her.Tunnel vision.I hired private investigators.The best of the best.Traveled country to country, chasing down dead-end leads.

It’s been five months.Five months of hunting.Blowing money.Chasing ghosts.And every time I think, “this is it, I’ve found her,” it turns out to be bullshit.

Now here I am, fresh off a wild goose chase in Ireland with nothing but egg on my face, pissed at the world, and my brother isn’t taking the damn hint.I just want to be left alone.

“Okay, fine.Ignore me,” he grumbles.“Keep treating me like shit.You knew her for a few months, hated her for half of it.I’ve been here your whole life—”

“For fuck’s sake, man, go swallow a Pamprin if you’re on your period.”I shoot him a sharp look.“Leave me the fuck alone.”

“I’m aboutthisclose to using my gun right now, so you know what…” He stands, straightening his shoulder holster.“At least get your head back in the game and stop blowing off your business partners.The Koreans have lost patience with your constant rescheduling.Either move forward with the deal or stop stringing them along.”

He grabs his laptop off the couch, and something familiar catches my eye right before he snaps it shut.

“What’s that screensaver on your laptop?”I ask.

He cuts me a look, as though checking if I’m serious.

I lift an expectant brow, waiting.

With a long-suffering sigh and a shake of his head, he says, “Some kind of clock tower Raya added.No idea what the hell she did, ‘cause every time I try to change the damn thing, it just bounces back.”

“How long ago did she add it?”

“Since she started working for me.Used to fiddle with my shit just to piss me off and—” He stops short.Narrows a wary gaze at me, like he’s suddenly regretting every word.“Why do you ask?”

“No reason.”I rock back in my chair, casual.“Just thought it looked familiar, is all.”

Unconvinced, he stares a second longer, then grunts disapprovingly and starts to leave.At the door, he pauses and throws a parting shot over his shoulder.“You’re not the only one who got attached, Stefano.I miss her, too.But working closely with her has only taught me how much of a wily wolf she is.She’s a clean eater, no crumbs left behind.So unless she wants to be found…” He shrugs.“You won’t find her.Give it up, man.”