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FORTY-THREE

Dante

Not even being a new parent cuddled up with my naked wife is enough to put me into a deep enough sleep to not hear my phone. A lifetime of training makes it near impossible for me to sleep that deeply. In this case, It’s not necessarily a bad thing. My phone vibrating gets my attention.

I reach for it, careful not to awaken Inaya, since sleep is a commodity right now and read the alert. One of my many tracking apps may have paid off. I type in the encryption password to open it. My adrenaline spikes almost immediately, but I take my time to sit up quietly.

There were a few properties that Father didn’t think I knew about because he somehow thought I wouldn’t retain a password here or a detail there without trying. From the moment I decided to get revenge, the entire reason why he took me has been working against him. I know most of his secrets and this one is paying off.

“He’s near,” I whisper to myself as I head to the bathroom to get ready. He’d slipped away again while I was distracted by our son, but I knew that I’d find him again. Now is the time.

Even if this is somehow a trap, I will kill him soon. It's time to end it so that my wife and child can safely live in a world where he doesn’t exist. Although she doesn’t talk about her dad, I know his existence weighs on Inaya, especially now that Marius is here. Fury burns inside of me every time I think about his attempt to harm them. She doesn’t have to tell me that it’s in the forefront of her mind as well.

I make my shower brief and am dressed within seventeen minutes of getting the alert.

The feeling within me feels more like excitement than anticipation. While my focus on revenge has shifted, Father never stopped owing me his life. I'm happy to collect.

Walking over to Marius, I make sure that he's not in any distress. I watch him for a few seconds just to ensure he's breathing. This moment makes me realize that I’ve done something similar with Inaya since we’ve been reunited. I check her if she’s sleeping too quietly. It’s a weird shift going from making others take their last breath to making sure the ones I love remain alive.

Father is the final step in that plan. I used to want to spend hours making him suffer and inflicting a fraction of the pain he’s given me over the years. Now, I would rather kill him quickly and be home for dinner. He’s the only thing keeping my family at Andrea’s house. Once he’s gone, we will be free to carve whatever path we want.

I write her a note so she will not be worried when she wakes up. While I've slowed down on my freelance work since Carlos outed me to the world, Inaya is used to me coming and going at random.

I won’t strike immediately. I’ll recon the scene to see what he has planned. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that he has landed near the city my host runs. It’s also convenient that he’s just out of what he considers Andrea’s control. It’s not unheard of for Father to underestimate people. This looks like one of those times.

The house is quiet, Andrea and Delaney must have left while we were asleep for the couples’ weekend he planned. I’m unofficially in charge since he is taking his top men with him.

I observe everything as I drive while noting alternate routes and ensuring any countermeasures I consider aren't things Father taught me. I need to prepare for all outcomes.

My phone rings, so I pull over to answer.

“You're awake,” I say after I hit the answer.

“My side felt cold, and my favorite pillow was missing.”

I smile at her teasing. I was comfortable as well.

“I'll be back as soon as I can,” I promise.

Although I cannot see her, Inaya’s pause pulls up a visual of her expression in my head. She has her lips folded in and is probably lying on her side as she considers how she's going to tell me the reason why she called.

“It's okay, you know.”

I trace the pattern of the stitching on the steering wheel, thinking about how we'd still be in bed together if I had killed Father sooner

“What's okay?” I inquire.

“I feel like you've been restless lately. It's okay for you to be the Dante I met if you need to be.”

I don't feel any impulse to kill, but the offer is one of the reasons I love her.

“It's not okay for me. The Dante you met was broken in a lot of ways that you've helped heal. There's only one issue that I need to solve before I can relax.”

We don't need to say more since there are a lot of things we’ve read between the lines.

“I love you,” she admits.

“I love you, too.”

“You better come back to us,” I don't like the worry she's trying to conceal.

“Nothing will keep me away from my family.”

It's a promise I plan to keep because I refuse to let my happiness slip away from me.

Marius' cries end our conversation, and I move on to scout the scene. The setting sun is preparing to shroud me with nightfall. I prefer the darkness; it was my constant companion that shielded me from the world.

The map takes me to a residential neighborhood. Smart. More chances for witnesses. It's not anything that'll deter me since I've killed in all situations.

My first instinct from training is to go the opposite way and work my way back to the house on foot. If he's expecting me, he’s anticipating that approach. I park in front of the neighbor’s house since I'm driving a nondescript black vehicle with hard to read plates.

Carefully, I make my way up the driveway while checking for guards and traps until I'm standing in front of a window on the side of the house. Father sits inside drinking his usual while looking at something out of my line of sight. I know that I killed the majority of his men, but he still looks too conveniently under protected.

I reach for my gun just as my phone vibrates. I want to ignore it, but something tells me to answer. My eyes stay glued to Father while the rest of my body remains alert.

“Yes?”

“Dante?” I recognize Zo’s voice, although it’s not as booming as usual. He coughs a few times and his breathing is labored. I know he’s in pain, but why?

“What’s wrong?”

“Andrea…in trouble.” I immediately move back into the shadows to retreat. Saving him is much higher than personal vengeance. “Tried to stop them,” he finishes before another labored breath.

“Delaney?” I ask from the car as I pull away.

“Same.”

My blood pressure spikes, but this simply causes my brain to slow down enough to access and execute. I head in the direction of Zo’s location but slow down when he speaks again.

“They took them.”

I stop in the middle of the street since my emotions are trying to get involved. I have no idea if my wife can see into the future, but her words come back to me almost immediately.

It's okay for you to be the Dante I met if you need to be.

I roll my head to crack my neck, then release a long breath as I lock up my emotions the way I have learned to do years ago. Old Dante is exactly who they’ll get. My fingers work to open a different app, and a slow smile covers my face once I get a ping.

“Good girl,” I mumble as I burn off. Delaney using the gift I gave her is the worst thing that could have happened to the people who took them.