Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
It happened a year ago when I almost drowned Rosie.
At first, I rejected Rosie because I value our friendship above all else, but after I hurt her, it fractured the meager chance of us being anything more.
If I ever hurt Rosie again, I’ll blow my fucking brains out.
That’s how much she means to me.
My phone rings, pulling me out of the mess that’s my mind. I let out an exhausted sigh while digging the device out of my pocket, and seeing Augusto’s name, I quickly answer, “Hey. Riccardo is safely at the hospital. He handled the flight okay. Your parents are with him.”
“Good. Thanks for watching over him.”
“Of course.”
“Listen…” Augusto’s voice sounds weird, and it makes a frown form on my forehead. “I have to tell you something.”
I glance at the other cars driving down the road, taking stock of my surroundings. “Okay.”
“We didn’t have Ryo Tanaka.”
My frown darkens. “So who did we beat up?”
“A body double.”
“He should’ve talked,” I mutter.
“She.”
The pressure in my head increases drastically, and a headache begins to pulse behind my eyes. “What?”
“We tortured a woman in that hangar, Enzo.”
Memories hit one of the after. The sound of her shoulder dislocating when I tackled her to the ground. Her skin ripping. Her blood seeping from the wounds and covering my fists.
A crack forms right through my fucking soul, and it feels like it rips me in half.
“Enzo?”
Spiraling hard and fast, I end the call. The device slips from my hand, and then I completely lose it.
I think I hit the steering wheel while shouting.
I hear the engine roar and the road rushing beneath the Mustang’s tires.
I can’t form a coherent thought and only feel the fury tearing through me as I drive.
Rosie
Seeing Augusto’s name, I answer, “You get three wishes. What can the genie do for you today?”
“Find Enzo right now.”
My fingers fly over the keyboard before the command even settles in my mind. The air bursts from my lungs as I gasp, “What happened?”
“I gave him bad news.”
The red dot appears on a map, and from how fast it’s moving, I can tell Enzo is speeding.
“He’s driving in my direction.”
“Oh, good. When he gets to you, try to calm him down,” Augusto says. “The body double for Ryo turned out to be a woman.”
“Jesus.” My eyes go wide as saucers, then I realize what it means. Augusto and Enzo tortured a woman. “God, that’s bad. How are you holding up?”
“I feel like shit,” Augusto admits. “Just fucking…”
My eyes stay glued to the red dot as I say, “I’m so sorry. You didn’t know.”
“Doesn’t make it any better.”
When it shows Enzo is here, I say, “He’s safe. Gotta go.”
We end the call while I pull up the exterior camera feed, and it’s in time to see Enzo climb out of his Mustang that’s parked haphazardly.
Not waiting for him to go through the scanning process, I open the heavy steel door, and once he’s in the underground parking area, I make sure it shuts behind him before I authorize all the elevators to open.
As soon as he steps into the first one, I get a close-up of his pale face and the sweat beading on his forehead.
My heart shrivels, and feeling his pain, I press the button for the intercom and keep my tone gentle as I say, “I’m here.”
He nods before looking down, hiding his face from my view, and I watch as he moves from one security point to the next.
Shoving my chair back, I shoot up and jog to the doors, and the moment they open and Enzo steps out, I grab hold of him.
His arms clamp incredibly tight around me, and hearing his ragged breaths, I instinctively press a kiss to his jaw while cradling the back of his head with one of my hands.
“You didn’t know.”
Instantly, Enzo pulls away from me, and stalking to my workstation, he begins to clean up.
Knowing it’s his way of coping, I rein in the urge to hold him and leave him be.
I return to my chair, but I can’t focus on work, conscious of every movement Enzo makes and how his breaths don’t calm down.
The energy coming from him is violent, and scared he might leave in this state, I activate the lockdown protocol.
Even if someone has a code, they won’t be able to get in, and there’s no way for Enzo to leave the building.
When the shutters lower over the windows, Enzo’s head snaps up. He watches as the sunlight disappears, and as the lights flicker on, he turns to look at me.
“I’m just keeping you with me until you’ve calmed down,” I explain.
He doesn’t reply and walks to the small kitchen, only to return minutes later with a mop.
I watch as he cleans every nook and cranny, and when there’s nothing else to do, he stops to stare at me.