Page 57 of His to Break

“Shit. I left my purse in the ladies’ room.”

“I’ll go get it.”

“No, it’s okay, I’ll…”

It’s too late to tell him I’ll get it myself. Gio’s already walked away and I have bigger things to worry about. An irate husband.

“What the fuck, Vinnie?” He storms across the lobby and grabs my arm roughly. “You talked to Carlo? Are you out of your fucking mind?”

“It was fine. Gio was there,” I reply defiantly. “And this place is swarming with your men.”

“I don’t care if the fucking Marines were at your back. You do not go near that asshole.”

“Okay,” I concede, because arguing with Leo won’t achieve anything. “You can punish me for it later, but right now, we need to help my brother. My father said he’s in Chicago, marrying Serena Gallo. They’re going to kill him tonight and maybe her, too.”

Leo curses under his breath but gets out his cellphone and makes a call.

“Nico, we have a problem. Bianchi showed up here… No, Carlo. They’re going to hit Daniele tonight in Chicago.” Leo listens to whatever Nico has to say and nods a couple of times. “Yeah, okay. I’ll see you when you get here.”

He puts his phone away and turns to me. “Nico will reach out to our contacts in Chicago. They’ll do what they can.”

It may be too late already, but my heart swells with gratitude that Leo tried to help my brother. “Thank you, Leo.”

“What else did you talk about?”

“Nothing.”

Leo’s eyes narrow as he scrutinizes me closely. He doesn’t believe me, but I don’t want to tell him my father claims to have a second son. I need to process that information first and try to figure out who it is.

“What else did you talk about, Venezia?”

“Nothing, I…”

A loud bang cuts me off. It’s immediately followed by another. Around me, men draw their guns. Leo grabs my arms and bends to look me in the eye.

“Go to the ballroom and sit with my family. Do not move until I come for you.”

Nodding, I rush to obey. Matteo runs past me as I make my way into the ballroom. Alessandro stands by the door, arms in the air, urging everyone to remain calm while they check out the noise.

I join the other Volante women at the table.

“What’s happening?” Emilia asks. “Is it something to do with your father?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“I can’t believe that asshole showed up here,” Olivia snarls. “What did he want?”

“To taunt me.”

“Don’t worry about him.” Ava reaches across and rubs my arm soothingly. “Where’s Gio?”

“I forgot my purse. He went to get it.”

My stomach lurches as realization hits. Those bangs sounded a hell of a lot like gunshots. The reaction of Leo’s men certainly suggests they were. Did they come from the direction of the restrooms? Why hasn’t Gio returned?

Several agonizing minutes pass. Nobody at our table speaks, but there’s nervous chatter all around us. Then Matteo enters the room. He speaks to Alessandro, who’s still stationed by the door and then beckons to me. I get up and go to see what he wants.

“We’ve got to get you out of here,” he tells me.

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