Page 122 of Isabella

“Are you okay?” I call out to Nicco from over my shoulder.

“Yeah, baby. Are you?”

“Yes.” I breathe out a sigh of relief.

“Well, isn’t this just sweet,” Giuseppe says sardonically. “Duct tape him.”

Mauricio tightens the last zip tie around my wrists, and I silently thank God he didn’t tighten it too tight, fully knowing I’m going to have to shimmy the knife out of my sleeve.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here?” Mauricio says, and I freeze, my stomach hollowing out, not knowing exactly what he’s referring to, but praying he didn’t discover the knife that’s pressed up against my forearm.

He brushes his hand against the sleeve of my sweater, and I hold my breath, knowing with one small move, he’ll be able to feel the hard steel under the fabric. I glance over at him and he pulls his hand back, a crimson stain left on his thumb and index fingers. He studies them before looking at me. “Why are you bleeding,mia bella?”

“Bleeding?” Nicco growls out from behind me.

“Don’teven think about getting up, Niccolò. I told you I’ll kill your little bitch if you make a move,” his dad says. “Don’t fucking test me.”

Nicco’s taking shallow breaths, and I know he’s about to lose it at any second. “It’s okay, Nicco. I’m fine. I promise,” I say, trying to calm him while Mauricio starts duct taping him to the chair. We have to get out of here, which means we need Giuseppe to keep us alive for as long as possible. I can’t have Nicco losing control over me. Not when I have a plan.

71

NICCOLÒ

Anger flushes my skin and radiates through me. I can nearly feel my bones shaking in fucking rage that Mauricio laid a hand on my girl. Walking into this building to Isabella on the floor nearly had me sprinting over to her and killing Mauricio on the spot. But when I looked over her seemingly unharmed body and Mauricio’s bloody nose, I quickly realized what had happened and a wave of pride washed over me even under our circumstances.

But now that I know my sweet Isabella is fucking bleeding, the rage hits me so hard my vision begins to blur. Taking a deep breath and listening to Isabella’s calming voice telling me she’s okay is the only thing that’s keeping me grounded.

“I cut myself when I fell after the gunshot went off,” Isabella whispers, and my heart constricts at her words.

“Are you sure you’re okay, Isabella?” I ask over my shoulder.

“I’m fine, Nicco. I really am. It’s just a little bit of blood. I can’t even feel where I got cut.”

“You promise?”

“Yes,” she whispers out.

I take a deep breath trying to calm myself so I can focus on what I need to do to get us out of here. I glance around at the scattered knives on the floor and try to come up with something.

Fuck.

I shift my weight, and the old wooden chair creaks beneath me.

The wooden chair… of course.

I silently pray it’s old and cheap enough for my plan.

My dad’s dark chuckle pulls me out of my concentrated thoughts. “You really are in love with that girl, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am,” I grumble. I need to keep him talking and then make my move when he least expects it. But I also need to get Mauricio in my line of sight. I’ll have to take them both out at the same time for this to work.

“Do you not see how foolish you’ve become?” my dad says with his gun still aimed at me. “I’ve spent your entirelifeteaching you to not grow attached to a woman, and you go and doexactlywhat I told you not to fucking do, and now look at you.” His laugh is dark and sinister. “You’re going to die because you didn’t listen to anything I told you to do.”

“Why is it so difficult for you to wrap your mind around me having a wife that I love and still be the leader this family needs?”

My dad shakes his head and begins to pace, which is exactly what I want. I want to rattle him. I want to catch him off guard. I’m about to keep pushing him when something cold touches my fingers, and I freeze while a piece of metal gets shimmied into my hand.

Is that a…?

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