Page 88 of Arresting the Warlord

“We can start with the Colosseum and then hit the beach.”

Uncle Jesse transformed back to his human form and rubbed his hands together. “Any nude beaches nearby?”

I let out a groan. “What are you twelve?” A glittering blue light suddenly formed around me.

Jake grabbed my arm and tried to pull me out.

The light expanded and the catacombs abruptly vanished.

Chapter Fifteen

The light faded away and we were standing on a transporter platform. “This is getting really old.”

Jake pulled his laser pistol. “Very old.”

“Put your weapon away. You won’t need it,” a heavily accented voice said.

A dapper, older man wearing a black turtleneck sweater and gray suit stepped into the light with his hands raised. “I am your father, Aldo Dragos.”

‘Luke, I am your father’, echoed briefly in my head before I said coldly, “My father is Samuel Tsosie. You’re my sperm donor.”

Aldo winced. “I was told you; your mother and my brother Max had perished in a fire.”

“Who told you that?”

“Giovanni.”

My hands curled into fists. “That murdering sonovabitch lied to you. His henchmen shot Uncle Max in front of us, barricaded the doors and set the house on fire.”

“You went out the escape tunnel?”

“We did and hid under the chicken coop until they left.”

“Bene. Bene. It was what I taught her.”

Jake rubbed my back. “Tell him everything.”

All my pain and fury welled up in me. I opened my mouth, and everything came spewing out. How we were forced to flee Italy with nothing but the clothes on our backs. Too afraid to use her telepathic abilities, mama worked as a cook on a merchant ship that was sailing to America. “Every time mama thought we were safe the hunters found us. They chased us across the United States until we ended up in Arizona.”

Shock flared in Aldo’s eyes. “Where in Arizona?”

“The Navajo Nation.”

“So close,” Aldo whispered.

I ignored his stricken look and plowed on. “Once again the thugs located us. This time our luck ran out. A tire blew on the old van mama had managed to buy. She lost control of the car and we crashed.” Tears leaked down my cheeks. “Even though mama was dying, her only thought was keeping me safe. I tried so hard to keep death from taking her.”

Jake wrapped his arms around me. “I’ve got you, buttercup. I’ve got you.”

“What happened to Giovanni’s men?” Aldo’s voice was taut with anger.

“I killed them,” Father answered.

I blinked in surprise and quickly wiped the tears off my face. Father, Uncle Jesse, and General Jones stood behind my sperm donor. All of them were seriously pissed.“How did they find us?”

“I put a tracker on you.”

I gave him the stink eye.

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