Page 47 of The Tempted

I rolled my eyes and plopped down onto the couch like a child who had just been scolded for misbehaving. Everyone was on edge and I understood that, but I wasn’t in the mood to be lectured. I may not have endured the same shit they had, but I still was a part of this hell just as they were the difference being they were accustomed to this shit when I wasn’t.

“You’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you, but you have to understand that there is no other option. You are going to do what I say because your life depends on it,” Victor said grimly.

“Are you threatening me?” I asked, looking up at him.

“No, I’m protecting you,” he said evenly.

The bathroom door opened and Nikki stepped out. She had pulled her hair back into a ponytail and washed all the makeup from the night before off her face.

“Okay, I’m ready! I can’t wait to take a shower and get out of these clothes,” she said smiling, but as she glanced around at the three of us, her smile faltered. “What’s the matter?”

“You should sit down too, sweetheart,” Victor said.

Nikki looked at her father confused before she turned to face me, her eyes searching mine for answers. I shrugged my shoulders I was just as clueless as she was. She walked to the couch and sat down beside me. We both leaned forward, anxious to listen to what Victor had to say fearing the unknown at the same time.

“You’re not going home,” Victor said, taking a deep breath.

“What?” I asked incredulously. “You want us to stay here in this shit hole?” I looked around at the cabin. No fucking way. Nikki nudged me with an elbow to my side.

“What do you mean we’re not going home Dad?” she asked calmly.

“It isn’t safe for either of you to be back home. I don’t know all the details of what transpired last night, but whoever was responsible for this had no regard for my family. They knew my family was inside that club when they declared war. They crossed the line, making it more personal than about business.”

“Oh fucking hell,” I said not liking the sound of this.

“So help me God kid if you don’t shut your mouth…,” Jimmy warned through clenched teeth. I wanted to punch him in the face and knock out that gold tooth of his.

“I’m riding blind in all of this. I can’t gain control of this situation worrying about the safety of my family so until I can obtain the upper hand in this I need for you to go away for a little while,” Victor said. “Don’t think I’m singling you out either because I’m not. Anthony took your sister and the baby to another location as well. Your mother is insisting on staying behind with me in hopes that she can run interference when people ask about you and your sister,” he ran his fingers through his graying hair.

“Dad, I can’t just pick up and leave. I have a job and…,” Nikki scrambled.

“You can and you will,” he cut her off and then he stared at her long and hard a stare that meant his word was final. “You don’t have a choice,” he turned and zeroed in on me. “Neither of you do.”

I was about to argue, but something in his eyes told me that I had better keep my big trap shut. Fucking Victor, he couldn’t leave me alone after my mom died. No— he had to come bring me back home and for what to be in the middle of goddamn mob war? I leaned back against the cushions of the couch and propped my feet on top of the coffee table thinking I might as well make myself comfortable.

“Where did you send Adrianna and Luca?” Nikki asked.

“It’s better if you don’t know her location,” Jimmy said. I glanced at him and then back to Victor suddenly realizing this was real fucking serious if we couldn’t know where A and the kid were.

“Wait a minute,” I said, dropping my feet from the table as I sat up straight. “You guys aren’t fucking around. Are we like in real serious danger?”

“You can be,” Victor said not sugar coating anything. “That’s why I need you guys away from here.”

“So we’re going to stay here?” I asked, looking around the cabin before I looked beside me at Nikki.

“No,” he shook his head and reached for the envelope that Jack had given him. He unclasped it and peeked inside shuffling through the contents, but not taking them out of the envelope. He extended the envelope to me. “Inside you’ll find two cell phones, credit cards, and new identification cards along with a map and keys to the car that’s parked out back.”

I took the envelope and pulled the contents of it out. He wasn’t fucking kidding. There were two brand new phones one for me and one for Nikki. I pulled out the two New Jersey state licenses, one had my picture, and identification the other had Nikki’s, however, our names were no longer Nikki and Michael. Nikki grabbed the I.D. cards from my hand and looked down at them.

“James Trunzo and Sara Trunzo?” she looked up at her father. “We’re brother and sister?”

Victor nodded towards the envelope insinuating that the answer to her question was inside. I held open my hand and turned the envelope over to shake the remaining contents out into my palm catching the two gold bands as they tumbled out of the envelope.

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” I said.

“You want us to pretend to be married?” she asked incredulously.

“That’s a bit more believable than the whole brother sister angle don’t you agree?” Jimmy said, raising an eyebrow towards me daring me to question the decision.

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