Page 44 of Curse

Adding insult to injury, Vin’s been stuck in New York and New Jersey while I’ve been shipped off to every corner of the globe, from London to L.A. It feels deliberate, like Aurelio’s trying to drive a wedge between us.

Which he doesn’t have to do. Vin and I have barely spoken since he realized I kept it from him that Siena was Franco’ssister and a Bellamorte. But I’m not going to apologize for it. I did what I had to do.

If Aurelio knew about that, he’d be using it to his advantage, but he doesn’t. Still, it hasn’t stopped him from fucking with us. First, he put Franco in charge of our assignments without a word to us, and now this wild goose chase bullshit. It feels like sabotage, and it makes no sense.

“You alright?” I ask.

“The old man wants me to help Franco with a job.” Vin’s voice drips with contempt. “He wants me—acapo—to fucking help Franco. He’s not even an associate. I don’t help him. He serves me. This is bullshit.”

I shake my head, tension coiling in my chest. “How’s he assigning Franco to do anything? Franco’s still at the Edge, right?”

I know he’s still at the Edge. I’ve been watching the cameras there every waking minute. Watching Siena sleep. Watching her eat. Watching her read, chat with Olivia, daydream.

And I’ve occasionally checked in on Franco. Aside from making Olivia’s life hell, he hasn’t been doing much.

“I don’t know,” Vin replies, exhaling sharply. “I’ve been in Miami for two days.”

“For what?”

“A meeting.” There’s a pause, his tone dropping. “The guy didn’t show.”

“Because there was no fucking meeting.” Rage ignites in me, and I hurl the glass on the bedside table against the wall. It shatters, shards glittering in the faint light. “Fuck this. I’m coming home.”

“You clear it with the old man?”

“No.”

“Good,” Vin says, a dark edge in his voice. “Then he won’t see it coming when we show up together and demand some goddamn answers.”

I nod, though he can’t see me. “I’ll meet you on the estate tarmac in two and a half hours.”

Adrenaline surges through me, replacing weeks of simmering frustration with raw purpose.

It’s one thing to fuck with us for not finding the flash drive like he wanted, but forcing Vin to answer to Franco? Insane. Vin is next in line for head of the family, and it makes no sense to pull him off of the Mikey situation or to separate the two of us when we’ve worked closely together for years now.

Unacceptable. Aurelio’s playing games, and I’m done. We both are.

**

The Demonio family’s private jet touches down on the estate’s private island runway, the wheels kissing the asphalt with a jolt that echoes in my bones. As the plane rolls to a stop, I spot Vin waiting by a black SUV, his stance rigid, eyes narrowed against the humid air.

The cabin door opens, and I stride down the steps, meeting him halfway.

“The old man’s here,” Vin says without preamble. “He’s on the warpath.”

I shoot him a look. “Why?”

“Not sure, but Tommy said he thinks it’s because Franco is MIA.” Vin gives me a pointed look.

My chest tightens as I pick up my pace. “If he doesn’t think we have Franco, then he doesn’t think we have Siena.”

Vin’s smirk is humorless. “Or he does. And that’s why he sent us both away, trying to force us to release them both.”

Fuck. I hate going into this situation blind. Ever since I saw that woman, my life has been fucked. A perfect mother fucking example of why women and business don’t mix.

All I can think about is Siena when I should be watching my own back. I need to get this bit of business taken care of and get back to the Edge and handle this shit myself.

“Let’s get this over with,” I say.

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