Page 78 of Owned by the Italian Mafia Boss
Gianni doesn’t seem too happy either, which makes me wonder if he has feelings for Christy. I don’t remember them interacting often. He’d stand to the side and listen to her, watch as Caleb kissed her and made her laugh.
If he does have feelings for her, that couldn’t have been easy.
I slow when we start passing the mile markers.
“I’ll stay with Caleb and make sure he doesn’t cause any trouble,” Matias says, the gun still aimed at Caleb. “I could just kill him and replace his body with Christy’s. Two birds, one stone, and all that.”
I don’t hate the idea. We are already here. A hole is already dug.
I want to torture him, but it would be helpful to get it over with, especially with Christy. She probably won’t want to see her ex-boyfriend ever again.
“Christy will probably want to shoot him when we get her. We have to get to her,” Delilah wipes her cheeks and climbs out of the SUV before it stops.
“Delilah! Don’t ever get out of a moving vehicle.” I shout after her since her door is wide open, and she’s stalking toward the woods.
Gianni climbs out next. Finally, I slam the car into park and run after her, checking her over to make sure she isn’t hurt.
“I’m fine. Let’s not waste any more time. Christy needs us. How far back? Is it a straight shot, left or right?” Delilah asks, taking a step into the woods. The pine needles snap under her feet, and she crosses her arms over her chest. “Oh my, god, I’m going to be sick.” She holds her stomach again, and I’m at her side instantly.
“Listen to me, listen,” I grip her with rough hands. “We will find her, but you have to relax. The stress isn’t good for you or the baby. I can’t have anything happen to either of you, do you understand? I can’t. So, breathe for me. We have forty-five minutes. That’s plenty of time to find her.”
“Hey!” Matias calls from the car. “It’s straight back about a mile—” His head turns, and I assume he’s talking to Caleb. Even from here, I can see his sneer.
“Shut the fuck up!” A gunshot rings out. “Shut the fuck up!” He looks in our direction again. “I didn’t kill him!”
He looks so proud of himself and way too much like Ari at the moment. For twins, yes, they look alike, but their personalities are different—except for right now.
Gianni power walks ahead of us and calls out her name. “Christy! Christy, it’s Gianni. Delilah and Carmine are with me. Scream if you can hear us.”
We wait for something, for anything, but silence speaks in return.
“Oh god,” Delilah sobs, covering her mouth to hide the sound as we listen.
I keep alert, gun out, taking soft steps, so I make quiet sounds.
Birds caw above us and fly away when they see us.
“Christy!” Delilah calls out. “Christy! Please, answer!”
The desperation in her voice kills me. If I don’t find her friend, my Sweetling will never be the same.
“Shh, I hear something.” Gianni turns his head, and we all stop walking.
Delilah’s fingernails dig into my skin as we wait.
“There isn’t anything—”
“Shh,” he cuts me off.
Anyone else would have gotten a punch to the face.
A muffled shout comes from ahead, and all of us look at each other before sprinting in the direction it’s coming from.
Delilah trips over a fallen log, and I catch her before she hits the ground. Gianni gets to the freshly dug mound of dirt first. He falls to his hands and knees, scooping the dirt with his palms.
“Help me!” Christy cries from underneath us, banging her fists against something. “I can’t breathe.” Her voice sounds so far away, but she’s so close.
“Hang on, Christy. We are right here. Just keep breathing.” Delilah is digging, too, while I’m using my entire forearm to scoop dirt out.
