Page 35 of Mine Again
“Psst,” I hiss softly.
His head turns toward the sound, and when he spots me below, his brow lifts in that signature way of his.
“There’s a staircase to your right,” I whisper. “Take it. It’s safe.”
He hesitates but then turns and disappears from view. A moment later, footsteps approach from the side, and as soon as he steps off the final stair, I grab his arm and pull him into a small alcove screened by a hedge wall, tucked between two stone sections. The space is narrow and shadowed, forcing us close, yet lit enough that I can still make out his face.
“You realize, Signorina Accardi,” he says dryly, “that if we’re spotted here together, it will look like we’re up to something… compromising. The kind of trouble that comes with consequences.”
“Call me Isa,” I reply without hesitation. “I don’t need the constant reminder of my father. In case you haven’t noticed, there’s no love lost between us. He despises his daughters purely because we’re girls and not boys.”
His eyes narrow, but he doesn’t speak.
“This spot is one of the few places around the estate where the cameras don’t reach,” I continue. “And before you ask, yes, I’m sure. I checked it myself. We’re safe here. The guards won’t pass this path for another…” I lift my wrist and check my watch, “twelve minutes.”
His brow rises again, this time with genuine interest.
“And how exactly did you check that, Miss… Isa?”
“I hacked into the security system,” I say matter-of-factly.
He stares at me for a beat. “You? You hacked it?”
“Yes,” I say, smiling now. “Luca taught me the basics, and I’ve been learning more on my own. Let’s just say the dark web has been… educational.”
A low, amused sound leaves him. Not quite a laugh, but close.
“Well. I can see why he was so taken with you. There’s clearly more to you than the obedient Mafia princess your father wants the world to believe you are.”
That makes me smile for real. Not because I care what Uberto thinks, but because for once I feel seen. Not as a pawn, but as someone with her own mind, her own skills, her own plan.
“You still haven’t told me what it is you want from me.”
I inhale slowly. This is risky. Reckless, even. If he told a single soul about this conversation, my entire plan could fall apart before it even begins.
But I’m counting on a few things. His disdain for my father. His former friendship with Luca. And the fact that Uberto, a man in his late twenties, working with encryption and intelligence, doesn’t believe in the archaic rulesla famigliaimposes on women.
My palms are damp. I wipe them discreetly against the side of my gown. My heart beats too close to my throat. The garden is still, but inside me, everything is loud. I take another breath. It’s now or never.
“I need your help to get some fake documentation. Or at least to point me to someone who can.”
If he’s surprised, he doesn’t show it. His face remains unreadable.
“That’s costly.”
“I’m aware. I can cover it.”
He doesn’t ask how, and I’m grateful.
“I assume you mean a full identity. New name, new life.”
I nod. “My father must never find me.”
His lips twitch slightly, almost a smile. “You want out of this life? That’s a feat few manage.”
I almost say that Luca did, but I hold back. It would not help to remind him that his protégé managed to disappear without a trace.
Whether Uberto admired that or resented it, I have no idea. And tonight, I cannot afford to guess wrong.
