Page 2 of Her Guardian
This could work out to my benefit. I bite my bottom lip and send a reply.
Sarah:Wow! I’m actually on my way to Las Vegas right now! We have to celebrate!
Lea:Really? Okay, want me to get you a room at Salvalagio?
Sarah:Yes, please! I’ll stay out of the way. I just need a short vacation.
Lea:Promise me you won’t go overboard counting cards!
Sarah:I promise! I’ll see you tomorrow! I’m stopping at a motel tonight.
Lea:Be careful. Text me when you get to the motel, so I know you made it.
I send her a few heart emojis and crank up my car.
A few hours and some bad singing later, I’ve texted Lea, and I’m relaxing in my motel room. I enjoy a few hits from my vape as I open my laptop to check the stats for my podcast.
They’re as abysmal as I feared they would be.
“This is terrible!” I moan.
My live podcast didn’t have many viewers, and only a few more have listened to it after it aired. Nobody is listening to my old podcasts anymore, either. It’s no surprise my sponsors have all pulled out and I’m going bankrupt trying to keep it afloat.
“I need content.” I close my laptop and sigh. “Good content. Something like the Mafia Prince Murders, back when the story was still hot.”
Over a million people listened to the series I did on those murders. Unfortunately, instead of it catapulting my podcast to the top, I was a one-hit wonder. It’s been downhill ever since, and there’s not much to go before it hits bottom.
The problem is that I don’t have any good content. I’m rehashing old stuff and there’s nothing exciting I can latch onto.
Nothing I can talk about, at least.
My best friend’s husband is about to become the king of Las Vegas. Head of the Morandi crime family. The content I could do on them… that would take my podcast to another level. But they’re totally off limits. Like,my-body-in-a-gutteroff limits.
“Maybe there’s a way around that, now that Massimo is in charge,” I say, taking one last pull from my vape before turning off the lights and laying my head on my pillow.
There has to be.
I arrive in Las Vegas with a plan and execute it flawlessly. Two days of counting cards to cushion myself and let the dustsettle from Salvatore Morandi’s retirement. Now I’m trying to convince Lea to let me ask Massimo for my personal favor.
“Sarah, now isn’t the time,” Lea groans, putting her hand on her baby bump. “He’s really busy with everything. Salvatore didn’t want to put his retirement off any longer because he knew it would be a lot more difficult for Massimo to take over after the baby comes.”
“I get that, but I can’t live off casino money forever,” I sigh. “My mom is pressuring me to get arealjob—or go back to school. I’m already working at the restaurant, on top of trying to keep my podcast afloat, but if I don’t get content…”
“The Morandi family is off limits, Sarah,” Lea says firmly. “Massimo likes you. He really does. But if you start talking about things you shouldn’t, you’ll get your throat cut. Or sold to some weirdo in a foreign country.”
“Massimo doesn’t kill women,” I say. “And he doesn’t sell them, either. He told you that when he caught you recording him. Right before he took you prisoner.”
“So, you’d rather be a prisoner?” Lea asks. “And Massimo makes exceptions. Trust me. He has his code, but protecting the Morandi family is his top priority… next to me and the baby.”
“If he says no, I promise I won’t push the issue,” I plead. “I just need to see him. Please, Lea. This may be my only chance. I’ve got an idea that will help my podcast, and it doesn’t involve the Morandi family—well, not directly.”
I look at her, silently conveying how desperate I am. Lea looks conflicted. I get it. She’s torn between two worlds now. But I see her resolve breaking, even before she agrees.
“Okay,” Lea relents, grabbing my arm. “He’s in his office.”
I feel a tremble of nervousness as Lea leads me down the hallway to Massimo’s office. We’re at the casino, but guests never see this part. I spot several guys from my Mafia true crime wall. Some of them nod to me. Others just glare.
“I’m going to get a hard spanking for this, Sarah, and if you piss him off, it’s going to be a lot worse,” Lea whimpers, then she shoves me into Massimo’s office and closes the door.
