We’re five minutes away from the office building where I’m meeting with Sangrioti when my phone starts to vibrate.
Pulling the device out of the breast pocket of my jacket, I frown when I see Aunt Gloria’s name flashing on the screen.
“Zia Gloria?” I answer.
She weeps uncontrollably, and it sends icy shivers down my spine. “He’s dead,” she gasps. “She killed him!”
“What?” I pat Big Ricky’s shoulder, then order, “Turn around. We’re going back to the villa!” Focusing on my hysterical aunt, I snap, “Who’s dead?”
“Your uncle. That snake you brought into our home killed him.”
What the fuck?
A dark frown forms on my forehead as all my emotions spiral into chaos. “Uncle Maurizio is dead?”
“Y-yes,” she sobs. “Vittoria pushed him off the balcony.”
No, she didn’t. She wouldn’t.
“What. The. Fuck?” I growl before I shout, “Drive fucking faster!”
I’m torn between the shock of Uncle Maurizio’s death and my aunt blaming Vittoria for it.
Aunt Gloria weeps uncontrollably, and it has me biting out, “No one does a single fucking thing until I’m there.”
I end the call and almost crush the device as the shock of my uncle’s death hits me square in the chest.
“What happened?” Big Ricky asks, his worried eyes flicking between the road and the rearview mirror.
“Aunt Gloria says Vittoria killed Uncle Maurizio,” I say, unable to believe that Vittoria could do such a thing.
Not my wife.
Not my innocent little deer.
My mind races, and I can only come to one conclusion – Uncle Maurizio must’ve tried to get rid of her because he wasn’t happy with the marriage. Vittoria defended herself.
That’s the only acceptable explanation because if there’s one thing I’m fucking sure of, Vittoria is a God-fearing woman who wouldn’t hurt a fucking fly.
The woman I love isn’t capable of committing murder.
Never.
I refuse to believe it.
The moment Big Ricky stops the SUV in front of the Villa, I climb out and run into the house that used to hold so many happy memories for me.
Aunt Gloria is in the middle of the living room, weeping as she clings to Uncle Maurizio’s body.
I take in his ghostly pale face and the trickle of blood that’s dried on the side of his slightly parted lips.
Fuck.
No.
When the loss of my uncle registers, I shake my head as my heart breaks.
No.
I take a step closer, and losing control of my emotions, I shout, “What the fuck happened?”
Aunt Gloria glares at me, and with rage, she cries, “She killed him!” A sob rattles through her. “She killed my Maurizio.”
No. Impossible.
“What did you do to Vittoria?” I demand, my voice cold and lifeless.
My tone gets Aunt Gloria’s attention, and she begins to ramble, “She wanted to run away and leave you, but when Maurizio locked her in the room so she couldn’t get away, she shoved him over the balcony.”
Vittoria, leave me? Never.
I shake my head. “Don’t fucking lie to me.”
As I stare at the woman who was like a mother to me, I see the truth she’s trying to hide, and my entire world is ripped to fucking shreds.
The sense of betrayal is instant, ripping the humanity from my soul.
“It’s the truth,” she shouts, but as she looks at me, the emotion drains from her face as she realizes I don’t believe her lies.
Her voice shakes with anger as she says, “You were supposed to marry Valentina and not some pathetic little girl. Everything was planned, and you ruined it all.”
She moves fast, grabbing the gun from behind Uncle Maurizio’s back, but Big Ricky fires a shot before she can point the weapon at me.
That did not just fucking happen!
I take a step back as another blow of betrayal slams into me.
No.
Uncontrollable anger floods my chest as I watch my aunt slump over my uncle’s body.
The breaths rasp over my lips, and I drop to my knees from the force of destructive emotions reaping chaos in my chest.
I trusted them.
“Find Vittoria Rizzo!” Big Ricky shouts the order to the guards. “Seach every part of this fucking island and bring her back unharmed. If anyone lays a hand on the boss’ wife, I’ll fucking kill you myself.”
Uncle Maurizio and Aunt Gloria fucking betrayed me.
Vittoria. My angel.
I gasp through the unbearable heartbreak and deceit that’s darkened my world to black.
“Boss.” I feel Big Ricky’s hand on my shoulder. He crouches beside me. “Angelo!”
My eyes snap to his.
“We have to find Vittoria.”
He’s right.
I climb to my feet and shake my head in an attempt to regain my composure. “How did she get away from the villa?”
Big Ricky pulls out his phone and makes a call. I listen as he orders, “Ask the guards how Vittoria escaped the villa.”
My eyes lock on the man who’s used his body to shield mine, who’s killed to keep me safe, who’s been there every step of the way.
He sees me staring at him and gripping my shoulder, he squeezes it.
He’s my common sense right now. He’s taken control of the situation because he knows I need a moment to process the cluster fuck of a nightmare.
Suddenly, he ends the call. “Tori took one of the cars. Maurizio instructed them to let her leave.” He looks up at me, then says, “We’ll find her.”
It takes another minute for me to regain control of my emotions, and shoving the shock to the back of my mind, I think clearly for the first time since shit went down.
I yank my phone from the breast pocket of my jacket and quickly dial Vittoria’s number.
The first attempt goes to voicemail, and I hang up and try again.
Finally, she fucking answers. “I-I’m so s-sorry,” she sobs.
“Where are you?” I demand, my tone hoarse from the blow I’ve suffered.
“I-I’m s-sorry. F-forgive m-me.”
“Where the fuck are you, Vittoria?” I shout.
The call ends, and I let out a frustrated growl.
The tracking device.
I had a tracking device placed in both our wedding rings so Tiny and Big Ricky could find us in case shit ever went sideways.
Thank fucking God.
I quickly log into the app, and a second later, the red dot shows clearly on a map.
“Fuck!” Big Ricky exclaims. “I forgot about the tracking devices. Where is she?” He steps closer to take a look at the phone screen.
The signal shows she’s at the airport.
“Let’s go,” I growl, and without giving my uncle and aunt’s bodies another glance, I stalk out of the villa.
Ignoring the backseat, I climb into the passenger side while Big Ricky slides behind the steering wheel.
As he speeds away from the villa, I shake my head. “What the fuck were they thinking? That I’d believe some bullshit story of Vittoria leaving me?”
“People do desperate things in desperate times,” Big Ricky mutters.
They were fucking stupid. I told Uncle Maurizio I love Vittoria, and still, he tried to get rid of her.
Thank God he didn’t kill her.
My innocent little deer.
The love of my fucking life.
“I can’t believe it,” I murmur as the shock hits once again. “Vittoria must be scared out of her fucking mind.”
“We’ll find her,” he assures me.
Jesus fucking Christ.
A breath shudders from me, and I struggle to accept that my family betrayed me. They tried to get rid of Vittoria.
I just need to fucking hold my wife again.
Fuck, she must be so fucking traumatized!
Christ, baby. I’m fucking sorry.
