Max lays on the horn and cuts off a bunch of the pedestrians trying to cross the street.
“Calm down!” I scream. “You’re going to get us killed trying to save us when we didn’t need to be saved in the first place.”
“Seriously, Max,” Bianca says. “I know we screwed up, but chill.”
He grips the steering wheel tighter, and a thick silence fills the car for a couple of blocks, then he sighs. “Don’t… tell anyone that I told you both this, but we got some intel this afternoon, after you both wandered off. Marco may be plotting to kill Grandpa.”
“What?” Bianca snaps.
“Then why are we even going to meet these people?” I ask.
Max makes eye-contact with me in the mirror. “These things are complicated. If we blow them off, or show uplate.” He points at the clock in the car. “We could risk pissing him off even more. And besides, we don’t know if we can fully trust our source or not. He’s not one of our guys, one of Ferrara’s looking for quick cash and is likely fleeing to another country as we speak.”
Max was supposed to marry Elena, Marco Ferrara’s daughter, but was already in love with Hailey while these plans were in motion. Hailey is the daughter of a cult leader, who kidnapped and imprisoned her after she escaped. Max had an impossible choice to make—betray our family and save her or leave her to rot and marry Elena. And while I love Hailey and agree with what he did whole-heartily. We are in a fucking mess because of it.
I glance at the clock. “So, we’re going straight to Marco’s and hoping we don’t die?”
“Yup.”
“What time are we supposed to be there?”
“An hour ago.”
“And why didn’t he tell us the plans sooner?”
Max shrugs. “He’s a lunatic.”
Marco’s a lunatic.I swear this information was concealed from me when this marriage was initially proposed, but ever since we arrived in Italy, all I ever hear is—Marco’s nuts, a sadistic bastard, certifiably insane. At least they aren’t talking poorly about Alessandro, but still, this guy is going to be my father-in-law.
Hailey nervously picks at her cuticles in the front seat until Max puts his hand on her leg, calming her.
I turn to Bianca. “Do my hair and makeup look okay?”
Before Bianca can answer, Hailey looks back and hands me her purse. “Take anything you need.”
“Thank you,” I sigh.
I comb through her purse and help myself to a hairbrush, mascara, lip gloss, and perfume. I don’t think Hailey is the typeto carry around all of this normally, so she must have been thinking ahead for my sake.
The rest of the ride is quiet until we’re on the outskirts of the city.
Max pulls onto a tight dirt road. There’s a sign posted I really don’t like, and I’m the only one in the car that speaks Italian, so everyone else is blissfully unaware.
“Hey, Max?”
“Yeah?”
“That, uh, sign says: Keep out. Any intruder will be shot and killed on sight.”
“Sounds pretty on-brand for these people. I mean, we’re technically invited, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we’re shot and killed on sight.”
A nervous silence fills the car.
“We’re fine,” Max adds. “For now. This car is bulletproof, so if they want to try something, I’ll simply turn around and drive directly to the airport.”
“What if they wait for us to get out of the car?” Hailey asks.
“We’re armed.” Max’s brow is knit with worry, and I wish we’d just turn around now. But he’s right; not showing up could make things even worse, especially considering that the rest of our family is already here.
