Veda gave me a serious look, and I thought she’d try again to talk me out of it, but in the end, she only said quietly, “Be careful. And good luck. I’m going to be in the library for a bit working on a project for school and then I’ll be in my room. The door will be closed, and I’ll be watching something on TV.”
“Thank you,” I told her. “For everything.” Leaving her in the kitchen, I made my way across the great room to the stairs. I didn’t hurry. As a matter of fact, I made it a point to seem only as nervous as anyone would be as the new guest of the mafia underboss who was left to their own devices. I knew there were cameras throughout the house. Luca would be stupid not to have surveillance both outside and inside his home, and that man was definitely not stupid. However, they were hidden well. I’d only been able to locate a few of them—one in the kitchen while Veda and I ate, one in the hall outside my room, and one near the front door. As far as I knew, there weren’t any in the bedrooms or bathrooms. So I had that going for me at least.
What I didn’t know was how I was going to manage to sneak out with a suitcase. The answer was actually simple. I wasn’t.
I didn’t have any money, either. But what I did have was Enzo’s watch that I’d tucked beneath my pillow earlier during our sex-filled afternoon. I wasn’t an expert on watches, but it was a Rolex, so it had to be worth something. And judging by the tags on his suits and overall quality of everything he wore, it had to be worth a decent amount of money. Enough to get me the hell out of here. I’d worry about everything else once I was free of the threat of my father.
Six hours later, I sat on the edge of the bed in the bedroom. I’d added a thicker, long-sleeved fleece over my T-shirt and put sneakers on my feet. Enzo’s watch was on my arm, and my coat was lying beside me on the mattress. I wasn’t taking anything else. If I got caught trying to get off the property, I had a better chance of making the guards believe I had insomnia and got bored just being in the house if I didn’t have a bag of clothes with me. They’d believe me. After all, I was just a woman. And every man knew women were ridiculous enough to do something like wander around outside at night by themselves without thinking they could be in danger.
Or, better yet, I could tell them I was looking for Enzo. That we’d had a fight or something. A few tears and it was guaranteed every man there would be too uncomfortable to question me farther.
Also, I didn’t want anything on me that could identify me as the runaway daughter of Ciro Cordaro. My driver’s license was staying here along with anything else that could tell people who I am. When I got to where I was going, I’d make up a name and a story and only work jobs that paid me under the table.
It would work.
So, why was I still sitting here?
Veda had come upstairs hours ago. I’d heard her door shut. The house was quiet. I had no idea when Enzo, Luca, and Tristan would get back, or how many guards remained outside, but it didn’t matter. If I was very careful, I could get past them.
Taking a deep breath, I stood up and pulled on my coat. It had a hood that I’d use to cover my bright hair once I got outside. I glanced around the room one more time, blinking back the tears that were gathering in my eyes. Stupid, traitorous tears that dreamed of things that couldn’t come true. Wiping them away with the back of my hands, I used the bathroom one last time and then I strode across the room and opened the bedroom door.
As quietly as I could, I made my way downstairs and out the patio doors. A cold, misty wind blew up around me as though the night itself was trying to tell me to turn back. But I couldn’t. Not now.
The pool was lit with softly glowing lights that lit my way across the deck. To the right, a set of stairs disappeared into the dark. Stepping carefully as I lost the light from the pool, I made my way down into the darkness.
CHAPTER15
Serafina
My eyes adjusted quickly to the dark, which was good, because the stairs were slick with the light drizzle of rain that was falling. When I reached the bottom, I found a latched gate and threw up a quick prayer that it wasn’t padlocked because I really didn’t want to have to try to climb over it.
Luckily, it opened easily. I closed it again as quietly as I could, just in case someone was lurking around, so nothing would look out of place. Then pulled up the hood of my coat over my hair, which I’d pulled back into two braids to avoid any strands slipping out and giving me away. Something rustled in the brush to my left and I froze. But whatever it was, it must’ve run away.
I knew my escape was being caught on Luca’s security cameras, but I was banking on the fact that by the time someone noticed I was gone, the only thing they’d see is me walking off the property. I planned to head one direction and then double back to try to throw them off as to which direction I’d gone.
I looked up, squinting my eyes against the drizzly rain. Luca’s house clung to the edge of the rock formation that rose a good thirty or forty feet above me. From where I stood, the ground sloped steeply down to the lake. If I slipped, I could only hope that I could catch myself on one of the scraggly trees before I slid all the way down.
I thought about that for a second. Maybe escape by water would be the way to go. I seriously doubted there were any guards patrolling the side of a hill like that. But then I dismissed the idea. It was too cold, and I didn’t have any dry clothes. I’d stick to my original plan and hope for the best.
Carefully, I followed the narrow trail of even ground that hugged the bottom of the outcropping of rock Luca’s house was built on. My plan was to find the driveway at the front of the house and then follow it out to the gate while staying under the cover of the trees that covered the property. That way, if I saw anyone, I could easily step out onto the drive and use whatever excuse for being there I thought would work best. If I was found too far from the drive, it would be way too obvious that I was trying to sneak out. Plus, I didn’t know how much land Luca owned, but I would bet my life that the perimeter was protected by a wall and guards.
By the time I saw the lights from the front of the house and the paved drive, my thighs were burning from slipping and sliding on the wet ground as I climbed up the hill. Outside the circle of light, I stopped by a tree for a few seconds and caught my breath. All three of the SUVs were gone, but I made myself wait, listening for guards. When I didn’t hear anything, I pushed away from the tree and started following the drive away from the house. I kept my hands in my pocket and my head down, hoping my dark hoodie and jeans would keep me hidden in the dark. As I walked, I scanned the area around me as discreetly as I could.
My heart was beating so hard now I could barely hear anything around me as I blinked the moisture out of my eyes. I wished I’d checked the weather before I left, but then thought it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. Tonight was my only chance, and I had to take it. If the skies decided to open up and drench me in a typical Texas rainfall, then that’s just the way it was going to be. And maybe the rain was working to my favor. No one would expect anyone to be out and about in this shit.
I took a quick look to either side of me. So far, I hadn’t seen anyone patrolling the grounds. Had they all gone with Luca? That would be a stroke of luck I’d never expected, and would make my life so much easier. By the time they got back to the house, I’d be long gone.
Hopefully.
I was cold and damp, but after a few more minutes my nerves began to calm and I quickened my pace, not worrying so much about how much noise I was making. It didn’t seem like anyone was around to hear it. At least not until I got to the gate. Luca wouldn’t have left that unprotected. And I had no idea how I was going to get past them, but I’d figure it out when I got there.
It was really dark now where I was. No moon or anything to help light my way. But I wasn’t afraid of the dark. The dark kept me hidden. It kept me safe.
An ancient oak tree with a trunk wider than my body suddenly loomed in front of me and I corrected my direction to go around it. Only before I could, something hard and heavy slammed into me from behind.
My hands came out of my pockets and flew out in front of me to try to catch myself before I hit the wet bark, but I wasn’t in time. The air rushed out of me in a whoosh! as I hit the tree, turning my head just in time to avoid smashing my nose. The side of my face scraped along the bark, and I hissed in pain.
A man’s large hand was plastered to the tree right beside my face, the knuckles wrapped in white bandages. A dark stain seeped through the cotton. Blood, I would imagine. A hard body pressed into my back, and I could feel his cock stiffening against my ass. A gravelly voice in my ear raised the hair on the back of my neck.
