Dammit.
“Hang on,” Bella picks up a photo taken of the man’s body from the side, and points to a tiny smear of ink on the man’s neck, just under his curly hair. “What is that?”
The tattoo is cleverly hidden under the curls. From this angle, it almost looks like four tiny dots. But when I hold it up closer, I recognize the unmistakable forked tongue and crossed keys.
“That’s a D’Ambrosio Family tattoo,” I whisper as I glance at Bella. “Good catch.”
“That would explain the intrusion attempts across all the schools in Europe,” Bella says quickly. “That must’ve been theD’Ambrosio Family looking for Alessandro. They had a name, but didn’t have a location.”
“But how?” The word is cold on my lips. “How could they have found out his name in the first place?”
Neither Lavoisier nor Bella responds.
Another layer of rage is laid upon the rest. There’s only one possible answer. Someone betrayed me. Someone who knows about my son’s existence. And whoever that someone is, he gave it to the D’Ambrosios.
My hand opens and closes, and my heart is filled with the urge to fucking kill something.
“Do you require any additional information, Slava Danilovich?”
My eyes snap towards him, and I feel Bella’s hand give my fingers a quick squeeze.
“No.” My voice is quiet. “We’re done here.”
He blinks. “You are, yes, but I am not. The school?—”
“He said he was done,” Bella speaks up now, her voice sharp and hard. “And you should consider yourself lucky thatIdon’t act on behalf of my employer, and inform the world about the lackadaisical way your school approaches the security of your students.”
Lavoisier’s nostrils flare. “The security breach was contained, and the attacker?—”
Bella suddenly stands up, hands balled into fists by her side, and her entire body is shaking. “Wouldn’t have ever gotten in if you followed the barest of cybersecurity protocols!”
“Mais tu te prends pour qui, putain?” Lavoisier swears. “I will not have our reputation sullied by?—”
“Careful, Monsieur Lavoisier.” Bella holds her hand up to stop him. “Your school is already on the verge of one terrible scandal. I would hate for you to find yourself in a position where that scandal is about to be blown wide open for the world.”
“What is the meaning of this, Slava Danilovich?” Lavoisier looks at me. “I thought she was here to help us resolve this problem.”
“I don’t work for you,” Bella says coldly. “Nor for your school.”
“Then in that case, we will have no choice but to expel Alessandro on the grounds of unmitigable security risks. For the safety of our other students.”
“The safety of your other students?” Bella leans forward, baring her teeth. “A woman has been critically injured on your grounds by a member of the Mafia, a student’s life was put in danger.”
Lavoisier glares at her, but he doesn’t say anything back.
“What’s taken you centuries to build,” Bella snarls. “I can erase in seconds.”
Savage pride pours into my blood, and rushes straight towards my dick. For the first time since Don Leo’s yacht, I’m seeing a glimpse of the Bella that I knew and want. The uncowed, unbent, and unbreakable woman with fire in her heart and acid on her tongue.
I glance back at Lavoisier, and his lips are drawn in a single smooth line as he weighs his options. His eyes search mine, then Bella’s, and when he sees that neither of us are willing to back down, he sighs.
“Perhaps I misspoke,” he finally says. “We are all simply concerned for Alessandro’s well-being. Please, do let me know if there is any additional information that you may require. I’ll be happy to provide it.”
“Thank you, Monsieur Lavoisier,” I say. “But like I already told you, we’re done here.”
“Of course.” He stands up from his chair, glances at the folder of photos on my desk as if he wants to take them back, and then thinks better of it. “We’ll make adjustments to our security and I will inform you when it is safe for Alessandro to return to school grounds.”
Then, he leaves, and closes the door softly behind him.
