“Ari.” Rem’s voice holds a wealth of warning.
“You haven’t told her, have you?”
I look between the brothers. “Told me what?”
Rem looks down at me, pulling me even closer. “I’ve told you what I could about that night, Lena. As much as I could and still keep you safe.”
“But safe from who, Rem?” Ari points the spoon at his brother, but his eyes are fixed on me. “Did you know, little sis, that prior to that night, Rem—mymaestro di giornata, my fixer—had been tracking you for months?”
“What?”
“Lena—” Rem starts but Ari cuts him off.
“Our uncle gave us specific orders about you. Orders that never,everincluded the two of you getting hitched. Quite the opposite, in fact.”
I look up at Rem. “What is he talking about?”
Rem’s expression twists in agitation. He touches my cheek. I can feel him shaking. “I was never going to hurt you, Lena. I promise you.Promiseyou.” Urgency weighs the words. “I will never hurt you. I’d rather die than do anything to harm you. You know that.” Rem presses his forehead to mine, like he’s trying to imprint his truth on me. “Please,oddio, tell me you know that.”
I’m shaking now, too. Ari keeps talking, driving his verbal knife deeper. “You still aren’t telling her the truth, brother.”
“For fuck’s sake, Ari,” Rem roars, crushing me to his chest like it will stop me from hearing. “Shut the fuck up!”
Ari takes another step toward us, caging us in. “Our uncle’s orders were never tohurtyou, little sis. They were to kill you. And guess which of us was ordered to do it?”
30
REM
I’m going to murder my brother. I know he’s pissed about my marriage to Lena. From his perspective, not only have I fucked everything up, but I’ve also done the unthinkable. I ignored direct orders.
From my uncle. From my brother.
That’s a killing offense. By all accounts, my corpse should be frozen at the bottom of Lake Michigan. By old-school 'Ndrangheta rules, not even my relationship with Aldo would be enough to keep me alive right now.
I’ve broken the Family code and I’m going to have to face the consequences when my uncle returns tomorrow.
But what’s even worse, my lack of honesty with Lena has threatened to damage the real relationship developing between us.
I was just doing it to keep her safe. I’ve barely completed the thought before I know deep down, I’m wrong.
I didn’t tell her the truth because I am a coward. Because I didn’t want to her to fear me. To hate me.
To leave me.
I’m holding Lena tight, her body tucked against mine, yet Ican feel the distance growing between us with every second that passes.
“Lena.” I cup her jaw, grinding my teeth when I feel how clammy her skin is. “Lena, look at me.”
She doesn’t. Her attention stays glued to my brother. “What did you say?”
“You heard me,sorellina.” Ari’s anger is audible. “The reason my brother was in your apartment that night was because he was hunting you?—”
“Investigating,” I correct. “I was investigating the evidence Ari and Aldo had against you, making sure it was true before…”
“Before?” Lena looks up at me, eyes wide. “Before what, Rem?”
“Yeah, Rem,” Ari mocks. “Before what?”
