“Yes, it’s on my to-do list. But…” Stone hedged.
“Spit it out.” I knew what he was going to say.
“It would have been easy to switch out one of the garnishes on the drive from the bakery to the office.”
“I know.”
“Vanetti, who served you the specific zeppole—”
“Julia, but it was the one that Serenity touched that triggered her vision.”
“Maybe she’s more involved than you—”
“She was going to eat one, too.”
“She could have been pretending to eat one.”
“It can’t be her. Keep investigating.” I slammed down the receiver, anger and frustration curdling my stomach.
My interactions with Julia ran cold throughout the rest of the day. I hated not trusting her, but Stone had made his point. If the poison wasn’t introduced at the bakery, then there was only one way it got there. Julia.
Her face flashed through my mind and my chest constricted. I didn't want her to be guilty. More than that—I needed her to be innocent. The desperation in that need told me I'd already crossed a line I shouldn't have. These feelings weren't just serious. They were dangerous.
A knock sounded at the door and Julia stuck her head into the room. “You okay?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Do you need anything before I leave for the day?”
“No.” I didn’t meet her gaze, instead I picked up the office phone, as if I had a call to make. “I’ll see you Monday.”
“What about our dinner tonight?”
“Oh…” I shook my head. “Something’s come up.” I tried to smile. “Raincheck?”
Pain flashed in her eyes before she glanced away. “Sure. See you Monday.”
As she shut the door, the room felt hollow. Cold. Like she'd taken all the warmth and air with her, leaving nothing but emptiness behind.
Chapter 18
Julia
Iarrived in New York at two in the morning.
Carlo had called a family meeting after I’d updated him on the day’s events. Apparently, a third party was aiming to take out Quentin Vanetti. This meant our family had an unknown enemy. Unknown enemies were doubly problematic, since not only were you blind to who was attacking you, but their strength and their numbers were also hidden.
Whoever was working against us wanted Vanetti's territories for themselves. Taking Quentin out before I finished my intel gathering would give them the opening they needed.
Business would have to wait until I got a full night's sleep—and sleep could wait until I had a couple of slices of greasy thin-crust street pizza.
The limo driver’s baby face made him look like a kid playing grownup.
Before he shut the door behind me, I glanced over my shoulder. “You old enough to drive?”
“Ha-ha. Real fresh material. You write that one yourself?”
“Attitude like that and you’re going to be looking for a new job.” I knew I was tired and cranky, but nevertheless, I wasn’tin the mood to take crap from the limo driver, even if he was probably one of my distant cousins.
