I turned page after page, reaching for another diary each time I finished one.
Until one stopped me cold.
My breath caught as I stopped on a page, certain I was dreaming, as I stared at a photo of my mother.
Forty-One
Enzo
“The girl isout of the mansion?” Benny asked before I even shut the door to his office in Seven Seconds.
I’d just come from the hospital after seeing my father. He was recovering well, better than the doctors expected, but that didn’t mean he was behaving like someone who’d just survived being shot.
The first thing he said when I walked into his room was that he wanted out of that fucking hospital because he had motherfuckers to kill.
I instructed him to relax, to which he glared at me like I’d said we were sticking him in a nursing home after this.
I’d told him we had it handled, but honestly, we didn’t.
We still didn’t know who the hell had shot him.
And that pissed me off more than anything.
Inside the office, Nico, Cedric, and Cassian were spread out, performing their designated jobs.
Cedric stood in front of the wall of monitors, watching security feeds. Cassian was on the couch, one ankle crossed over his knee, ending a call on his phone.
Nico was on his laptop, fingers flying over the keyboard as he remained focused, squinting at the screen. I could tellhe was on a digital trail because he always made that same face.
Benny sat behind his massive desk in the center of the room.
“Yes.” I gave him a dirty look.
I shoved my key fob into my pocket as I crossed the room.
Benny dropped his phone and leaned back in the leather chair. “You think I’m being a dick about her.”
“I do,” I answered.
Nico glanced up from his screen. “Dad doesn’t get the whole Fawn thing.”
“No, Iget it,” Benny corrected, waving his hand dismissively. “It’s similar to arranged marriages. You’re paired with someone. They serve a purpose, but in yourFawncase, you can cut them off whenever you want. That’s what I find dangerous.” He slowly shook his head. “Once someone knows your secrets, you make damn sure they’re tied to you for life. You don’t give them the opportunity to think they can turn on you.”
I lifted my coffee cup, taking a slow sip before answering, “Just because someone isn’t temporary doesn’t mean they give you blind loyalty.” I pointed the cup toward him. “Remember Dad’s consigliere?—”
“That son of a bitch, Rocky,” Benny snapped immediately, tension clear on his face. Old anger carved deep into his features when he snarled.
Not that I blamed him.
I’d never met Rocky, but I knew what he’d done.
Years ago, before I was born, Rocky helped my mother’s ex kidnap her. That betrayal had almost destroyed my father.
“He wasn’t temporary,” I said to Benny. “How long did his family work for ours?”
“Generations,” Benny snarled.
“Yet he still betrayed us.”
