I stared through the tinted window as my home grew smaller with every passing second. Every mile carried me farther away from safety and the life I'd built and closer to my enemy, Rome Cattaneo, and whatever he had planned for me.
What the hell did he have planned for me?
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
BLOSSOM
––––––––
The ride was painfully quiet. The only sounds inside the SUV were the hum of the engine and the occasional crunch of tires rolling over loose gravel whenever the driver drifted too close to the shoulder.
I folded my arms across my chest and stared out the passenger-side window, trying to memorize our route and taking note of landmarks. If I ended up needing to escape later, I’d need some idea of where I was.
As the driver merged onto the highway, something bumped my side. I looked to my left and noticed a black box resting on the seat next to me. A thick red ribbon had been wrapped neatly around it. I frowned.
"What's in the box?" I asked the driver.
"It's a gift for you from Mr. Cattaneo," the driver answered without taking his eyes off the road.
A gift? For me? My gaze narrowed on the box. I leaned closer to it, listening for any ticking sounds. I didn’t hear any.
"What’s in it?" I asked, still eyeing it suspiciously.
"It's your attire for tonight."
My attire?
"But I'm already dressed."
"Mr. Cattaneo would like you to change clothes before meeting him."
This motherfucker!
"And if I refuse?"
The driver finally looked at me through the rearview mirror.
"I don't recommend that, Ms. Brooks."
If I kept biting my tongue, I was going to bite the motherfucker off. I looked back down at the box and reached for it.
"Mr. Cattaneo said not to open the gift until you reach the beach house."
My hand stopped inches above the ribbon.Beach house?Under normal circumstances, I would've loved to go to Rome's beach house. Not tonight. Not when I knew his intentions weren’t romantic or spicy.
Oh, no.Was he planning to put me in cement boots and dump me into the Gulf? Mafia families didn't really do stuff like that... right? That was only in the movies. I hoped. Pulling my hand back into my lap, I turned my attention to the window again.
Every few seconds, I mentally noted another street sign. Another intersection. Another business. Another gas station. Anything that might help me find my way back if I needed to. The longer we drove, the fewer buildings and landmarks I saw.
My frown deepened. Where the hell were we going? I glanced at the back of the driver’s head, wondering if I should just choke him out, escape, and then prepare my team to go up against the Cattaneos.
The thought lasted all of three seconds before my mom's face flashed through my mind. Then Kelly's. If I escaped now, Rome wouldn't stop with me. He'd go after the people I loved. I had to at least try to resolve this diplomatically.
Not because I trusted Rome. Not because I feared the Cattaneos. But because I wanted to do whatever I could to keep everyone safe. So, for now, I could only go with the flow. Sighing, I rested my head against the seat cushion.
Outside, the city slowly disappeared behind us. The streetlights vanished. Then the neighboring houses. Soon, the only illumination came from the moon hanging low over the Gulf and the narrow beams of the SUV's headlights carving through the darkness.
I perked up when the driver turned off the main road and onto a dirt road leading to an area I’d never ventured into before. The dirt road carried us further and further away from the main road.
