Page 55 of King of War

“Who, Rayne? Who sent you the message telling you that Ethan had information for me?”

I consider not opening this can of worms, but he already knows I would never have believed a stranger. “You won’t believe me.”

He takes a breath, his dark eyes holding mine. “I will believe you, I swear. Who was it, Rayne?”

“Rafael.”

Chapter

Twenty-Seven

RAYNE – 6 YEARS AGO

Iadjust the lens of my camera, bringing it into sharper focus and making sure I capture the contrast of the black-and-yellow bee against the bright-purple petals. Purple is a color favored by bees, which is why I plant of lot of purple blooms. I love to watch them hop from flower to flower in the garden, their tiny bellies full of nectar. If Enzo were here, he would admonish me for getting too close to them, then probably carry me inside and punish me for my recklessness. The thought makes heat coil deep in my belly. Enzo’s punishments are never actually that, and they are always a whole lot of fun. Sometimes I think he makes up rules for me to break just so he has an excuse to spank me. Not that I ever object to a spanking. His bee objection isn’t unwarranted though. I’m deathly allergic, but I’ve only been stung once in my whole life, when I was thirteen, by a hornet. And I have my epi-pen in my pocket.

He also doesn’t get that bees are gentle little creatures, only stinging when they feel under threat. I much prefer bees to people most of the time. Except for Enzo, of course, who is by far my favorite person in the entire universe. I could spend every waking moment with him and still not get enough. He went to L.A. this morning, and I already miss him.

My cell vibrates in my pocket and I pull it out, hoping it’s him. I see a message from one of his brothers on my screen instead.

Hey Wildcard. Enzo needs you to do him a solid. Ethan Fiorelli is on his way over. He has some vital info on this job we’re on. Let him in and get it from him, yeah?

I type back my reply.

Is Enzo okay? What information?

I dunno yet. That’s why I’m asking you to get it. Enzo is tied up right now. But he’s good. Said he loves you and all that shit (vomit emoji)

I feel a little uneasy about letting Ethan into the house. I’ve only met him a handful of times, and he gives me the creeps. Even his brother Tommy doesn’t like him all that much.

Isn’t Tommy around? Can’t he get this information from Ethan?

Tommy is on a different job. It won’t take long. Just have him tell you what he knows. Enzo says there’s five hundred dollars in the dresser. Give him that.

I swallow down my unease. If Ethan has information that Enzo needs, then the least I can do is get it for him. Enzo would never put me in danger, and nor would any of his brothers. Besides, Papa Medici is somewhere around this vast house. While he and I have never exactly seen eye to eye, it makes me feel safer having him here.

The doorbell rings and I go to answer it. The Medicis have a housekeeper, Phillipa, but it’s her day off today. Sure enough, Ethan is standing outside. Looks wise, he and Tommy are so alike they could almost pass for twins. But that’s where the similarities end. Ethan has the morals of a snake. He left home at seventeen, taking every cent their mother left them when she died and leaving a fourteen-year-old Tommy to fend for himself. I know Tommy tolerates him because he’s his brother, but they don’t have a close bond.

Ethan shuffles from one foot to the other, eyes darting left and right. “Can I come in then?” he snaps.

I don’t care how big and mean he looks, he’s not going to push me around. “Do you have some information for Enzo?”

“Yes, but I’m not about to give it to you here on the street,” he snarls.

I wouldn’t exactly call the driveway of a gated mansion on the street, but Rafael did tell me to let him in. I open the door and invite him inside. “I was told I’d be paid for this,” he says, his voice still carrying that dangerous edge. “I want to see the money first.”

Of course he does. “If you wait here, I’ll go get it for you.”

He nods, eyes still wandering, like he’s worried someone is going to leap out of the shadows and jump scare him. I head to the east wing of the house, where Enzo and I share an annex, and straight to our bedroom, where he keeps some spare cash. I count out five hundred dollars from the top dresser drawer, but when I spin around I almost shriek with fright. Ethan is standing in the doorway, filling it with his threatening bulk.

“What are you doing here? I asked you to wait in the entryway.”

He steps fully into the room and closes the door behind him with a soft click.

Such a small sound. So final.

My heart’s no longer beating a steady rhythm in my chest. It stutters instead, sharp and uneven, as my gaze flicks to the door behind him and calculates the distance I’ll never make. My mouth goes dry. Every instinct screams at me to move, to put space between us, but fear roots my feet to the floor.

He stalks across the bedroom, his long strides quickly eating up the space between us, and with every step he takes, the room seems to get smaller around me.