Page 340 of Valentino

“Lets. Go,” I call.

He reappears, his face fallen. “What did you do?” he whispers.

“What I had to do.” My eyes hold his. “Because I was the only person who could have done it.”

His eyes search mine.

“Get me out of here,” I whisper. “Take me home.”

He drops his gun and drags his hands through his hair. “I thought you….”

“I know what you thought.” I cut him off. “And fuck you for thinking that.”

He stands for a moment, his hands in his hair, staring at the wall.

Processing….

“Are you sure he’s….” I whisper.

“Yes.”

“You’re one hundred percent certain?”

“Yes.”

My asking the question snaps him back to the moment and he picks up his gun. “Let’s go.” He looks around the apartment. “What have you touched?”

“One plate and I scrubbed it, it’s in the dishwasher.”

I search through my purse and hold a pair of gloves out toward him.

His eyes rise to meet mine. “You bought gloves?”

“Uh-huh, three pairs. Been carrying them around for weeks.”

He frowns. “Who the fuck even are you?”

I shrug, because honestly…who even knows at this point?

He puts a pair of gloves on, grabs a cloth and wipes down the front door handle, and slips Carlo’s phone into his pocket. He then pours out some liquor into a glass and sloshes some onto the coffee table, he messes things up to make it appear like Carlo was on a bender.

He looks around the room. “One last thing.” He turns the television on and scrolls through to a porn channel and hits play. “That should do it.” He disappears into the bathroom again to do one last check. “It’s clear.” He puts his gun and the cloth into the band on his jeans. “Let’s go.” He holds out his hand to take my hand.

“Forget it,” I snap. “I’m not holding your hand. I’m angry with you, how could you actually think I would go back to him?” I huff. “Do you even know me at all?”

“As of right now,” Amusement flashes across his face as he gestures to the front door. “Apparently fucking not, Anna.”

I march past him, with the shower still going inside, and Carlo naked on the floor beneath it. He locks the door behind us and we walk in silence up the driveway, and once out onto the road I look around. “Where’s the car?”

“Down the road.”

We walk and walk, but thankfully nobody is around, not one car drives past.

“It’s in the parking lot.” He gestures over to the parking lot.

“That’s the car you brought? A black Ferrari, people notice this car from outer fucking space.” My eyes flick over to him. “You cannot be serious?”

“Don’t.” He shakes his head as he flicks the locks.