by Lexi Cross
“You shouldn’t assume you know anything about adult matters, little girl.”
Pia laughed. “You think I don’t know the inner workings of my father and his business? I’ve been watching and listening to him for years. I know a lot more than anyone likes to believe I know. More than my father thinks I know. And I can tell you this. I have friends and connections of my own. You think people won’t do things for the daughter of a mafia boss? They will.”
“What’s your point?” He started to look agitated. It was working. She just needed to push a little harder.
“Do you like being a doctor? I mean, you go to school for a lot of years to be one, don’t you? That can’t be cheap, and I wouldn’t imagine someone would do all that if it wasn’t something they loved. And you make your living as a doctor. So, if, say, one of my friends turned up with proof that you had done something unethical, which caused you to lose your license, that wouldn’t be a good thing for you, would it?”
He narrowed his eyes slightly. “That wouldn’t work. There is an entire board who has to decide to take someone’s license.”
“You do realize I have connections everywhere, right? And with a body like this, do you think it’s hard for me to get anyone to do what I want?”
Her bedroom door slammed opened behind her. Lu stood in the doorway, hands wrapped around a gun, pointed at her head. “Pia, what are you trying to pull? You know we can hear you, as well as see you, right?”
She shrugged. “You have kids. I’m sure you’d do anything to protect them if someone was threatening to kill them, wouldn’t you? This is the same thing. My father and this doctor want to kill my child. And I’m not going to let them.”
“Stop playing games. Take the pills,” Lu said.
“You’re going to shoot me if I don’t?”
“I’ll do whatever I have to,” Lu said.
She changed her tactic. There was no way she could trick the doctor or talk him into or out of anything if Lu was there with a gun. Time for the next plan.
“Lu,” she whimpered, acting like she was suddenly afraid. “You wouldn’t do that to me, would you? And to my baby? There are two lives you’d be ending.”
“Take the pills, Pia.”
She made herself start to cry. Wasn’t hard to do these days. But she had to seem like she was giving in. This wouldn’t work if they didn’t believe her. “Please, Lu.”
He stepped closer, unwavering in his aim.
“Okay,” she sobbed. “Okay, I’ll do it, just stop pointing that gun at me!”
Lu didn’t drop the gun until she stepped forward and took the pills from the doctor.
“I have to get water,” she said and walked into the bathroom.
They came with her, watching. She turned on the bathroom faucet, cupped one hand like she was going to take a drink of the water, and threw the pills into the toilet.
“You’ll have to kill me before you make me take those! I will not kill my baby!”
“You’re a foolish and stupid girl,” the doctor said.
“And if that’s how you want it, then I will kill you,” Lu said.
Lu lifted the gun again and Pia heard a gunshot. At first, she was confused. Had he shot his gun? She didn’t feel hurt. But when she looked at Lu, he was just as confused.
Another shot was fired and she dashed over to the window. The two guards who walked out there, back and forth across the property, now lay dead on the ground. Blood pooled around them. Each had a perfect hole in his head.
Her heart leapt with joy. Which was strange since she was looking at two dead bodies. But she knew why this had happened. This could mean only one thing. Ryder was here. No one else had reason to kill the guards, and certainly no one else was as good of a shot as he was. He had come for her. Finally.
A grin of deep joy and peace spread across her face. He hadn’t taken off, hadn’t left her. His plan had just taken longer than she thought. But he was here now. He had come and he would take her away from here. Away from her father and these people trying to kill the baby and maybe her. And best of all, she wouldn’t have to marry Paolo now. She could be with Ryder and no one else. They could have the family she’d been dreaming of. She wanted to dance on the clouds and shout for joy. He had come. At last.
She was about to turn from the window, to run out the door, which she noticed Lu had not locked when he came in, but she saw something. Ryder was coming over the fence. He looked injured. Dirty, bloody, covered in bruises. But he looked better than ever. A warm glow ran through her body at the sight of him. No matter what was going on, she wanted him. Her body cared little about the danger. It knew that seeing him meant safety and strength and, at some point, as soon as they were alone, pleasure. She thought of that moment, of kissing him, of feeling him inside her, and she wanted to jump from the window right there and then. She didn’t care who was around or who was watching. She needed him and she would have him.
He was running toward the mansion. If she went to him, maybe that would make things easier. Easier or not, she had to get to him. Had to see him and feel him close. She turned, and Lu was watching out the window, too, shocked. It was just enough to distract him and kept his attention—and his gun—off her.
She blew by him, out of the bathroom and into her bedroom. Lu called out, “Hey!” But she kept running.
The door was unlocked as she thought. She chuckled to herself as she tore the door open and jumped into the hall. They weren’t as smart as they thought they were. Lu should have locked her in with them.
Pia didn’t stop to see who was in the hall outside her room or how many of them there were. She bolted to the stairs. She held on the handrail for support so she wouldn’t trip. The last thing she needed as she was trying to escape and save her baby’s life was to fall down the stairs. That might accomplish exactly what her father wanted.
But her feet were surer than she thought, even in her speed. She didn’t trip. She didn’t even stumble. Her bare feet hit the cold marble floor of the entry way.
She looked up, expecting to see Ryder coming through the front door, but what she saw made her freeze and turned her blood to ice. Her father stood there, in front of the door. And right beside him was Paolo Solano.
“There she is,” Matteo said. “Your bride.”
Paolo leered at her. “Perfect. I like it when they’re all scruffy.”
“She cleans up real nice, I assure you,” Matteo said.
“That’s okay.” Paolo winked at her. “I like a dirty girl.”
“You’ll just have to excuse us while we take care of a little problem,” Matteo said calmly. “Seems our house is under attack. Don’t worry, my Pia. You’re safe as can be.”
Pia didn’t trust him for a second. The way he was talking and looking at her meant something was up. He knew Ryder was here, clearly. He’d probably already sent people to go after him. Was that why he hadn’t come in the house yet? Or maybe he wasn’t planning to go through the front door.
Her father opened his arms to her. “Come here to Daddy. Are you feeling better? Everything go okay with the doctor, I trust?”
“Everything went as planned,” she said. Everything went as she planned. She stepped toward her father warily. She didn’t trust him, but Paolo didn’t know about the baby. He’d never tell him something like that and risk him not wanting to marry her. Matteo still wanted to get rid of her badly. This was all an act. If it was just an act, then he probably wouldn’t do anything to her in front of Paolo, like hurt her or say anything mean. He’d want to keep up the act and make them seem like the perfect father and daughter. Maybe he’d even convince Paolo that he loved his daughter, that she wanted to marry him, even. Wouldn’t that be something. How good of a liar and con artist was he?
Her father grinned at her and it seemed like a genuine smile, but she knew better. She walked to him slowly and put her arms lightly around his waist in a limp hug. She didn’t want to be any closer to him than she had to be. He hugged her ba
ck, kissing her forehead like it was old times. She wanted to cry. For that moment, it felt so good. Like he was her father again who loved her. But she knew it wasn’t real. She remembered in vivid detail how he’d treated her and the names he’d called her and how he’d tried to have her baby—and her if she didn’t go along with it—killed. How many times over her life had he played that same game? Had he ever really, truly loved her?
And then, she thought, Ryder is going to make such a fabulous father. He wouldn’t be capable of playing games and lying like that. Sure, he could lie when he needed to, but when it came to his own child, unless it was to keep him or her safe, like he’d done when he pretended to end things with her, then he wouldn’t treat them badly ever. Wouldn’t lie to them and make it seem like he loved them when he didn’t. He would just love them like a real parent should.
Paolo smiled at them. “I love to see a father and daughter who love each other. Someday, we will have a daughter, Pia, and I will love her like that.”
She smiled, but wanted to throw up. She’d never have his child. She might have a daughter of her own, but it would be Ryder’s daughter and he would hug her and love her and kiss her. He’d never turn on her like her father had. He’d cherish her forever. He was a real man. A good man. A man who’d killed and walked into the line of fire for them, for her and their baby. And that was before their child was even born. She loved him more than ever.
Chapter 20
Ryder ran for the door as fast as he could. He was no sprinter, but when his life was on the line, plus the life of the woman he loved and their child, there was nothing that was going to slow him down. Especially not his own body. He breathed through the pain, the pain pills he’d taken earlier barely having an effect on this level of exertion. When this was over, he was going to sleep for days and let his body heal.
A man ran at him through the front door. He held a gun up, pointed at Ryder’s head. “Freeze!”
Ryder didn’t hesitate. He raised his own gun and shot. While running, he was still a better shot than most men were when they had time to sit and aim. This guy stood no chance. Whoever he was. Ryder didn’t know him. And he never would. The man lay on the ground, unmoving.
Ryder spun to look behind him. Surely more men were coming after him. But he saw no one else. They must be very slow. They must not have been ready for this at all. Did they not expect him to come? They had underestimated him, then. Fools. They’d pay for that mistake. Big time.
But as he was about to reach the steps up to the house, someone tackled him from the side. He’d been hiding in the bushes. Damn. Ryder hadn’t looked that closely. Stupid move. He had underestimated them just as he was thinking they’d underestimated him.
The guy managed to get him on the ground. Easy only because Ryder was still in so much pain that being hit from the tackle had caused him to go still to avoid more pain. Landing on the ground was like falling into a pit of glass. Everything hurt. He had to lie there for a second to catch his breath and to avoid passing out. He breathed deep and opened his eyes to see the guy’s gun pointed at him.
“On your feet!” he shouted.
Ryder still had his gun in his hand. Had he not noticed that? Ryder moved like he was going to get up, but shot the guy in the chest. He landed beside Ryder and he crawled over to make sure he was dead. He pushed himself shakily to his feet. Asshole. Now his whole body was in fresh agony.
He stumbled and had to close his eyes a moment to regain his balance. He forced them open and checked around him to make sure no one else was coming. He took a moment to steady himself, then pushed the pain from his mind and moved forward. He didn’t have time to let the pain get to him.
Ryder ran up the cement steps to the large wooden front door. It was covered in wrought iron swirls, the wood stained green. It was a beautiful door, and he had often admired it, but the only beauty Ryder was concerned about now was the one behind the door. Pia.
He turned the knob and yanked the door open. It wasn’t even locked. He blinked and his eyes adjusted to the indoor light quickly. He saw Matteo first, his arm tight around Pia’s throat, his gun pressed against her head. Then he saw Solano. He was closer to him, and he had his gun aimed right at him.
Ryder stood very still. One wrong move and they could both be dead. Pia let out a small whimper. He allowed himself one glance at her.
She was scared, but smiling. Clearly happy to see him. And he was so relieved to see her. She was alive and looked mostly well. A little pale maybe. A little dirty and messy, like she hadn’t showered recently, but she was the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen.
He hoped the baby was okay. He had no way to tell just by looking at her. She did look like her eyes were red and puffy from crying, but that could have been over any number of things. He wouldn’t worry yet. He’d assume everything was fine and ask her about it when he could. Once they were away from all this and found a place to live, they would get her to a doctor to make sure things were good. Didn’t pregnant ladies see their doctors all the time anyway? She hadn’t been to one yet, so she probably needed to go.
He gave her a small smile to tell her everything would be okay. But of course, everything wasn’t okay. Her own father was holding a gun to her head and this psycho Solano was pointing a gun at him. He sized up the situation fast. If he shot Solano, Matteo would shoot Pia. He couldn’t take the chance that he would be able to shoot both Solano and Matteo fast enough. Too risky. Same thing if he tried to shoot Matteo first. Solano would have time to shoot him. That would at least get Pia free. Except that shooting Matteo would be much harder since he was holding her in front of him, and even if he shot Matteo, if Solano shot him, then Pia would only be safe for a short time. If he couldn’t kill them both, there was no point.
“Put the gun down,” Matteo said. “Or I will shoot Pia, and Solano will shoot you.”
Ryder put his hands up in surrender, setting his gun down on the floor at his feet. Of course, he had others tucked away, but they didn’t know that.
“Pia is mine, you fool,” Solano said, glaring at Ryder. “You really thought you could come in here and take her from me? You’re nothing. Why would she want you?”
Ryder glanced at Pia, trying to convey in his expression that everything was going to be okay, even if it looked like he was giving in. Did she have any idea what was really going through his mind? Did she know that he wasn’t really surrendering, but only appearing to play along? He hoped she knew enough about these types of situations and about him that she would know better than to think he was doing what they wanted. Or that they would win.
But he needed her to be brave and strong. To not give up or give in. To not do something stupid that could get them both hurt or killed. He needed her to read his mind. And, he thought, as soon as they were out of here, he would teach her. If they ever got into a situation like this again, she would know what to do. They would do it together, kind of like a Bonnie and Clyde type of team. Pia and Ryder, the outlaws. They’d get to that later. They’d have time for all sorts of things later. First, they had to live through this and get away.
Solano stepped toward Ryder cautiously, still pointing his gun at him. Ryder held his hands up with a bored expression on his face. Solano stepped behind him and put an arm around his throat, then pressed his gun to his head, mirroring the position Matteo held Pia in. It seemed like they were done for. Both of them had guns to their heads and if they tried anything, they would both be killed.
Ryder had a plan. The gun at his ankle was locked and loaded. He just had to get it. Or the knife at his waist. He still had both of those weapons, and like a total fool, Solano hadn’t thought to pat him down. Amateur. If this guy didn’t have money and people around all the time to protect him, he’d never have survived this long.
They wouldn’t just stand here all day. They would be taken somewhere. And as they were walking, it would be easy to suddenly trip Solano, to bend down and grab his gun and shoot him quick. He just had to
time it right. He needed to be behind Matteo and Pia so that when he did this, it would give him a split second to kill Matteo before he could turn and see what happened and kill Pia. It would work, though. These guys had no clue what they were doing when compared with him, the trained and well-practiced expert hitman. If Matteo had been smart, he would have killed Ryder already. Should have shot him the moment he walked in the door.
As he was looking for angles and holes in their positions, waiting for someone to move, always watching for an opening or some opportunity that would give him the time he needed, Pia did something that shocked him. She reached out her arm suddenly and drew it back, elbowing her father right in the crotch. Her height, at almost a foot shorter than her tall father, gave her the perfect position. She only had to bend over the tiniest bit to hit the money spot.
Matteo cried out in pain and bent over, clutching his groin.
“Shoot him!” Pia yelled, jumping out of the way.
Ryder dropped to his knees forcefully, breaking Solano’s grip on him. He tore his pant leg out of the way and grabbed his gun, then raised it, aimed, and shot Matteo in the chest before he even stood up. Then he stood quickly and elbowed Solano. When he bent over in involuntarily reaction to the pain, Ryder shot him at point blank. Solano dropped with a loud thud. Ryder walked over to Matteo and kicked him. He was dead. He knew he was dead. His perfect record still held. But he hated this man with a passion. He put one more bullet in his head for good measure. Matteo should consider himself lucky. Ryder never wasted two bullets on one man. But he needed the satisfaction of tearing his brain apart. Too bad Matteo’s heart had already stopped so there would be little blood. He wanted to see his blood pour from his head.