Delusive

by Courtney Lane

  “Someday, I hope I can believe that.” I placed my hands on his waist and took a moment to level the emotion. “I need this. I need to see your father.”

  “I’ll see what I can do about setting up the meeting tomorrow,” he promised begrudgingly.

  THIRTY-FIVE

  I WANTED TO HOLD strong to the confidence I had lost and regained with the help of my husband. It was vital I maintained at least a casual indifference when I finally met the man face-to-face on my terms. The second I stepped across the threshold and into Romo’s Italian Eatery, my body once again disconnected with my brain. I could feel the hives burning my neck, irritating my skin.

  Daniella served as hostess and gave me a tepid hug. Her eyes didn’t hold the same glimmer they once did. I wanted to ask how she was, but it seemed inappropriate. After all, my husband was the reason her husband was no longer living.

  She directed me to a table in the nearly empty restaurant.

  I ordered an iced coffee while I waited. I couldn’t bring myself to touch it when she brought it back to my table. Eventually, the whipped cream and the ice began to liquefy and spill out onto the sides of the ornate glass.

  Two men in black T-shirts and jeans came inside. The diners in the restaurant were told to leave, and ushered out. Daniella, along with the kitchen staff, were the last ones to leave. She gave me a pointed look of longing before disappearing out of the door.

  From the window, I could see a Bentley pull up to the curb in front of the restaurant. The man who opened the door for Natanael was familiar. Suddenly, I understood what Elias meant when he said I would be protected while meeting with his father. It appeared that Mateus pulled triple duty, working for Elias, Kirsten, and Natanael. I had to wonder whom the man held in the highest esteem. While I could be comforted by the fact he might’ve been the one sent to protect me, his presence put a slight kink in my plans.

  The restaurant became filled with Natanael’s employees, now totaling five.

  I stood to greet the man as he walked in, but he placed his palm perpendicular to the floor and pushed down at the air, directing me to remain seated.

  “My…son nearly begged for this meeting.” He settled in the seat opposite me at the table, surveying the empty restaurant with disinterest. “He’s not known to beg me for anything.” He folded his hands on the table and regarded me with neither a grin nor a frown. “I won’t pretend I don’t know what this is about. My wife, and I use the term loosely, because she won’t be for much longer, finally saw fit to tell me your story. Do you remember my threat to you in Miami?”

  “I no longer have a father to kill.”

  “Let me refresh your memory.” His broad shoulders seemed to broaden beyond measure as he leaned across the table. “I said the person responsible for bringing you here would pay.”

  Obviously, Kirsten wasn’t clear on what her husband felt about her, because he’d just made it clear that if he once loved her, he didn’t anymore. “Are you referring to your wife?”

  With a wink, he relaxed back in his chair. “What is it you want, Hanley? Answers? Do you want to know why your mother died? Do you think I had a singular purpose in that I desired or wanted her dead?” He shrugged it off in a flippant matter. “The woman mattered very little to me.”

  “So little that you married her?”

  “It was strategy. Nothing more.”

  “I heard the recording you kept of you and my father speaking about killing her,” I said, hoping to put him back on track. My neck began to itch and I scratched at what I knew to be a bad case of the hives on my neck.

  He seemed to notice the offending welts, and it made him a bit smugger. “So you did, did you?” he sneered. In the moment, I could see the parts of Natanael that Elias had inherited. The more intimidating parts. “But did you hear anything about me agreeing to do it? Do you have concrete proof it was done by my hand or someone who worked under me?”

  “Marcus was your friend, of course you had something to do with it.”

  He laughed. “Employee and employer. Your father and I were never friends.”

  “Was he working for you while he was a district manager at Flesker’s?”

  “Who do you think owns the chain, Hanley?” he asked with a deviant twinkle in his eye.

  “To be honest, Mr. Cari,” I took a moment to clear the raspiness from my throat, “while I told your son I came here for answers, I really didn’t.” I unbuttoned my blouse and showed him my bra, revealing that I wasn’t wired and hoped it would be enough to make him stop dancing around with his words.

  The man began to leer at me in a way no father-in-law ever should have looked at his daughter-in-law. “Did you come here to seduce me? You’re a little too used up for my liking.”

  “No.” I snorted. “I wanted to look at you one last time before I said what I had to say.”

  “You”—he raised both eyebrows in surprise—“have something to say to me?”

  Nodding, I surveyed the scene in the dining hall, visibly measuring the distance Mateus stood from the table. Buttoning my shirt, I leaned across the table, keeping my voice quiet and soft, making sure it would’ve been impossible for Mateus to hear what I had to say. “I. Won.”

  Alerted, Natanael began to blink at me, obviously confused over what I meant.

  “There are only two ways you’re going to walk out of here. Dead…or in handcuffs. You can’t blame me for either of those options. You have your son to thank for that.”

  “What do you mean by this?” his voice raised, but for some unknown reason, he began to match my quiet tone. “What the hell are you saying to me?”

  “You were right about me.” Exhaling in relief, I began to smile. “I did come to your town to cause trouble. My father and I…we had one last conversation before we came here. It was about what we’d do to your son…or really what I would do. It’s funny.” I smiled as one of the better memories came back to me. “He pulled out a chess board, and while teaching me how to play chess, he laid plans. He wanted Elias to die. I told him that would be too easy. I told him that in order for our plan to work, we had to make the people who wronged us, watch while their lifestyle was torn from their fingers by the son they favored the most.

  “There could only be one reason why your son would betray you. Your son loves me, and he would do anything for me. While he may have thought he opened my eyes and pulled me from my father—and my father might’ve believed it of Elias too—they were both wrong. Everything I did was to make you pay for everything you took from me. This is about justice for me. No one fucks with my family without facing repercussions. That includes you and your wife, Mr. Cari.”

  “Little girl,” he said with a hiss, “you are out of your depth.”

  “I know you have spies on your son. When did they tell you that you had a reason for a concern? When did they tell you he was beginning to change the business and becoming active instead passive in getting it out of the drug business?”

  He looked at his men, sizing each one up. He had a good reason to if none of them disclosed the truth to him.

  “I’m going to tell you when. When a man, who isn't even worth mentioning the name of, tried to kill me with a lethal dose of heroin. That’s when Elias decided that Cari Enterprises was getting out of the drug business. I made it happen. Elias has changed because of me and the things I've done. I’m the reason he stopped doing all the things you wanted him to, because he was hungry for your approval before then. He no longer cares about what you think. And now, I’m the reason your life is about to get really fucked up.”

  “Look around,” he warned, gesturing to his bodyguards in a grand fashion. “You’re surrounded by my men. One word and they will put a bullet in your skull.”

  “Are they really all your men?” I smiled proudly. “Are you sure about that, Mr. Cari?”

  He blew back in his chair, expelling a large stream of breath. “What is it I can do for you?”

  “Your wife asked me the same th
ing. It’s fucking hilarious; the two people responsible for tearing my parents apart, putting them at odds with each other are asking me what they can do for me. Let me tell you what I want—it’s simple. I want you and your wife to retire permanently, because your son and I are taking over. To really answer your question, there is nothing you can do for me, because I’m taking what I want.” As I began to hit record on my cell phone, I leaned back and glanced out of the window, checking to see if Elias came through.

  “You won’t make it out of my town alive,” Mr. Cari spat, having trouble controlling the volume of his voice as he pounded his fists on the table. “Do you hear me, you little bitch? I will kill you. You think my son loves you? He was reared to be ruthless. He is my blood. I know him better than you ever will. I will fucking kill you. Not here. Not now. But soon on my own. How dare you come here and think you can threaten me. You are a fucking dead woman.”

  I pressed the red button on the screen of my cell phone, having gotten what I needed for a contingency plan, if necessary. Cocking my head to the side, I grinned broadly. “That’s just it, Mr. Cari. Neither you nor your wife raised your son. You don’t know who he is, or what he’s capable of. He’s a complete and total stranger to you. Believe me when I tell you he’s going to show you what he can do.”

  He stood angrily as the wail of police sirens resounded distantly in the background, becoming louder and louder as they neared our location.

  I closed my eyes for a moment, stilling my racing heart, thankful Elias had come through with his part.

  Natanael gesticulated to one of his men who hurriedly came over, removing a gun from his holster. “I won’t be in jail but for a day before I’m released. You, on the other hand…”

  It happened in a matter of moments. The second one of his men was able to put a gun to my head, Mateus took five long strides toward Natanael and held a gun to the back of his skull. He wasn’t alone, three of Natanael’s men removed their guns from the various places where they were holstered and held them up to Natanael. The fourth man held his gun to the back of Natanael's lone loyal employee.

  Natanael put his hands up in defense, discreetly looking over his shoulder at the man closest to him—Mateus. “You traitorous cock-sucker.”

  “Elias sends his regards,” Mateus said with a grin. “I would tell Antin to remove his gun from Hanley’s temple before he loses a boss sooner rather than later.”

  Natanael’s eyes widened in alarm. “My son would never let you do this.”

  “Your son would. He also wants me to tell you that your men are his. Your businesses are his. The drug business you had, you will go down for. Your services at Cari Properties and Cari Enterprises are no longer needed. There is hope for you.” Mateus grinned in a sinister way. “I heard the Cartel has plans for you once you’re inside.”

  “All this over…over her?” Natanael jerked his hand toward me. “I don’t believe this.”

  “You have a choice,” Mateus said, pushing the barrel of the gun tightly against Natanael’s temple. “I can put one in your brain or you can leave, turning yourself over to the authorities who are less than a minute from the parking lot.”

  “You wouldn’t risk it and go to prison,” Natanael called his bluff.

  “I would,” Mateus replied, “because I would die for Elias Cari. Prison means nothing.”

  Natanael nodded his head at Antin, who quickly holstered his gun. Straightening his suit, he laughed to himself. “Tell my son…” Pausing, he restrained his grin. His mood transformed drastically; he looked solemn, and yet his smile was one of quiet contentment. “Tell my son I always knew he’d make me proud someday. Today is finally that day.” He buttoned one button of his suit jacket and strode out of the restaurant straight into police custody.

  I finally unleashed the breath I held. My eyes began to water, thankful the worst of it was over.

  THIRTY-SIX

  ELIAS SUCCEEDED IN FINDING out the truth about my past from his mother. The pieces I had missing in the puzzle were now in my hand, and the puzzle was complete. What I knew wasn’t easy to digest. I spent the entire night tossing and turning. When I looked to my left, Elias wasn’t there. I slipped out of bed and padded down the hallway. From the top of the stairs, I could hear Elias arguing with someone. The angry pounding of stilettos in the den and the shouts in a foreign language indicated the guest was Kirsten.

  I crept down the stairs to listen in, but the rapid fire Portuguese exchange made sure I couldn’t understand what was being said, but I did know one thing…Elias was just as furious as his mother was. I heard the crashing and banging of objects I could only assume she threw at him.

  I slipped into the doorway and announced my presence by loudly clearing my throat.

  They both paused to stare at me. Kirsten’s eyes were like embers of fire when they zeroed in on me. She looked haggard and unlike her usual self in her black jogging suit—worn with mismatched stilettos—and windswept hair. “You.” She pointed at me, her voice throaty and deep. “It’s time you helped me the way I’ve helped you,” she said, her breath escaping her in loud pants. “He has gone fucking mad and overextended his reach. He wants to take Cari Properties. He wants to take everything!”

  “I thought you wanted to retire anyhow,” I stated casually and began to walk toward her.

  Elias was immediately at my side, picking me up and moving me to the corner of the room. He remained partially in front of me, protecting me from Kirsten.

  She laughed manically and bent sideways to see me from behind Elias’s body. “You, my girl, are very fucking trusting. I tell you I’m not the maternal type and somehow you believed me when I said I wanted to retire and have grandchildren. Tsk. Tsk. There can only be one Queen in this empire and you’re not fit to take over my spot. You never were.”

  “Don’t address her,” Elias said to me, glancing over his shoulder at me. “You don’t owe her anything.” His head snapped around to regard his mother. “Now would be a good time for you to do what I asked you to do, before I ask you again, and this time I won’t be so nice about it.”

  I clutched his arm and stood at his side. “It’s okay, Elias. It’s time we made things clear to her, don’t you think?”

  His face was frozen on anger until it suddenly lightened into a smile. “I think that’s a great idea, minha amada,” he replied with a wink.

  Addressing Kirsten with a smirk, I began to bait her. “Was everything you said a lie?” I questioned, not bothering to feign surprise at her reaction. I never believed Kirsten had fully disclosed all she knew to me. Nor did I believe she was being honest when she professed her desire to be a family. Regardless of what I knew, a small part of me craved a family and hoped she meant it when she said we would have a relationship. Gullible of me to think it. Idiotic to want it. When the puzzle was put together, I saw Kirsten Cari for the woman she really was.

  “It was not,” she replied in a shrill manner, stomping toward Elias and me. “I had hopes to build a relationship with you and give you a job fitting your talent at Cari Properties. With my husband likely going to prison, and”—her eyes flashed at Elias before narrowing back on me—“he has been greenlit once he makes it to prison, I will be the CEO once the Feds get their grubby hands off my company. I can make many things possible for you. But my goddamn son”—she paused, trembling in anger—“had plans of his own that I wasn’t made aware of because the fucking people I hired to spy on him are worthless. You have to stop him.”

  Laughing low and quietly, Elias leaned back on the wall and crossed his arms.

  “And…why would I do that?” I asked her, fighting against succumbing to Elias’s contagious behavior.

  “Because you fucking owe me, Hanley! I could’ve handed you to Natanael on a platter the second you came here. I protected you from him. You are alive because I protected you. And I protected that deranged dull-witted half-brother of yours. Talk some sense into my son and make him get rid of this crazy idea of taking over
the businesses his father and I slaved to make a name of. The town is not his. It never will be.”

  “You’re very, very wrong,” Elias countered. “The second I met Hanley, I knew I would never let anyone hurt her. So while you may have tried to tell my father, he would never have gotten a chance to touch her. Not because she became off limits to everyone else the second I laid eyes on her, but because my father always has, and always will, trust me over you. He gave me a call while he was in holding to tell me he was proud of me. That wasn’t all. If you’re still breathing before he dies, he’s going make sure the men—who now own you—kill you before you get a chance to fuck up my plans. He’d rather burn his entire life’s work to the ground than let you take the reins.

  “I know my wife…tells me I have you to thank for the reason we met, but I’m not going to thank you.” Elias looked over at me with an amorous smile. “I would’ve found her in the pitch black darkness if I had to. Nothing would’ve kept me from her.”

  I reached up and touched his face, completely taken by the way he professed his feelings for me to his mother. His words and my touch seemed to make her anger drive her into the pit of madness. She wanted to hurt me, I could see it in the way her fist balled and in the fire of rage that draped over her entire demeanor.

  “I think it’s time you told her the story, don’t you?” Elias asked me.

  “I have another, as you put it, imaginative tale to tell you,” I stated with a newfound energy, my attention darting from Elias to Kirsten. “It’s about two ambitious women. One named Kirsten, one named Francesca. See, Kirsten and Francesca lusted after the same man; he was going places with a promising racing career and lineage of wealth and power. While Kirsten wanted beyond the limit of the sky, Francesca wanted one thing—a prospering career.

  “Kirsten was a little more ambitious and used everything she had to win Natanael over. She fixed DNA results to make it seem as though Francesca had cheated on Natanael. Natanael, having an issue with women who didn’t make him their first and last, promised to destroy Francesca. He did. He divorced her, blackballed her, making it difficult for her to obtain her dream of a cabinet full of racing trophies, endorsements, and a bank account filled to the brim with prize money. She tried to get around being blackballed by becoming intimate with his right hand, Marcus Williams. When she found out that Marcus was penniless thanks to money management issues, she began to take the gold-digger route, marrying men with enough cash to help her fulfill her dream. But, oops, she had two children to care for that put a kink in her plans. To fix the problem, she made Marcus become the caretaker for their children, and gave him money to make sure they were financially stable.