Lost in Italy

by Stacey Joy Netzel

  Trent caught Tony’s eye when he glanced back. He appeared mostly recovered from the espresso incident. “She didn’t know about you,” he said to the blond man. “Where do you fit in?”

  “I’m with Europol. I was investigating two Lenno officers in the smuggling case when Nino and Eva showed up about a year ago. Nino’s activities and a few questionable ties to the mafia required further scrutiny, so they left me in place.”

  Eva combed the fingers of her free hand through Ben’s hair as she asked Tony, “Got any idea why my partner tried to kill me?”

  Nino’s bloody hand grasped the side rail in an attempt to pull himself up. Trent just barely made out the Italian’s words as he tried to speak.

  “Sorry…the money…Roselli…”

  Trent’s brows drew together. What did Lorenzo have to do with the money?

  Beside him, Eva drew in a sudden breath. Trent turned to see her staring down at Ben.

  “Roselli’s not dead,” she murmured.

  “Not dead,” Nino confirmed.

  Trent looked back to Nino. A cough spewed red droplets from his mouth, further staining his shirt and arms. Tony leaned back to avoid the spray of blood.

  Disbelief rippled through Trent. “Of course he’s dead. I saw him get shot—it’s on the video. His body was found in my pool!”

  “Alrigo has connections to get that story out without it being true,” Tony reminded. “He wanted to put more pressure on you with all the police looking for you, not just the ones on his payroll.”

  “He was shot three times,” Trent insisted, even as Simone’s numerous calls slammed into his conscious.

  “I saw it, too,” Tony said.

  “Bullet pr-proof vest.” Nino choked and coughed. “Wants…money.”

  A bullet proof vest? Trent’s mind whirled. Lorenzo had showed up to their meeting that morning already wired. They’d discussed the plan and Lorenzo went in, so it was possible he’d worn a vest under his shirt and jacket.

  Rachel told Halli Simone looked like she’d seen a ghost.

  Simone was sorry…“should’ve told you earlier”…

  Lorenzo’s not dead.

  Amazed relief came and went in a flash. The money didn’t make sense. The ransom demand hadn’t factored in until after Lorenzo had been shot. He couldn’t have known Halli would video the shooting, or that Alrigo would hold her family hostage and demand cash for their release.

  Unless… A whisper of his earlier suspicions tried to make itself heard through the confusion.

  Blindly, Trent replaced his hand on Ben’s chest with Eva’s. He surged to his feet and moved to shoulder Tony aside.

  “How did Lorenzo know about the money before he was shot?” he asked Nino. “Was he working with Lapaglia?”

  Were they all?

  It took a moment before the man could speak. When he did, his words were punctuated with weak, gurgling coughs and shallow, gasping breaths for air. “Planned to…sell you evidence…your brother’s murder…but …Alrigo shot Roselli…fucked up the plan…ransom… became a perfect opportun…”

  Trent let out a shaky breath. Halli and her family weren’t part of the plot.

  With his next breath, Lorenzo’s obvious betrayal hit. A split second later, gut-clenching fear bulldozed all else.

  Lorenzo wanted the money. Money that was still on his boat, with Halli, and no one was answering the phone.

  He grasped Nino’s shoulders. “How did he plan to get the money?”

  “After…I—”

  Nino’s face contorted and his body spasmed. The man was dying right in front of him. Trent’s fingers clenched, as if he could keep him alive by sheer will.

  “Does he know where we are?”

  Nino struggled for air, his eyes wide, panicked. Trent gave him a desperate, violent shake.

  Tony’s hand clamped on Trent’s arm. “Take it easy.”

  He released Nino as the distant sound of sirens reached across the water. Flashing lights approached the shore of Lake Como beyond Isola Comacina.

  “We must go,” Eva said.

  Trent forced himself to pause by Ben as Tony brushed past on his way to the controls. “Halli’s on the other boat. I’ll get her and—”

  “You brought her along?”

  Trent bristled at the accusation in Ben’s voice. “She refused to stay behind.”

  “Halli?”

  “Yes, Halli. She’s very stubborn. We’ll meet you on shore.”

  He unwound the rope connecting his rental to Lapaglia’s boat and tossed it ahead of him. Unrelenting urgency propelled him into the other boat in one leap. He didn’t look back as he started the engine and opened up the throttle. Ben was in good hands with Eva, and there was nothing he could do that she wouldn’t do anyway.

  Halfway to the Scappare and closing, his phone rang. He almost lost the damn thing over the side in his haste to answer. “Halli?”

  “Trent—Lorenzo’s alive!”

  Simone.

  “He called you this morning, didn’t he?”

  “Yes. I was so scared. I still am.”

  Trent wanted to believe the tremor that shook her words, but too much had happened for him to trust anything right now. “What the hell is going on, Simone?”

  “I don’t know. He said something about finally getting his boat and told me to pack a bag and be ready. I told him I would not go anywhere with him unless he told me what was going on, but he became angry and hung up.”

  Trent was nearing the cabin cruiser by now. Going against every instinct screaming in his body to thrust the throttle forward, he eased it back for a slow approach. “Does he know Rachel’s with you?”

  “No. We moved to a neighbor’s house for safety.”

  “Good.” Now he trusted her. “Simone, I gotta go, but stay where you are, okay? Don’t go home until I call you.”

  “Si.”

  He slid the phone back in his pocket and eased alongside the cruiser. All was quiet aboard the Scappare. Too quiet. A leaden sensation of dread grew in his chest when neither Halli nor his dad hailed him over the side.

  Without regard for the rental, he scrambled aboard his boat. His gaze locked on a smaller metallic blue vessel speeding toward the middle of the lake some twenty yards out at the same time overwhelming gas fumes assaulted his nostrils. Icy slivers of fear froze the blood in his veins. Gut instinct screamed for him to follow the boat but a low groan whipped him around.

  His father stumbled up the steps from below deck. Blood trickled down along the side of his nose from a gash on his forehead. He waved wildly when he saw Trent, hollering as he lost his balance and fell to his knees.

  Trent’s cell rang as he rushed forward. “Dad, where’s Halli?”

  Greg Tomlin shook his head, surged to his feet and wrapped his arms around Trent. With a burst of unexpected strength, he drove them toward the side of the Scappare. Trent couldn’t combat the surprise momentum that propelled them over the railing into the water.

  A deafening boom concussed his eardrums as the lake closed over his head. He fought his way to the surface and stared in stunned disbelief at the burning wreckage that seconds earlier had been his boat. Flaming pieces rained down around his head.

  Halli!

  The magnitude of what’d just happened rocked him to the core. Anguish made it impossible to breathe. Oh, God…Halli.

  A desperate gasping sound broke through his shock. His father thrashed behind him, struggling to stay afloat. Two powerful strokes brought them together and Trent held his father’s head above water with an arm across his chest. He swam for the rental that’d floated far enough away, relatively undamaged from the explosion.

  Trent secured his father’s grip on the boat and ruthlessly suppressed the crippling emotions coursing through his body. Blame. Guilt. Grief. Grabbing the side, he heaved himself up into the boat. A jagged gouge in the metal railing raked down his bare chest and stomach. Blood welled from the torn flesh as he turned to drag his father abo
ard, but he felt nothing.

  The moment he fell into the boat, his father’s rough voice commanded, “Go, go! We have to catch them.”

  Grief and rage collided inside Trent. “I don’t care about the money!”

  His father frowned with his usual disapproval. “They’ve got Halli.”

  Trent froze. He didn’t dare trust the flare of hope that suddenly burned in his chest. “You mean she wasn’t…?” He couldn’t even say it.

  “No—they took her with the money.”

  An instant flashback of the little speed boat left him dizzy. He shook it off and lunged for the driver’s seat. Fighting for every second, he started the rental and throttled to full speed the moment they cleared the sinking remains of the Scappare.

  His father joined him at the windshield and they both searched frantically for the blue speed boat. Trent’s heart raced unbearably fast. The roaring wind stung his eyes as he prayed they wouldn’t be too late.

  Chapter 25

  Halli watched the Scappare grow smaller and smaller, yet across the bow, she saw Trent’s rental boat approach the cruiser. She debated standing to wave her arms, but the gun pointed at her chest was a compelling deterrent. With her heart pounding in her chest, she slid her hand into her pocket and pressed the send button on Greg Tomlin’s phone. Then she prayed Trent would figure out what was going on.

  Lorenzo Roselli, the man Trent had described as a friend, also noticed Trent’s approach and spoke in Italian to the driver. Luca. Halli didn’t think it was a coincidence Luca was also the name of the Carabinieri officer Simone had recommended. She couldn’t believe the woman was in on this whole scam, just like Lorenzo. Worry ate her up inside for Rachel at the same time indignation simmered on Trent’s behalf.

  Luca glanced back with a smug smirk. Halli quickly pulled her hand from her pocket before either of them saw what she was doing, but Lorenzo caught the sudden movement and frowned.

  “Where are we going?” she shouted above the wind and whine of the motor.

  Please, God, let him hear me.

  “Do as you’re told and you’ll be fine.” Lorenzo’s fluent English and mildly comforting tone was contradicted by Luca’s stone-cold expression.

  “Why are you doing this? Trent considered you a friend.”

  Guilt crossed Lorenzo’s face, but it was Luca who answered. “The man has more money than he knows what to do with, while we work and serve…for what? We barely make enough to survive, let alone retire with. Believe me, carina, Renzo’s friend will not miss a measly million.”

  It always boiled down to the money, didn’t it? God, she hated it. She drew a huge breath, set her jaw, and went over the facts in her mind. Rachel lay injured, in the hands of a conspirator. By all appearances, Ben had been shot, and she had no clue if he was alive or dead. Trent had no clue she was on this boat, and they were drawing farther and farther from sight.

  Despair threatened, but she beat it back. Trent might not see her yet, but she trusted him to come after—

  A sudden explosion from the Scappare eclipsed the brilliance of the setting sun. Trent’s cabin cruiser erupted into a ball of fire topped by black smoke. Halli gasped in shock as the sound of the destruction echoed across the water.

  Her hand flew to her mouth. Trent!

  Tears blurred her vision and were instantly whipped away by the wind. The sight of him, even from a distance, had given her strength to not give up. In the blink of an eye, the last visible sure thing that mattered to her in this world was gone.

  Lorenzo gaped at the inferno before shouting at Luca in Italian. The man shrugged and laughed. The sadistic sound registered through the hopeless haze Halli had descended into.

  Lorenzo spoke again and Luca glanced in her direction. He slowed the boat some, his mouth going tight with obvious anger as he faced forward again. Lorenzo continued to gesture heatedly between the fire and Luca.

  A sudden realization pounded through Halli. She was one hundred percent, completely on her own.

  Every other emotion was filed away to deal with later as survival mode kicked into gear. She’d been fending for herself for years, but never in such an extreme life and death situation. Before now, the thought would’ve scared her senseless. It still did, but each passing second solidified her determination that these men would not win. If it was the last thing she did, in any way possible, she’d make them pay for all they’d stolen from everyone.

  While Lorenzo was distracted arguing with Luca, Halli lunged for the money. The moment her fingers closed around the handles of the duffle, she pivoted, swinging the bag in a wide arc. Lorenzo raised a hand to deflect the blow and his gun flew from his grasp. Luca’s jerk on the steering wheel took them out of the path of an oncoming boat, and Lorenzo toppled over the side with the bag.

  Luca erupted in Italian and wrenched the boat around. Halli lost her own footing and slammed up against the motor before sliding down. Pain lanced through her back, stealing her breath. She shook her head to clear a multitude of sparkling stars.

  Get up. Get up!

  She braced a palm for leverage. Something hard bit into her flesh. Instead of the rough, water-tolerant carpeting of the boat’s floor, she encountered the cool steel of Lorenzo’s gun.

  Halli shot a glance at Luca. She fumbled for the grip as he stretched his arm back toward her. Time distended. She stared into the deadly eye of his pistol, prayed that her family would at least be saved, and finally located the handle of the gun beneath her hand.

  A deafening roar filled her ears. Luca’s aim waivered as he glanced toward the noise, then did a double take. Halli raised her gun, finger curled around the trigger.

  One second of moral hesitation after she aimed resulted in a large body leaping between her and her target.

  Shock jerked the gun skyward before she squeezed the trigger. The kick of the gun vibrated violently through her arms, but she hardly noticed as Trent wrestled with Luca for his weapon.

  He’s alive!

  She struggled to her feet. Trent’s shoulder hit the steering wheel, making the boat veer sharply to the left. The gun in Halli’s hand flew overboard when she was thrown back to the floor.

  The boat’s throttle remained at half-speed without a driver as the two men fought. Halli pulled herself back up and climbed over Trent and Luca to the controls. She swerved to avoid a police vessel and quickly brought their boat to a stop.

  As suddenly as everything had begun four days earlier when Trent threw her into his car, it was all over.

  Trent—shirtless—kept Luca subdued until the blond man from the café at the consulate who introduced himself as Agente Tony Butelli boarded the boat. Tony handcuffed Luca and transferred him to the police vessel. Lorenzo sat wet and brooding under the watchful eye of another officer, and Greg Tomlin stood at the helm of Trent’s rental boat.

  Still completely stunned, with residual adrenalin seeping from her muscles, Halli hadn’t looked at Trent yet. At his face. Was afraid if she did she’d fall apart. They were the only two left on their boat. The weight of his hand fell on her shoulder and her entire body trembled. Even her knees wobbled. A soft squeeze of his fingers released the choked sob caught in her throat.

  When he turned her around, the first thing she saw was the bloody gash down the length of his bare chest. He pulled her into his arms, his hold so tight she could barely breathe. But she didn’t care. He was so warm; she was chilled to the bone. She forgot about the blood and didn’t say a word until moments later, when he framed her face with his hands and ran his gaze over her.

  “Are you okay?”

  Moisture in his eyes deepened the ache in her chest. Tears ran unchecked down her cheeks. “I almost shot you.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t.”

  “I thought you were dead,” she whispered. “The boat blew up.”

  His eyes told her he’d thought the same about her. Then his lips captured hers in a rough, consuming kiss full of desperation, fear, and relief. Numbed, she soug
ht to absorb as much of his heat as possible. Salt from her tears mixed with the kiss, coating her lips and her tongue.

  The enormity of everything began to sink in; how close she’d come to shooting a man, how close she’d come to losing Trent, how close she’d come to her own death.

  She broke the kiss, buried her face in his neck, and hung on for dear life. She was probably strangling him, but letting go wasn’t quite possible at the moment.

  From one of the other boats, someone cleared their throat. “I’m sorry, but we must return.”

  Trent drew in a breath, his chest expanding against hers. He reached up and gently removed her arms since she couldn’t seem to do it herself. After a soft kiss and a shaky grin, he shifted around her to the helm.

  “What do you say we go see your brother?”

  Unwilling to lose contact, Halli anchored one hand against his back and pressed close as Trent started the boat and Tony joined them on board. She watched the blond man, still a bit dazed to realize he was an undercover agent. “Is Ben…?”

  “Eva—Officer Gallo—called a few minutes ago from the ospedale in Menaggio,” Tony said. “Your brother is in surgery to remove the bullet, but the doctor did not foresee any problems. He should be fine.”

  Halli’s relief was short-lived when another bit of information bobbed to the surface of her mind. “Oh, my God, Trent, Rachel is still with Simone! She—”

  “Moved Rachel to a friend’s house after Lorenzo called her this morning.”

  “But …Luca is Lorenzo’s cousin Simone mentioned…isn’t she in on it?”

  Trent shook his head and explained how Simone got scared after Lorenzo’s call that morning, so she and Rachel left the house, and then she tried to call in the afternoon to warn them.

  “I can send someone to pick up your sister and meet us at the hospital,” Tony offered.

  The tears on Halli’s face dried in the wind as Trent followed the other boats. By the time they reached land and were transported to the hospital, she’d talked to her sister, arrangements had been set in motion, and Rachel was on her way to Menaggio by police escort.