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There was every chance of being caught by Yakim or Mikhail. Leon was probably still waiting for me in the hidden corner of the ballroom.
Guilt swirled in my belly. I knew it was wrong of me to deceive them after they decided to trust me but what other choice did they leave me? There was no way I could stay here and be obedient while my father was dying.
I shouldn’t have to choose between the people I loved.
They’ll understand why I did this, I told myself.They value family over everything else.
My throbbing heart thundered in my ears. We were walking through the crowds of people gathered in the entrance hall.
The stranger’s large, wide chest was a great cover for me. I made sure to keep my face lowered, acting as a dutiful daughter who was helping her drunk dad navigate through the crowd.
I breathed heavily as we both stepped outside the manor. A cold breeze blew by, lifting the stray strands of hair away from my forehead.
“What are you waiting for, stupid girl?” the man chided. “Call Diego.”
“I lost my phone,” I lied.
He cursed in Italian. “Here,” he said, thrusting his phone in my hand. “Call the fucking chauffeur.”
I didn’t have trouble finding Diego’s number in his contact list. It was at the very top among the recently-called IDs.
“Is this Diego?” I said when an unfamiliar male voice answered the call.
“Who’s this?” the man asked suspiciously.
“Emilia asked me to take her father home,” I lied through my teeth.
“Oh,” he said, his tone softening. “Is Mr. Marco ready to go home?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
The call switched off. My heart beat so hard, it was becoming difficult to breath. My gaze roved all over the ground, taking in the armed guards that patrolled near the doors.
No one paid me any attention. I stood with the elderly man with my face buried in his chest, trying to appear as his escort rather than his daughter.
A luxurious Bentley smoothly drove up to us and stopped.
A man of about forty, with closely cropped hair, peered at me through the window of the car. I guessed him to be Diego. “Miss Emilia won’t be joining us?”
“She’s busy with Daniel Ricci.”
He nodded, seemingly aware of his boss’s intention of setting up his daughter with him. Climbing out of the car, he opened the back passenger door and helped me put Marco in the seat.
Heart beating hard, I climbed in after him.
A moment later, Diego was back in his seat and starting up the engine.
Within seconds, the car was moving through the dark, shadowy grounds. I couldn’t believe this was happening at all.
The guards at the exit gate stopped the car. Two armed men came to peer inside the car. I leaned against a barely conscious Marco and hid my face against his bulky biceps.
To my astonishment, the car started moving again. Feeling bolder, I risked a peek at the window.
The car was already outside the gates!
I did it, I thought dazedly.I escaped Volkov Manor!
