Page 37 of Revenge of Sin

Lanah moves her hand from me to our mom and all I can see are the tears flowing down her cheeks.“It’s my fault, I should have told someone that something was off.”

I drag my little sister into my arms.“It has nothing to do with you.You have to believe that, Lanah.”

She nods.“One day, when I’m done with school, I’m going to be able to help protect my family.”

My heart clenches.“It’s not your job, sweetie.Ma will be okay, you’ll see.”

Lanah shakes her head.“You don’t understand.I lost my cool when Mamma went down but Anna, she never did.She was raised to be a mafia queen.I may be enrolled in the wrong program.”

My little sister, she is nothing but fearless, and if Papa thought keeping her protected from the daily grind would keep her from learning the daily issues and what they entail, he was as wrong as I am, because no matter what we thought, she sees far more than we wanted her to see, and that right there is a problem we may need to deal with sooner rather than later.

26

Anna

In order to get to me, they’re going to come for Vincenzo and his family, and nothing, not his army of soldiers or Massimo’s, can change one damn thing.It doesn’t really matter if my father did or didn’t barter me off in the end.I was promised to Barcelo and everyone in the crime families across the land knows it.That gives Bastian rights, and I know it.

Deep down in my soul where the fear starts and grows, entangling every one of my nerves.When I think of what he may do to me out of revenge for the sins he thinks I’m guilty of against his brother, every muscle in my body goes numb.

It doesn’t matter where I turn, I will just bring trouble to Vincenzo’s door.This responsibility that Papa created by giving me to Barcelo initially, is mine to bear, and only mine.And the only way forward that doesn’t result in having anyone hurt including myself is to do what Massimo and Sophia urged me to do so long ago.

Run … hide and go underground.

Only now it will be more difficult.If I had listened to Massimo I wouldn’t have been found out.My secret would have been safe, but instead I had to venture out and see the world.And run smack dab into Vincenzo.Crime boss of the DeLucas.

My heart constricts—no matter that I probably shouldn’t have let it, my heart has already been taken by the man who would bring a war to his family’s door for me.

If I let him…

My hand runs over the smooth steel barrel of the gun before tucking it into a backpack I find in the back of Vincenzo’s closet, along with extra ammunition, and essentials that will get me through whatever travels are in my future.

Right now, I have to move and fast.There’s only going to be a small window of time, and I intend to use it to the best of my ability.I lock the en suite bathroom door and pull it closed, toss the backpack over my shoulders, and then go get two large vases I saw the other day from the top of the kitchen cupboard.I need them to be heavy enough to cause a loud noise and create a mess when they shatter.

I take a last look around the room and send both of the vases sailing into the bedroom wall and let out a loud scream, then race to the front door, slipping behind it before the security guard comes bursting in, running straight toward the area of the sound.

The minute I hear him banging on the locked bathroom door, my feet move, and fast.I don’t take the elevator.The minute he hears it the chase will be on.

No, I need more time than that but the steps are going to take me a while.I head down the stairs, but exit three floors down, then take the elevator.I get out slowly while my heart pounds in my chest, glancing in the large wall-sized gold embossed mirror in the foyer of the lobby as I walk by it.

Vincenzo’s long henley, my workout pants and ballet shoes, and his jacket and ball cap.No one will suspect it’s me even if they see me on the cameras.At least that’s the hope.

I push past the exit door, and my heart constricts as I pass by soldiers, guilt flooding my conscience knowing they were put here especially for me, to keep me safe, while I am fleeing the one place I’ve ever felt safe and the arms of the man that no matter the circumstances, I’ve come to love.

A taxi waits idle by the curb, and I don’t hesitate to get in the back, although maybe I should after the last catastrophe with a driver, but instead I tell him where to take me as the crowds and noise fill my head and the neon lights around the boardwalk twinkle around us.“Down to the docks, please.”

His eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror.“The docks at this time of the evening are not exactly welcoming to tourists.”

I nod.“I appreciate the concern but I’m meeting my father.”Hopefully if anyone catches up to this particular cab driver, they’ll dismiss it knowing Papa is dead, anything at all not to leave a definite trail behind, that’s the key.At least that’s what Delz said and his training has kept me alive more times than I can count.

The lights on the docks are sparse, a couple turning on within a few moments of our arrival, one then another, creating at least some sense of lit space as they turn the water a coppery color and dusk begins to settle into dark.

I give the man cash, silently thanking Vincenzo for keeping so much in a small drawer next to his bed.I will pay him back one day when I can.Somehow, I’ll get the money to him, although I know the amount, while lifesaving to me right now, is probably trivial to him.

The decks are slippery as I pass the large party boats, gambling cruises that are tied up, but everything seems quiet as I make my way to the warehouses, listening forsounds of talking or other noises as I walk cautiously in the shadows cast by the large boats and toward the looming structures ahead.

Vincenzo’s family control things that move in and out of here and while Atlantic City may not have the large stacks of shipping containers like New York City, there are plenty of ways to get contraband from one place to another in the boats that sit rocking against the docks.

The moment I almost reach the warehouse, I regret coming down this far.It’s way darker than I envisioned and the sound of men’s voices causes my blood to race and my heart to pound.I have to take cover.Without thinking I slip into one of the rocking boats, flattening on the bottom of the boat as the sounds of their voices and boots scuffing against the sloshy decks get louder and louder.