Page 140 of Power & Punishment

Leo pulls me in for another kiss, slow and certain. Enough to make me forget we’re in a hospital and far away from home.

“Am I interrupting?”

Leo’s lips go still underneath mine before he slowly pulls away and turns toward the door. I do the same, my heart rate spiking instantly.

Enzo Caruso stands in the doorway. He’s exactly as I remember him from the club—his presence intoxicating and powerful. He looks like a harmless old man, and yet the second he walks into a room, everyone bows before him.

Two uniformed officers have been stationed outside of Leo’s room since he got out of surgery, but somehow neither of them stopped Enzo from walking through that door.

Apparently he still has friends in places that matter.

My entire nervous system short-circuits, and I almost miss the expensive bouquet of white lilies perched in his hands like he’s walking into a funeral.

“Enzo,” Leo says, keeping his arm clutched at my side while attempting to sit up straight. He clenches his teeth.

Enzo smiles as his calm grey eyes sweep the room. “When I heard you got shot, I wanted to stop by and express my condolences. That’s what friends do, right?”

Leo’s throat constricts, swallowing hard. “That’s very kind of you.”

“I know, right?” he says, his grin widening. Every muscle in my body is on high alert, wishing I’d brought my gun in with me. “I can be very kind to the people I like.

Leo nods, watching Enzo closely as he walks over to the window and sets the bouquet down. We’re both silent as he fusses over the flowers.

It’s a message.

A very morbid yet pretty message.

“Mia, I apologize for not recognizing you that night at the club,” he says, quickly changing subjects. “That last time I saw you, you were hiding behind your father’s legs.”

I try to wiggle out of Leo’s hold and bound to my feet, but his hand tightens around my waist.

“You remember my father?”

Enzo’s mouth curves. “Of course I do. Tony was a good man. Reliable and loyal to a fault. Men like him are hard to replace.”

A cold and harsh realization prickles across my spine. “Then why did he have to die.”

He studies me for a few beats, those dark irises zeroing in on the way Leo’s grip on me tightens. “Some things are better left in the past.”

It’s not a confession. Not by a long shot. But fuck if it doesn’t make my blood boil.

“You look at me like you want revenge,” he says casually. “But trust me, revenge has a funny way of consuming people.” Enzo’s attention shifts back to Leo. “Isn’t that right, Leo?”

Leo lowers his voice. “Just say what you came here to say.”

He smiles faintly, taking a few steps toward the bed. His shoes squeak against the linoleum floor, grating in my eardrums.

“If I wanted you dead, you’d already be six feet in the ground, so calm down,” Enzo sighs. “I’m here to offer you an opportunity to be smarter than Adrian. He always had a way of making things unnecessarily messy. He never learned how to go out on a high note.”

The temperature of the room drops, but I can feel Leo’s skin become hot to the touch.

“This is clearly a warning,” Leo says, lifting his chin in defiance. My heart flutters inside my ribcage.

“Not necessarily,” Enzo smiles, turning his head slowly like a predator preparing to go in for the kill. “Consider it advice from someone who’s old enough to know better.”

“You don’t scare me,” Leo says flatly.

“I should,” Enzo says, making tiny beads of sweat pop up along my hairline. “Unlike Adrian, I have a much larger pool of resources and a particular soft spot for pretty brunettes like your sister. Her name is Maribella, right? She’s enrolled in Columbia and spends entirely too much time alone.”