Page 116 of Lorenzo

Rachel straightens without a trace of weakness.

The tears remain on her cheeks, but the woman behind them has changed.

“You think you can scare me into saying whatever you want?” she asks.

Her voice is cold and firm now, no trace of the trembling and stuttering from before.

Lorenzo studies her. “I have no interest in making you say anything.”

“Then what do you want?”

“What I want is irrelevant,” he says. “What’s going to happen is we’re going to march you into the police station so they can drop every charge against my son.”

Rachel’s eyes narrow.

“That’s it?” she says. “You’re going to turn me in to the police? The great and scary Contis?”

Lorenzo’s expression does not change. “You mistake restraint for weakness. I have priorities.”

Rachel gives a short, humorless laugh. “They’ll never be able to pin anything real on me. I’ll be out before you know it.”

Lorenzo smiles then. Even from all the way here, I can feel terror slide through my bones, and it’s not even aimed at me.

I see Rachel recoil slightly.

“You’re mistaken,” he says softly. Then louder: “Search her car.”

His people moved toward the car immediately, wearing gloves.

Her gaze flicks back to me wildly. “You're just going to stand there while he does this? Searches my car and threatens me?”

“I haven't heard any threats,” I say innocently.

Lorenzo glances toward one of his people. “Keep her there.”

A man steps beside Rachel, close enough to stop her if she moves.

She looks at Lorenzo. “You can’t hold me here.”

He does not answer.

He comes back to stand beside me while two of his people open the doors and trunk.

Neither of us speaks.

They search methodically, removing bags, checking beneath the seats, opening compartments, and running their hands along the lining.

Rachel keeps watching them, but every few seconds, her eyes cut toward us.

Lorenzo gives her nothing.

I don’t either.

One of the men searching her car opens the trunk.

Rachel’s attention jerks toward him too fast.

The man looking in the trunk straightens with a bag in his hand.