25. Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

Daniella

It’s been hours since the last time Lorenzo came to my room and I am still as confused as I was the first time he was there.

Everything that has happened has just been swirling in my brain, a part of me is hoping or wishing or praying that I can close my eyes and then open them and this whole thing will have just been a dream.

I cannot imagine that the person I had considered my friend, my best friend, my confidant, has actually been a whole other person, different from what I had thought.

She has lied to me, deceived me and manipulated me in so many ways. I’m not even willing to consider or think about it too hard.

I have been asking myself all this time, has everything been a lie? Did she approach me on purpose, which now that I think about it, it’s probably a dumb question because, of course she approached me on purpose.

How did she get into my workplace? How did she get a job at my company? How long has she been waiting to get close to me? How is she connected to Jeremy?

Okay, I mean, I know how she is connected to Jeremy now, but why? Why did Jeremy lie to me? It kind of feels like I don't know who he is.

It feels like everything I have known about Jeremy has completely changed as well. I mean, I knew that he was hiding something. I knew about the finances. I knew about the money laundering. It is one thing that he worked for the mafia. It's another thing to be a fucking double agent for the mafia, lying and betraying and cheating everyone around you, including me.

I am starting to wonder if he ever even loved me or if I was just another pawn, a decoy in the long scheme of his. And then there is the issue of Massimo.

Massimo sending me here, Massimo telling me about Jeremy’s last days. It was way too convenient to be a coincidence. Was it intentional?

Did he send me there knowing this was all going to happen? What was his intention behind sending me to Lorenzo? How did he know how this entire thing would play out?

And speaking of Lorenzo, I don't know how to feel about him because I am not willing to admit it yet, but I feel things for him. I feel strong things for him.

And even if I did not feel anything for him, he is the father of my child. And now I don't know what to do. I don't know how to process all of these things that I am feeling.

I don't know what to do right now. Just as I'm thinking these thoughts, my phone rings and I see that it's a call from Mark.

I don't pick it up. I decline the call because I don't know what to say to him.

But then I text him, Hey, I'll call you back later. I cannot talk right now.

To which he responds, Okay, but please let me know quickly. We need to figure out what our plan of action is.

What do I do? How do I explain to him that I want to back out of this? More importantly, do I want to back out of this? Am I suddenly changing my entire plan of getting revenge for Jeremy because of my new discoveries?

Does it mean that Jeremy is no longer deserving of my effort or my time? It's all overwhelming.

I get up and look at my face in the mirror, my hair unwashed, black circles around my eyes, bags like Gucci and Prada hanging below my eye sockets. I look a mess, but I cannot even worry about that right now. I leave the room.

As I step out of the room, I hear voices and one of them sounds like Renee’s. I stay by the corner behind the wall and listen in.

“I know it’s wrong, but honestly, if we are judging people's actions by a moral compass, she has done a lot worse to me. I feel like I deserve this one gray area.”

Unfortunately for me, she seems to be at the end of the conversation. She sighs, and it sounds heavy and deep.

“Okay, I understand. Thank you for telling me,” she says, and ends the call.

Before I can hide, she sees me, and she sighs. “Hey, how are you doing?” she asks me.

I disregard her question. “Who was that? What's wrong?” I ask her.

Renee looks at me, and there is something in her eyes, something I cannot quite put my finger on. It’s an emotion I cannot properly express, but it looks a lot like grief.

“Daniella, Dani, listen. Lorenzo…”

She doesn't even complete the sentence before my heart goes into overdrive.

“Lorenzo? What happened to him? What's wrong?”

My heart is beating two times faster than its normal rate and it feels like it's about to run out of my rib cage and across the hallway.

“He's been shot,” she tells me, and it feels like I have misheard her.

Surely, I have misheard her. There's no way she just said now that Lorenzo has been shot. Lorenzo is invincible.

Come on, he's the fucking Capo. He's the fucking mafia, the fucking Cosa Nostra. How can he be shot?

But she's here, and she's saying it. I feel like I'm spacing out. Her lips are moving, but I can't hear what she's saying.

“Dani? Dani? Are you okay? Can you hear me?”

She grips my shoulders, shaking me a little bit, and I come to.

“I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I just...Lorenzo. Where is he? I need to see him. I need to see him now. Please, please.”

“Daniella, it’s too dangerous. You can’t leave the house. Massimo’s men are still out there.”

“Please, Renee, please,” I beg, my voice breaking. “I need to see him. I need to know he’s okay.”

She shakes her head, tears in her eyes. “I’m sorry, Daniella. I can’t let you go. It’s not safe.”

“Renee, you don’t understand. I have to see him. I have to know he’s going to be okay.”

But she remains firm, her resolve unyielding.

“Dani, I'm so sorry. I wish I could take you. I really wish I could take you. But Massimo's men are still out there. There's a lot still happening and I cannot take you right now. Lorenzo is not going to forgive me if anything happens to you. And goodness, our relationship is already on thin enough ice as it is right now.”

I open my mouth to plead again, but she turns away.

“I have to go now. I’ll keep you updated, I promise.”

She leaves and I’m left standing there, my world crashing down around me.

The minutes crawl by, each one an eternity. I pace the hallway, my mind racing with worry and fear. I can’t just sit here and do nothing. I have to find a way to see him, to make sure he’s okay.

I don't know what to do right now, but Lorenzo has been shot. From the looks and sounds of what she was saying, he's in critical condition. To make matters worse, she won't let me see him.

What am I supposed to do? What the heck does she think I'm going to do, just sit down here and do nothing? I'm spiraling, I know.

I cannot keep my thoughts under control. All I can see in my head is a picture of a bloody Lorenzo on the floor, blood oozing from him as he slowly dies, and I am here, unable to do anything. If he dies, the last thing I would have said to him was how much I hated him.

I'm still trying to process all of this when I feel a presence behind me. I turn, and I see Victor, Lorenzo's right-hand man.

I've never been a fan of Victor because he seems like a ghoulish person. He's someone who would act before thinking.

He's someone who is brash with his thoughts, his words, and his actions. It always speaks in the things that he says, the things that he does and the way he treats people around him. But right now, he does not look like any of that. He looks like he sees my pain and understands it.

"Hey, Daniella, listen, I know how much you care about my boss and I know how much he cares about you. And I know that he would absolutely be pissed off that I'm doing this, but if you really want to see him, I will take you to him."

I can hardly believe this is happening. I mean, it feels like a gift from heaven. I just cannot say no to this.

"Thank you," I grab his shirt. "Thank you so much. Thank you."

Tears are streaming down my face, but I don't even care right now that he's seen me in such a state of disarray. I'm just too grateful.

"Thank you so much."

We head to his car and I climb into the passenger seat, my heart racing with a mix of fear and hope. As we drive, I try to calm my nerves, focusing on the thought of seeing Lorenzo again.

But something feels off. Victor isn’t heading toward the hospital. He takes a turn that leads us away from the city and a sense of unease settles in my stomach.

“You’re going the wrong way,” I say, my voice tinged with panic.

He says nothing, his jaw set in a hard line.

“Victor, where are you going?” I demand, my fear escalating.

He glances at me, his eyes cold. “Just sit back and be quiet. You’ll find out soon enough.”

Panic surges through me and I reach for the door handle, but it’s locked. Victor pulls out a gun and points it at me, his expression unyielding.

“Don’t do anything stupid. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay quiet.”

Honestly, can a girl just catch a break? This entire situation is making me want to lose my shit, but I cannot because right now, I have to remain logical. I have to have it together.

I have to keep my wits about me. This is clearly a kidnapping situation and if all the movies I have watched are right, he’s going to take me to a secluded or remote area, and then he will call Lorenzo to demand a ransom.

Now the funny thing is that he really believes Lorenzo is going to give them any money for me. I don't know if that is going to be the case because Lorenzo probably does not care for me as much as Victor believes he does.

It's going to be a really big disappointment for him and a really bad situation for me when he refuses to pay whatever ridiculous amount of money Victor asks for.

I turn to face Victor. "You're making a mistake, you know. You know the person you work for. You know what kind of man he is. You know they don't call him the Ghost for no reason."

Victor laughs and looks back at me. "Please. Maybe in the past. Maybe three years ago. Fuck, maybe even two months ago, I would have believed that. But he's grown soft. He needs to be hardened. I refuse to work for somebody who allows a woman to control his every action and whim."

I'm struck by the venom in his words. He seems angry. He seems upset.

I have just one question in my mind. It’s the same question that has been repeating in my mind since this entire situation started.

"Why? Why are you doing this?" I ask him.

"You'll see soon enough. Or maybe not. It doesn't matter either way. You have a role to play in this and as long as you play your part perfectly, you'll be all right."

His words hang in the air, heavy with implication. The car speeds through the city, and I feel a deep sense of foreboding.

What role am I supposed to play? And why does Victor believe this is necessary? The uncertainty gnaws at me, but I know one thing: I have to stay sharp and find a way out of this.

The car speeds down the road, taking me further away from everything I know, everything I love. And all I can think about is Lorenzo, lying in a hospital bed, fighting for his life while I’m being driven to God knows where.

The darkness outside the window mirrors the darkness closing in around me and I can’t help but wonder if I’ll ever see Lorenzo again.