he slides into the back seat beside me, freshly showered and wearing a clean suit.
“We should be making moves to hit Raphael. He’s coming for everyone around you, and we should be doing the same. What we need to do is go straight for him.”
“We’ll talk with the Father first, and then go from there. I want answers before I make the call.” I reach across the seat and rest my hand on his knee.
“I’m glad you made it back alive.”
For the first time this morning, he smiles, and his hand covers mine, squeezing it gently.
“As long as you need me, I’m not going anywhere,” he promises before I pull my hand from under his.
The rest of the drive is quiet as I mull over how Raphael could’ve known about my true relationship with Father Antonio. Then it hits me. I remember he showed up at the church the night I vowed for peace. It’s possible he overheard us and put two and two together. I don’t know how long he was hiding in the shadows, watching us.
Trey is first to climb out, and he holds the door to the church open for me to. It’s early, so Father Antonio will be in.
My heels clack against the stone floor as I dig out the bible from my purse. Suddenly, Trey wraps his hand around my arm, pulling me to a stop.
“Don’t move, and don’t look up,” he warns, but I don’t listen.
Dragging my eyes up toward the front of the aisle, the air rushes from my lungs, lodging in my throat.
Gasping, I lean into Trey, knowing he’ll keep me on my feet.
“I told you not to look,” he growls.
Father Antonio’s naked body is hanging on the cross I’ve prayed to all my life, his blood dripping from his feet into a mass pool on the floor beneath him. Open gashes at his wrists and throat are the source, and a single bullet wound sits between his brows.
Shoving against Trey, he loosens his hold, allowing me to walk slowly up the aisle. The Father’s blood is spattered over the white angels and the Virgin Mary statues, the copper smell filling the air. Covering my mouth and nose, I back up a few steps and squeeze my eyes shut.
A heaviness rests across my chest, making it hard to breathe. He was the only person in this world who was at my side and wanted nothing in return. Trey is loyal and always there, but I know he wants more from me. More I won’t and cannot give him.
“We have to go. You can’t be seen here.”
Trey’s right, but it doesn’t sit well with me to leave him alone in this state.
Trey ushers me out through the side door that leads into the alley and back to the car. I don’t care to look around to see if anyone observes us, but I don’t have to, because Trey will.
Back at the house, the first thing I do is pour myself a large measure of scotch.
“First Michael, and now Father Antonio. He’ll be coming for you next,” I murmur, downing the contents of my glass.
“He already tried last night,” he reminds me. It feels like long ago since he told me of the ambush.
“Whoever he had kill Antonio had orders to take their time. What they did to him was… it was like a madman’s art.”
I block Trey out and refill my glass. Trey moves close to me, but I can’t bear his touch.
I thought nothing in this world could hurt me after the heartbreak I suffered ten years ago. I locked down the need for friends and a life I once dreamed of, settling instead for this life of claiming power over Vita. Father Antonio was the only one I held dear to me, and now he’s been taken from me in the most horrific way.
Oh, Raphael is going to pay for this. If he thinks he can take everyone around me down to get to me, I have no choice but to stop it now.
“Ms. Camarco. The mayor and the chief of police are on their way up the drive,” Mary announces, standing in the doorway.
“In the future, they’re not allowed access to the estate without my permission or a warrant,” I inform her before she goes to answer the door.
“Put the drink away and wipe your eyes. No doubt they’re here to inform you of Antonio’s death. Act like you don’t already know.”
Narrowing my eyes at Trey, I shove the glass