her feet and grabs her purse before leaning down to kiss his leathery cheek, promising, “I’ll visit again soon.”
“Not for a while, you won’t. But I have no plans to go anywhere.”
With one last smile for me, I stand and go to follow Mila out of the room when he calls out my name. Stopping, I turn around, giving him my full attention.
“Everything you wished for as a boy is in the cusp of your hand. Reach out and take it, Raphael. Destiny allows for mistakes, but Vita can’t take many more, nor can you.”
Mila’s waiting outside, looking off in the distance. The streets are unusually quiet for this time of day, and it’s eerie. Not even gunshots echo over the city.
“The tunnel in his drawing, I’ve seen it before. I’ve walked through it before,” she announces as we head for the car.
“And?” I ask, opening the door for her.
Without responding, she climbs inside and I round the car, climbing in behind the wheel.
“It leads from the Camarco estate out of the city. My father made sure I knew to use it in case your father got past his men.”
Breathing through a sigh, I slam my hand against the wheel.
“It’s an escape.” Shit. “The Father sees us running.”
She shakes her head. “He didn’t sense fear. He said it felt like the calm before the storm.”
No matter how she deciphers his vision, I see us having to run. Why else would we be heading out of the city? A city we have fought over for years?
Chapter Thirty-Two
Jamila
We’re both quiet as Raphael drives to my estate. I’m thinking over Father Luke’s vision, and while I believe it’s not life-ending or damning for us, the tension rolling off of Raphael’s shoulders tells me he doesn’t agree. I keep waiting for him to voice his thoughts on the matter, but he keeps his mouth shut and his hands wrapped around the wheel so tight, the skin over his knuckles turn white. It doesn’t matter if he doesn’t agree with me, seeing as we haven’t seen eye to eye these past years, and yet we’re still breathing and living to see another day. He conceded to me, and with that he gave up all right to choose the direction we take against the DiMarco’s. Though I will value his opinion. However different I feel about him now, I do know him to be a smart man, and I won’t discredit him just because I can.
“Is it normal for your gates to be open with no guards?”
Snapping my focus out the front window, Raphael comes to a stop before driving through the gates where two dead guards are lying on the ground.
“No, it’s not. Carry on.”
“Your guards are dead, and you want to mosey on inside where we’re most likely going to be trapped?”
When he finally looks at me, the battle between us seems to grow. I learn very quickly. I’ve had no choice but to stay alive and hold on to the head position in the family around men who think they can do better. I learn he wants to retreat until we have the men to send in and investigate for me, all without him saying a word. That may be how he works, but it’s not how I do things.
“This estate is mine, and I will not be deterred by anyone. Drive.”
“Sometimes, I think you want to die,” he mutters, putting the car in gear.
As he drives along, my eyes dart everywhere—behind every bush, every tree. And as we get closer, to every window, looking for moving shadows.
“It’s too quiet.”
“Probably because no one’s here,” I counter.
“Who’s that?” he asks, lifting a finger from the wheel, pointing to the main doors.
I smile at the round-bellied man and say, “My cook, Sebastian.”
He’s alive, his terror evident. If there was danger here, he would give me a sign. He starts to come over as I climb out of the car.
“Ms. Camarco, I heard shots, and the guards aren’t answering my calls!”
This man, always so calm, is trembling with fear.
“They’re dead, Sebastian. Did no one come to the house?”
Shaking his head, his curly hair bounces with the movement. “No, Ms. Camarco, no one came inside.”
Placing my hand on his arm, I nudge him until he gets the hint to go inside while Raphael scopes out the surroundings as he joins us, locking the door behind him.
“Call all the staff here, please. I wish to make an announcement.”