will find out. And I won’t rest until we find him. Okay?”
Fuck.
He was still out there.
Scott was out there, and Arianne was—
“I have to go to her.”
“I know, Son. Go be with your woman. I’ll call you when I have an update.”
Enzo and Matteo were both standing now, concern glittering in their eyes.
“We’re going to her?” Matteo asked, and I nodded.
“Scott escaped. That fucker managed to get away.”
“Fuck,” Enzo muttered. “What do you need?”
“We need to go to Arianne, now.”
She wasn’t safe.
As long as Scott was out there somewhere, she wasn’t safe.
Luis met us at the gatehouse. His expression said it all; he was as pissed about Scott evading arrest as the rest of us.
“What the hell happened?” he ground out as I got out of the car to greet him.
“We don’t know yet. Have you told Arianne?”
“No, but she knows something is wrong.”
“Okay,” I let out a small breath.
“Come on, she’s inside. Let him through, Harlen.” He motioned to the security guard. He glowered at us, but the gates began to recede.
“Don’t mind him.” Luis gripped my shoulder. “He knows what’s at stake. They all do.”
“You’re a good man, Vitelli.”
Luis gave me a firm nod. “I’ll meet you back at the house. I want to do a perimeter sweep and talk to all the guards.”
“Fucking hell,” Enzo said as I climbed back into the car. “This place is like the White House.”
He wasn’t wrong. The Capizola estate was huge, and right in the center, stood the house with its grand balconies and alabaster pillars flanking the entrance.
“Is that...?” Enzo started to growl.
“Relax.” I levelled him with a hard look. “Roberto knows the deal. He might be a piece of shit, but Arianne is still his daughter. He’ll want her safe.”
He snorted at that, and I knew what he was thinking. Roberto had practically handed Arianne over to Scott and the Fascini, gift-wrapped with a bow.
Anger trickled up my spine, but I shook it off. I wasn’t here for Roberto; I was here for his daughter.
The car rolled to a stop, and we all climbed out.
“You,” Roberto seethed, his eyes alight with contempt.
“Watch it, old man.” Enzo stepped forward, but a voice gave us pause.
“Nicco?” Arianne flew down the steps and didn’t stop until she was in my arms, her face buried in my chest.
“Ssh, Bambolina.” I held her tight. Roberto caught my eye, a strange expression passing over his face.
“Something’s wrong.” Arianne eased back, craning her neck to look at me. “What is it? Tell me.”
I stared down into honey eyes that had captured my soul and never given it back and whispered the two little words that had the power to push me into the darkness. “Scott escaped.”
Her body tensed, her grip on my jacket tightening. “He got away?”
I nodded, watching her expression. But she didn’t break. My strong Bambolina steeled herself and inhaled a sharp breath. “It’s okay,” she said calmly. “You’ll find him.”
“And if we don’t?” someone asked.
“Scott would be a fool to try anything now.” Her eyes never left mine, and then she said nine little words that spun my world. “He knows Nicco would kill him if he did.”
“I...”
“It’s okay.” She leaned up, ghosting her fingers across my jaw. Her warmth seeped into me, wrapping around me and taking hold. “Scott is gone, he can’t hurt me anymore.”
She was too calm.
Too composed.
Enzo glanced at me, arching his brow.
“We need to stay here for now,” I said. “Wait for word from my father. He has his men looking for Scott right now. If he’s still in Verona, we’ll find him.”
Arianne took my hand and started moving toward the door. But Roberto stepped forward. “Figlia mia, I’m not sure—”
“Don’t,” she seethed. “Niccolò is my fiancé, Father. He is here to protect me. To protect us. You are going to make him welcome or you can go retire to your study.” Her eyes bore into his until Roberto dipped his head and nodded.
“Please,” he almost choked over the word, “join us.”
Enzo looked impressed. Matteo grinned. And me? I stared at Arianne with nothing but love and pride for the woman she’d become.
When I’d first met her, she was so unsure and uncertain of her place in the world. But now, standing here, she was strong. And brave. So fucking brave.
She was no longer a pawn in a game she didn’t understand.
She was the Queen.
My Queen.
And I was going to spend my life showing her.
Chapter 30
Arianne
One month later...
“Holy crap, babe, you look...” Nora fanned her face. “Tears, I