Never in my life have I hated being “the girl who ran” as much as I do now. That’s not who I want to be. That’s not who I feel like right now, either. That’s not the person who honors my brother, who intended to stand and fight, not just for himself, but for me and our family heritage.
I don’t know what to do about him knowing too much, but I’m not getting up. I’m not running.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Actually, I do know what to do.
Kace bristles beside me, straightens, and I can feel him about to strike, no doubt in my mind to once again save me, but I beat him to the punch. “Savage is here for me,” I say. “My brother’s missing. Kace helped me make the connection with Walker, who is now helping me find Gio. Which brings me to how I came to that auction at Riptide. I found a letter sent to him by a woman that referenced the violin and the auction house. That’s how I ended up taking the risk to expose myself and come to Riptide.”
“Sofia,” Crystal supplies.
“You know her?” I ask anxiously.
“No, sorry,” she says, “but I remember you asking me about her.” She glances at Mark. “Do you know a Sofia?”
“No,” he says, his attention settling on me. “Did Gio do business with Riptide?”
“I don’t know,” I say. “The reference to the violin and Riptide gave me reason to believe they’d at least made contact, but I don’t believe you had a Gio or Sofia on the guest list.”
“Let me just double-check myself,” Crystal says, pulling out an iPad. “I’ll check the guest list right now for Sofia and Gio.”
“They aren’t on it,” Mark replies with a certainty I don’t question. If he knows, he knows. “That doesn’t mean he didn’t use another name. Do you have a photo of Sofia and Gio?”
“I’ve never met Sofia, but Gio, yes. Yes, I do.” I grab my phone and key up my photos.
Crystal reports on her progress. “No luck. Sorry.”
I slide an image of Gio between Mark and Crystal.
They both inspect his image and then Crystal glances up at me. “He’s very handsome, Aria. I’d remember him. I’ve never seen him before.”
Mark smirks. “Yes. He’s very handsome. I’d remember him as well.”
I blink at Mark and cling to sanity, which means anything besides the discouraging news they’ve just handed me. “Was that a joke?” I ask and glance at Kace. “Did he just tell a joke?”
“Hard to tell,” Kace replies dryly. “He’s a walking corpse.”
Mark flicks him a look. “Says a man who hides behind a violin.”
It’s an interesting comment, one that doesn’t just speak of a deeper friendship between these two than I’d previously recognized. Mark understands Kace. He knows the man beneath the rock star. I wonder how well. His promise that I will run if I know all there is to know about him, has me wondering if any of us fully know Kace.
“And I do it without a stick up my ass,” Kace replies, his arm settling on the back of my chair. “You should try a few activities without that stick in your ass. For instance, sitting here at this table. I suspect it’s painful.”
My eyes go wide, but I swear Mark’s lips quirk ever so slightly, as if he’s amused, before he slips back into cold, hard Mark, and looks at me. “Walker runs our security as well. They have access to anything you need that might help, including the handful of approved guests that didn’t show up to the event.”
“I’ll go down that list myself, too,” Crystal offers, “and see if anyone stands out to me. My assistant, Lori Hamilton, helps out. I’ll discreetly see what she has to offer.”
Discreetly.
Because they know who I am.
We all know they know who I am, and so far, the floor hasn’t opened up and sucked me into a hell of my own making. But Gio is missing, I remind myself. I have to be cautious. The formula would be priceless and for that kind of money, hell might open up and send its own army of demons to collect.
The food arrives. Italian spices tease my nose, and for a bit, the attention for all of us is on the food. After a taste, which Kace attends to with way too much interest, I grade the pasta as excellent. This earns me his charming smile and a kiss. A few bites in, Kace steals an opportune moment when Mark and