Page 118 of Vows of Blood

Nico gives me a salute, the corner of his lip turning up in an almost smile.

“Nico?”

He stops and turns back to me, a question in his eye.

“Find Orlando and keep him somewhere safe for me until I get back.”

Now his smile turns to a broad, shit-eating grin. “With fucking pleasure.”

Sienna blinks, snapping out of her daze, and scans the tent, wondering where her friend has gone. “Rebecca…”

“Enzo has her. I’ll make sure she’s safe.” Corso offers, and I know that of everyone here, Sienna believes he’ll do exactly that.

“Come on.” Taking Sienna by the hand, I lead her away from the mess and out to where Roman is waiting to bring us to a small airstrip close by.

“But I can’t just leave her…”

Roman opens the car door, and Vito hops out, like he’s the VIP Roman’s been chauffeuring around. Instead of hissing at me like he normally does, the ginger prick winds his way between my ankles, rubbing himself against my leg.

“Rebecca’s going to stay here and… catsit… while we’re away,” I state, ignoring Roman’s raised eyebrow, pretending this was always the plan. “Carmella will spoil the two of them. She can rest and recover, lounge by the pool, and get a massage. You’ll see her when we get back.”

Sienna stares back at the mess we’re leaving behind. “It seems wrong to just go.”

Leaning down, I cup her face and press a kiss to her forehead. “We have to. Any deviation from the plan will attract attention. It has to be business as usual.” Taking in her pale skin and still slightly shell-shocked expression, I pull her in for a long hug. “My wife deserves a rest, and I would like a week without any drama.”

A guard comes out of the house with two suitcases and loads them into the trunk of the car. When I slam it shut, Sienna slips into the back seat, already fishing in her bag for the comfortable travel outfit she planned to change into on the plane.

"Let me help you," I say softly, kneeling before her to remove her shoes, running my hand over her slim calf, as I slide them off, one by one, then move around to open the tiny buttons at her back.

She doesn't speak and doesn't resist, just lets me mind her.

The drive is quiet. Once changed, Sienna curls against me in the back seat, her face buried in my neck, our fingers tangled together.

“Are you mad at me for not telling you sooner?” she whispers, and I shake my head.

“How could I be? You are so strong, my love, but I’m sorry you had to be.” I hold her with one arm and smooth out the crumpled sonogram with my other hand, staring at the grainy image, and the tiny blur that was supposed to be our child. “Now, though, you lean on me. And we’ll be stronger together.”

While I was recovering, Sienna was facing her own battle, one I knew nothing of and was infinitely worse than the simple physical pain I endured.

“Are you sad?” Sienna asks. “I mean, he wasn’t a good man, but he was your father.”

“Sad? No, that’s definitely not what I am.”

The rage that rises in me is so vast that I can barely contain it. I want to bring him back just so I kill him again, and watch the light leave his eyes, only slowly this time. But the woman in my arms needs me more than I need to vent my fury.

And soon, I’ll get the chance to vent my anger on Orlando instead.

The airfield is quiet when we arrive, and I carry Sienna up the stairs to the family jet, setting her gently on the edge of one white leather seat.

“The one thing I am…” I cup Sienna’s face and kiss her lips gently, “is excited to be your husband and begin our new life together.”

She smiles, but I can see the questions lurking behind her exhaustion, and the things she's afraid to ask.

"You can say it." I settle into the seat beside her, pulling her legs across my lap before giving the co-pilot a nod when he pokes his head into the cabin, checking if we’re ready to go. "Whatever's going through your head, just say it."

Sienna is quiet for a long moment, her fingers twisting together in her lap. When she finally speaks, it’s so soft I have to lean in to hear it. "I saw you shoot someone."

I sit forward, pulling her hands into mine, staring down at them instead of at her to give her space to get her words out. "You did."