Page 12 of Vow of Sin
“If she’s dead and the boy is believed to be a bastard child, then who is receiving all of the money that’s been sent? How is the money not explained?” I ask, his eyes narrowed as he stares at me.
Got you, asshole.
“Lorenzo De Luca, Elena’s father, agreed to not track down the man she had Frankie with if he received funds each month. The account is under a fake name so that Luis’ contributions couldn’t be traced. If there’s one thing Lorenzo loves more than killing, it’s money.”
I look at him now, really look at him. And what I see is a dark man that not only holds his own secrets, but the secrets of others as well. Perhaps Nico is the right one to rule this business. He’s a damn good liar and great at withholding information. He’s the perfect man for the job. He’s the perfect man for stabbing someone in the back and then turning around and lying his way through it. I guess if someone can get away with murder everyday, they can get away with withholding the truth about his best friend’s infidelity.
I can’t believe I let myself become attracted to him, to let my body feel lust for him. He may be beautiful and made for fucking, but he’s a demon in disguise. He’s a person that can make you feel pleasure, strong enough to fuck in a bathroom during a funeral, but he’s also the person that can smile at you one minute then shoot you in the head the next. He’s the goddamn devil and quite honestly, he’s probably even worse than my dead, cheating husband.
I stare at him for a while, all of this information swirling around in my head like a tornado. Honestly, I feel like I’m either going to pass out or get sick. I don’t think I can handle anymore, so I decide to stay silent while I finish my drink. I uncross my legs and stand, smoothing down my dress before I gather all of the statements and photos and set them back in the folder with the key. I close it and slap down the expense report on top of it before I toss it all into his lap.
“Here’s this month's expense report that you asked for. I’d say that the missing twenty grand should be investigated, but we both know where that went.” I hiss, setting down my empty glass on the antique coffee table before I turn and walk to the doorway.
When he calls my name, I turn and look at him over my shoulder. He is frowning and the longer I look at him, the more I realize that he’s telling the truth. He looks exhausted right now, beaten down and angry with the fact that he just had to tell me everything. Poor fucking Nico.
“This is why you’re here, isn’t it? To keep his secrets and clean up his messes.” I say, his Adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as he swallows and stares at me.
“Don’t be stupid and run off telling everyone, Scarlett. It will start a war that neither of us are prepared for.” He warns and I can’t help but laugh.
“I’m not a stupid woman, Nico. What I am now, is a liar. Because of the both of you.” I say, rubbing my jaw as I bite my lip and look up to the ceiling.
“He always did get what he wanted, didn’t he?” I ask, sniffing back all of the unshed tears before I leave him in the living room and walk through the foyer.
When I reach the staircase, Camila rounds the corner with a wide smile on her face. I want so much to go to her and hug her, but I stop myself. As much as I want someone to talk to about this, Nico is right. It would start a war. The De Luca’s are ruthless people. They kill for sport and right now, our family is considered weak since we’ve lost the head of our organization. I am not prepared to deal with the repercussions if this information gets leaked.
“Scar! I almost have dinner ready, my love, but I wanted to ask you something while I have you here.” Camila says, her hand resting on my arm as I offer her a fake smile.
“Of course, what can I help you with?” I ask.
“I know that Luis’ celebration of life is this coming weekend, I just wanted to see if there was anything you needed help with?” she asks and I swear, I have to physically stop myself from letting more tears rush forward.
After today, the last thing I want to do is plan an event celebrating the life of a liar, of the man that has single handedly ruined everything for me in a matter of weeks. I really don’t have it in me to go through all of the preparations right now. Quite honestly, I want to pack all of my belongings and run away to start a new life, but I know all of that is impossible and is just wishful thinking.
“Actually, yeah. Can you call the event planner and give her the details that I have? There’s a folder in my purse that she can pick up along with the credit card for payment. That would help me out a lot.” I say and she smiles as she nods her head at me.
“Of course, do you have a location in mind?” she asks and I think for a moment.
I originally wanted to have it here, but right now, I don’t think I can take any more memories of him in this house. Right now, I want to wipe all of them clean.
“Yeah um…the country club downtown.” I say, Luis’s favorite business being the best location for something like this, especially since it’s one of the businesses I never go to.
It’s for Manhattan's elite, a place that I’ve only gone to when he wanted me to, to serve as his arm candy. Which now appears as the only thing I ever was to him, arm candy. Not a wife or a partner. Certainly not a person that he loved enough to trust.
“Perfect! I’ll call her now and arrange for her to pick everything up tomorrow morning. Come, dinner is about done.” she says as she turns towards the direction of the large kitchen.
“I’ll be down in a minute.” I say. “ I just need to freshen up.” I smile at her and she nods as she walks off towards the kitchen, calling over her shoulder as she disappears from view.
“Don’t be too long, Sofia is on her way and Antonio is starving.” she says and I sigh.
Antonio is an old guard we had promoted to one of the business handlers. He’s a long time friend of the family and a very special friend to me. Many of the nights that Luis would be gone and Sofia wasn’t able to come around, Antonio was there to keep me company. He taught me how to count cards and throw a nasty right hook. He’s also able to see through people’s bullshit, especially mine. He’s better at it than Sofia and now both of them will be in the same room with me, just hours after I found out all of this bullshit.
“Sounds great!” I holler, rubbing my forehead as I climb the stairs to my bedroom.
I pass by Luis and I’s old room, staring at the double doors long and hard before I grunt and push them open. I slam them behind me and walk to my closet, ripping away all of my clothes and throwing them on the bed with my shoes, purses and jewelry. I empty out everything that is mine and throw it into my designer luggage. When I have four bags zipped up and by the door, I scan the room. It feels like it belongs to a stranger now, which I guess in theory, it always has. I spot the photo of us on our wedding day that stands on his nightstand. I walk to it and hold it in my hands, that fiery rage building inside of me once more. A million memories flash through my head and before I can bear anything else, I throw the frame at the wall, glass shattering onto the floor with our photo. I rip my wedding ring off and throw it in one of his drawers before I slam it shut.
Then, I grab my luggage, open the doors and set it in the hallway. I turn around and go to one of the spare closets in the bedroom, pulling out a chain, lock and matching key before I walk back into the hallway and slam the door behind me. I wrap the chain around the door handles and put the lock around it before I lock it with the key and throw that into one of my bags. I turn away from the room and walk to my new bedroom, throwing all of my bags inside before I shut the door and sit on the bed.
Fuck Luis Romero for all of his lies and his bullshit. Fuck him for making me play the part of the perfect wife while he was off being an asshole of a husband. He may have had a love child with the woman he was in an affair with, but that was years ago. Who’s to say the man didn’t fuck anyone else? Honestly, I know for a fact that if he did, the women only wanted him for his money. Sure, he was good looking, but he was terrible in bed. And that says a lot, considering the fact that he’s the only man that I slept with.