Page 4 of Forbidden War (Forbidden 2)
“I don’t know what to think anymore.”
“No one knows I’m here. At least, not yet.”
He approaches me slowly, almost reluctantly. His face is still bruised, but I don’t see any signs of fresh punishment. It makes me feel a little better, as long as I don’t think too much about him getting caught here with me, on Bellanti property.
“Look, Karina—”
“What the hell is this?”
Adrenaline rushing, I spin toward the angry voice behind me and see Marco stalking down the drive. His face is pure fury and he reaches behind him with one hand. My pulse roars to a staccato as I anticipate the gun he’s about to pull.
“Stop! This is my cousin!” I shout. “Please don’t hurt him.”
“Cousin, huh?” Marco says suspiciously. “Where do you think you’re going, Karina?”
“I advised her to stay here, but she refused. I just want her to be safe.” Mercutio frowns as he straightens to his full height.
Marco moves in front of me, facing off with my cousin. “I’m her husband. She’s safe anywhere that I am.”
I can’t hold back the sarcastic huff that bursts out of me. Marco looks over at me, eyes narrowed, questioning.
“I heard what you said to your brother,” I tell him. “And I have no desire to stay here another second.”
Anticipation fills me as I wait for his response, his explanation. His denial of anything other than his love for me. But he looks between me and Mercutio instead, working his jaw.
“It’s too late to run away, Karina. War has already been declared,” Marco says. “If you go back to your family now, you’ll be officially declaring yourself for their side. And yeah, best-case scenario, you end up married to Pietro…but in all honesty, my money says you’ll be dead before morning. Just like Father Alfredo.”
“Wh—what?” I stutter, my stomach dropping. “The priest?”
He nods, looking stricken, and my hopes fall like a brick that holds me to the ground.
“He’s right, Karina.” Mercutio moves around my husband and takes my arm. His big eyes are pleading.
“But I don’t want to be involved in this! I want out!” I say, my voice gone shrill.
Merc just shakes his head. “You might not want to be a player, but once Uncle Sergio gets his hands on you, he’ll make you his sacrificial lamb just to prove a point. I can’t protect you. All hell has broken loose at home already.”
“What do you mean?” I ask. “What did he do?”
But my cousin won’t say. “You don’t want to know, okay? Trust me. And even if you do manage to hide out for a few days, Sergio will find you no matter what cheap motel I drop you off at. I was thinking the whole way here of where else you could go. Hell, I’d take you up into Canada if I thought it would keep you safe, but you’d have to spend the rest of your life running, and in the end, they’d find you anyway. I’m sorry, Karina. I can’t let you do this.”
I’ve never seen Mercutio so resolute.
Or so scared.
And as much as my heartbreak is killing me, one thing is certain: I don’t want to die.
“Leave without me, then,” I tell Merc. Tears flood my eyes as I loop my arms around his neck. “What about you? What’s going to happen to you?”
Marco shifts his feet on the gravel behind me. “Considering what happened to Father Alfredo, your cousin better lay low, too. My advice, don’t go back to the house. Take a trip. Quietly disappear.”
“I’m neutral,” Merc tells him.
“Not anymore,” Marco says. “They’re going to know you were here. Neutrality won’t be an option your uncle is likely to accept. Not after putting a hit out on a priest.”
Merc hesitates before nodding and hugging me back tightly. I can’t seem to let go of him. He was the only source of acceptance and friendship I had in that house, even though he gave it reluctantly. I don’t know when—or if—I’ll ever see him again.
“Come on, kid. You’re going to be okay.” He pats my back.
I sniffle. “No, I’m not.”
Merc gives me one last squeeze and gently pulls away. “I’ll be in touch. Don’t worry. Stay safe. Stay alive. You hear me?”
I nod. It’s all I can do.
He eyes my husband. “Nice time of year for a trip up the coast. Think I might take your advice. I could use a vacation.”
With a wave, he gets back in the car.
As I watch Mercutio drive away, my stomach clenches in fear. If he knows what’s good for him, his impromptu “trip up the coast” will turn out to be an international flight to somewhere remote and off grid. Someplace where he can stay under the radar until this war is over.
I can only hope it will be enough to keep him alive.
