Page 28 of Queen of Misfortune (Shadows of Redemption)

“Why?”

Liam sips his drink and shrugs. “It’s been years since he sent her off to Italy. She’s been with you, Niko, for days. I don’t doubt you put the screws to her. Did she say anything?”

“She wasn’t tortured.” Niko glares at Liam.

“She doesn’t like her father.” I decide I need a drink too and go to the bar. “If she knew something she thought could hurt him, or moreover, help Elena, she’d have said it.”

“How do you know?” Liam asks.

I still as I’m about to pour, worried Liam can see through me. That he can see I’d rather be lost in Lucy’s body than here with them.

“She said as much, remember, Niko?” I glance at Liam. “When we were putting the screws to her.”

Liam purses his lips and rolls his eyes at me.

“Donovan’s right. She asked me to kill her father.”

I gape. “When?”

He shrugs. “Recently. It doesn’t matter. What matters is why Giovanni is looking for her.”

“Maybe it’s as simple as he wants to kill her.” This time, Liam sits in one of the leather chairs, taking another sip of his drink.

“Why?”

“It’s Giovanni Fiori we’re talking about here. She was his prize until she took up with some young man. Rumor is that Giovanni made her watch as he put a gun to the kid’s head and blew it off.”

I recoil at the idea.

“She disrespected him by being with another man. She ruined herself… in Giovanni’s eyes. Honestly, I think she was lucky he didn’t kill her then. Giuseppe must have paid a pretty penny to have her.”

I’m trying not to gape as I hear all this.

“Maybe we should send her back,” Niko says.

A maelstrom of thoughts whirls through my mind. Lucy, back in Italy? With Luca? My jaw clenches as I wrestle with the desire to keep her close and the need to ensure her safety because maybe she would be safer there.

“That only works if Giovanni believes that Luca sees her as being part of the Conti family. And it doesn’t stop Giovanni from negotiating with Luca to get her back,” Liam says.

I have this horrible thought of Niko negotiating with Giovanni as a way to protect Elena.

“Elena won’t like anyone negotiating anything that results in Lucy going back to Giovanni,” I say.

“True.” Niko’s word gives me some relief.

“We should keep her close,” I say, hoping I sound like an advisor and not a man who has a hardon for Niko’s soon-to-be sister-in-law.

Niko nods. “She could be the key to luring Giovanni to his death.”

The idea of using Lucy as bait doesn’t sit well, but I bite my tongue. Niko has decided to keep her close, and that’s what I focus on.

“Besides, Luca has his hands full making sure no factions see Giuseppe’s death as an opportunity,” Liam reminds Niko.

“That won’t take long. Everyone knows Luca’s been in charge for years.” Niko dismisses Liam’s concern. “Besides, Giovanni may have his ear to the ground for Lucia, but he’s hiding. There’s no doubt about it. The Feds are circling, waiting for the fallout of the firefight the other night."

“Waiting is fucked,” Niko says.

Liam laughs. “You were the one who said we should bide our time.”