Page 47 of Mafia King's Secret Baby

It’s almost convincing.

“I don’t believe you. One phone call to Marco. From the plane,” I nod.

“And she knows I am her father.”

“When you deserve it,” I whisper.

I watch that tension ripple across Elio’s face again.

Finally, he nods.

“When I deserve it.”

10

ELIO

When I deserve it.

The way that Caterina looked at me left no doubt in my mind that she thought I was a monster. She hadn’t needed to say the words, because they were plainly written on her features.

She absolutely thought that I was capable of taking out a hit on my own child.

And the woman who watched over her. Theelderlywoman, who was their grandfather’s sister.

I didn’t know which was more shocking. The fact that Caterina had thought me capable of unspeakable cruelty that went beyond the bounds of any that I have heard so far.

Or the fact that she refused to let Luna know I was her father.

I meant what I said. I did not have to ask Caterina’s permission for any of it. I could take Luna, tell her Caterina had abandoned her, and raise her as my own.

I could send Caterina away, making a formal declaration of war between the De Lucas and myself, so that any of our retaliatory actions would be sanctioned by the powers that be.

I could do all of that.

However. Every time I thought of doing any of those things, of taking the action that I wanted to, the action that I should as the leader of my family, Caterina’s eyes flashed at me, full of fire and anger despite the gloom of the New Jersey sky.

Monster.

I would be a monster then.

I would be as ugly on the inside as I knew myself to be.

And Caterina would know it then as well.

That thought, more than any other, kept me from doing what I had every right to do.

And take back my daughter.

My daughter.

Even now, the words still rock me.

Caterina figured out about ten minutes after her phone call with Marco that we weren’t heading back to the little mansion in Florida. No, if I was going to have my daughter on board, then I was going to be somewhere else entirely.

Thank God they were able to fuel the jet up completely at Newark.

Otherwise, we wouldn’t be able to get to Italy without falling out of the sky.