Page 71 of Lost Prince

“It won’t be a big deal. This guy talks a big game, but he’ll shit his pants if you look at him cross-eyed,” Matteo says as we enter the back room of a laundromat.

“He just needs a reminder of who's in charge and to pay his dues.”

We sit at a table, Matteo explaining the situation as the other man, Carl or something, watches with a smugness that grates on my nerves.

"Heard you've gone soft, Lazaro," Carl sneers, leaning back in his chair. "Lost your edge along with your memory, huh?"

Something snaps inside me. I shoot up, reach across the table, and grab Carl by the throat. Then the red mist takes over. I don't register Matteo's shouts as I pummel the man. All my pent-up anger and hurt pour out in a violent torrent.

“What the fuck, Lazaro!” Matteo grabs me and pushes me against the wall. I nearly take a swing at him, but the feel of the warm stickiness of blood on my knuckles brings me back into my body. Horror washes over me as I stare at my hands, then at Carl’s battered face.

"Jesus Christ," Matteo hisses, dragging me out of the room. "What the fuck was that?"

I can't answer him. My mind is reeling, trying to process the violence I just unleashed. This isn't me. Or is it? Perhaps the old me is returning.

Matteo pulls out his phone, keeping one eye on me. He calls one of Elio’s men to come and deal with Carl.

“You’re not going to kill him, are you?” I croak out.

Matteo purses his lips at me. “Why, you want to finish the job?”

I shake my head. “I didn’t mean… I don’t know what happened.”

“I do. You lost it. Fucking hell, Lazaro. Ever since Diana left, you’re like a ticking time bomb.”

He’s not wrong. Without Diana's calming presence, I'm losing control.

Diana. Her name echoes in my head, bringing a fresh wave of pain. God, I miss her. And clearly, I need her. Diana wasn't just some girl I was sleeping with. She was my anchor, keeping the darkness at bay. Without her, I'm adrift, at the mercy of my worst impulses.

Why had she left? Was it my fault? Was she ready for her next adventure? If I’d told her how I felt, would she have stayed?

Matteo brings me home, and I immediately quarantine myself in my room. My mind is racing with thoughts. Maybe I should leave. I could return to Indiana and go back to being Danny Paine. Like Lana would allow that.

But I can’t live like this anymore. I’ll go mad. I’ll become a liability to the family. I’ll terrify Ava. How do I find balance? Is finding a new balance even possible? Is Diana the only one who could bring that to me?

My fists clench as I think about Diana. Where is she now? Why did she leave without a word? The anger threatens to consume me again. I want to blame her for abandoning me.

I stand and pace the room like a caged animal. Diana left, moved on. It’s her talent. Going forward. Forging a new future. That’s what I need to do. I need to shake off the past—my life in Indiana, the loss of my memory, Diana. I need to let it all go and focus wholeheartedly on my future with my family, in the family business, married to Ava.

This is what's best for everyone, isn't it? Marrying Ava will secure the alliance with the Rinellas, keeping my family safe andour business thriving. It's what the old Lazaro would have done without hesitation, right?

But fuck! I’m not that man anymore. The man I am now craves something different, something real. I crave Diana. She brought light into my world when everything else was darkness. She saw me for who I am, not who I used to be or who everyone wants me to be. She wasn’t afraid of me even as I was afraid of myself.

I rub my chest as if that will get rid of the ache. I've lost my memories, my sense of self, and now I've lost the one person who made me feel whole again.

“Fuck!”

Unable to stay cooped up in my room, I head out, finding myself behind the wheel of my car, aimlessly cruising through Chicago's late-night streets. I tell myself I’m just driving, but every place I pass, I’m looking for Diana. She’s out here somewhere, just beyond my reach.

As I turn down yet another street, I catch a glimpse of a woman with red hair. My heart leaps, but it's not her. It won’t ever be her. She’s probably out of Chicago. Hell, she’s probably out of Illinois.

I brake suddenly as a figure darts across the street. For a split second, I swear it's Diana, her curves silhouetted in the glow of a streetlight. But she vanishes into the shadows, leaving me to wonder if she was ever there at all.

I drive on, chasing ghosts and memories. No, I have to look forward. To do my duty. To fully immerse myself in my family and the family business. To marry Ava. All this spins through my head over and over until I arrive at a place called Northerly Island. I don’t remember it, and yet I feel drawn here.

I pull into a parking lot and see the view of the city. As I drive further, I see a familiar car parked facing the city, a familiar silhouette sitting on the hood taking in the view. I pull up to itand park. As I cut the engine, an inexplicable sense of nostalgia washes over me. It's like a half-remembered dream.

Stepping out of the car, I walk over to where Lana is sitting alone on the hood of the car she told me I’d rebuilt for her.