Page 13 of By Blade, I Love
Leo swallowed like he didn’t want to say. “He’s in this hole…with everyone else…left to rot.”
I shook my head. The boss deserved better than that.
“He said he’ll shoot me if I try to bury him. There are flies everywhere.” He swallowed again like he was about to burst into tears.
I could never tell Francesca this.
“Everyone else at the vineyard was forced to work for him. If anyone resisted, Warren would kill their families. So now they’re doing stuff at the vineyard but also whatever he says.”
“And what do you do?”
His voice broke when he spoke. “Whatever he says. He took my home and gave it to one of his lieutenants. I sleep in the car or on the couch. He keeps tabs on me at all times. Said he’ll kill me if I try to run.”
I didn’t feel bad for him whatsoever. “His endgame?”
“Watch everyone get rocked by the Skull King, while he runs the arms business. He wants to expand it.”
So Leo had walked right into his trap. Delivered him the perfect opportunity to take the most thriving business on the island. It was so stupid I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t watched it happen.
“I’ll help you even if it gets me killed.”
“Good, because you’re dead either way.”
His eyes dropped again. “I’m glad Frankie got away. She killed so many of Warren’s men. I thought she was going to take them all down by herself.”
A visceral sense of pride rushed through me at the image of her holding her own against a whole crew, blowing off their heads and limbs. “Which is why your father chose her instead of you. And now I have to kill Warren and get that vineyard back because I’m not going to let some asshole take that away from her.”
His eyes found mine again.
“And I’m going to let you rot just like your father when I’m finished.”
5
FRANCESCA
I held my breath until I got that text from Wolfe.
On my way home, baby.
My body relaxed into the chair, and I felt a wave of relief wash over me. It was the first time I’d felt something else besides grief. It was the first time I’d felt gratitude in a long time.
About an hour later, he came up the stairs. His clothes weren’t covered in blood, so I assumed everything went well.
I got off the couch and went to him. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
A smirk widened across his face as I came into his chest and hugged him. He scooped his arm around my back, and he pressed a kiss to my forehead. He left his lips there as he held me in the living room.
I was the one to move away first. I stood back and looked into his espresso-colored eyes. “How’d it go?”
“According to plan.”
“Yeah?”
“I was able to get Leo alone in a seamstress shop. Had a nice little chat.”
My brother used to mean the world to me, but now I couldn’t hear his name or picture his face without wanting to split his skull open with an axe.
“Gave him a phone. Told him I want to know Warren’s whereabouts beforehand. The only way I’m going to ambush him is when he doesn’t know it’s coming.”
