Page 15 of Deacon
Instead, I had Amos, a private investigator at our law firm, the Waring Partners, look into him.
He uncovered shady as fuck intel, tied to Massimo’s very poor financial literacy, but I kept the file to myself, not wanting to stress Ana with it.
However, I now made sure Christine watched Raff at Ana’s house whenever that prick was around.
I didn’t trust him, and thank fuck the bastard was now stuck on some movie set in Italy for the foreseeable future.
Ana checked her gold watch.
‘When are you off again?’
‘Six hours. You?’
‘My flight to Addis Ababa leaves at midnight.’
‘Your team prepped for what to expect?’
She blinked at my insistent demand.
‘What?’
I took my time explaining what I meant, needing her to understand the gravity of what I was freakin’ asking.
‘Will you be safe? You’re heading into isolated territory. No phones, zero electricity, and reports of wild bandits. You need comms, satellite handsets, even weapons.’
She took an inhale.
‘My editor has it covered; we’ve got a competent crew.’
‘You sure about that?’
‘You’re not the only one who can make a call on my safety, Deacon.’
She didn’t appreciate my pushiness, her lips pursing in displeasure as I fenced her in.
She changed the subject.
‘When do you arrive in Mijas?’
‘Tomorrow morning,’ I murmured. ‘Christine sent you our address and schedule?’
‘She did,’ she said, nodding, her mouth tightening. ‘Remember to take Raff’s EpiPen and take care at restaurants.’
‘I know how to protect our son, De Stella,’ I muttered.
The air between us simmered with years of scarred emotion, unhealed wounds, and tension.
We locked eyes for a long time, a tumultuous, soul-searching moment that sent shivers down my spine.
It was a twisted ritual we fell into every time we met, since our crash course through to painful divorce.
As if to question whether the choices we made about each other still stood up to scrutiny.
Our gazes stayed locked until I called it, my voice just a shade above frigid.
‘Anything else?’
She whirled to leave, then paused on the top step, opening her mouth as if to say more, but she shook her head and reconsidered.
