Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 591(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
When I awoke later, the thin streaks of sunlight were no longer visible through the cracks in the drapes.
A dark form leaned over me.
I leaned up on my forearms as my eyes adjusted to the dark interior. “Matteo?”
A cloth with a cloyingly sweet scent was thrust against my nose and mouth.
I struggled, but with each passing second my limbs became more weighed down until there was nothing but heavy... suffocating… darkness.
CHAPTER 49
ANTONIA
“Ew. What the fuck is she wearing? Are those sweatpants?”
“Princess, we don’t have much time,” pleaded Fino.
I gritted my teeth and bit back a snarky retort.
I detested pet names.
Reminding myself that I needed Fino’s stupid cooperation, I pasted on a smile. “I know, darling, and I’d help you with her body, but my makeup needs to be perfect.”
My attention returned to my reflection.
With a makeup sponge, I dabbed more concealer over the purple bruise under my eye.
My boyfriend didn’t take the news of my pregnancy very well.
If I had actually been pregnant, I might have been offended.
As it was, I was just pissed.
If Judge Marzio Delluci thought he could fill me with come and empty promises and then dump me—he had another think coming.
Nobody fucked over Antonia Fichera. I was, after all, my father’s daughter.
Fortunately, I was always several moves ahead of the ignorant men around me.
When Fino stupidly came to me to corroborate my idiot sister’s accusations, I at least was smart enough to demand an audience with Marzio. It didn’t take long to have him wrapped around my finger. Or, strictly speaking, around my body while I bent over his desk and he fucked me, completely unaware of the small video camera in my purse nearby.
I wasn’t trying to save Father. Quite the opposite.
I was going to replace him. All of them.
It was past time the Sicilian mafia had a female capo dei capi. With all the changes he was making, it was only a matter of time before someone tried to dethrone Dante.
Why shouldn’t that someone be me?
First, I had to eliminate the competition.
Salvatore was the first person the syndicate would turn to if Dante was gone. He had to go first. With his sick appetites and blind ambition, he was the easiest to manipulate.
Salvatore’s downfall was the first crack in Dante’s rule. It showed his weakness.
Next in line was my father.
My goody-two-shoes twin sister gave me the perfect in and handed me the protection I would need once I took control of the Agnello syndicate. All I needed to do was wait until the judge made a move against my father, which would throw the whole syndicate into chaos.
I would then swoop in and have the power to make it all go away… for a price.
It really was amusing how much a girl could learn by simply being in the room or spreading her legs. For years now, I played the dutiful, dumb daughter at my father’s table, learning about their criminal enterprises and all their dirty secrets.
Then I gathered blackmail information against several high-ranking soldiers throughout the syndicate. Men were so careless about their business when they thought with their cocks.
The only thing I hadn’t planned on was the Cavalieris agreeing to an arranged marriage.
Dante outmaneuvered me there, but not for long.
At first, I thought I’d force Marzio’s hand.
What better hiding place for the head of a mafia syndicate than as the wife of a powerful judge?
With my fingertips, I touched the bruise along my cheekbone and grimaced.
I hadn’t planned on Marzio being more corrupt than my father and Dante combined… or having even better connections. He now had half the Sicilian police force and half the underworld criminal element looking for me.
Time for Plan B.
I patted my finger along my lower lip, applying the perfect amount of siren-red matte lipstick. “Remember, Fino. Marzio must believe that Ella is me, so make sure you tape her mouth nice and secure so she can’t talk.”
“Of course, my angel pie.”
Vomit.
Putting up with his slobbering, cloddish attempts in bed had been the worst part of all my plans, but Fino had made the perfect pawn to manipulate my sister while also keeping tabs on Marzio’s movements.
Thank God, when this was all over, I already had plans for him to die in some terribly embarrassing way. Maybe I’d slip him a drug that mimicked a heart attack right before he went to the bathroom, so he died on the toilet with his pants around his ankles and his pathetic little crooked penis on display. That would be hilarious.
Fino flipped Ella’s legs into the trunk and turned to me as he slammed the lid shut. “But explain to me again why you are staying behind.”
My hand curled into a fist, digging my long nails into my palm. Taking a deep breath, I forced my voice to sound even and cheerful. “We talked about this, darling. You need time to get to Sicily without detection. Besides, by marrying Matteo Cavalieri, I will have access to his millions.”