Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 103124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
“Then you’d better tell me what the fuck is happening right the fuck now.”
His expression tightens, his eyes serious. “Nico wants to die so he can give you the life you deserve. He wants out, Bella.”
My mouth drops open in disbelief.
And that fog from earlier, it gets even thicker as my mind struggles to wade through it.
“He’s going to fake his death?” I ask.
“To have a life with you, yes.”
All I can do is stare at my brother-in-law.
I’m as still as a church mouse, but in my head a tropical storm is whipping up violent chaos.
“I only spoke to him briefly before he went into surgery. While I waited for you to arrive, I put a few chess pieces in play.”
It’s like I’m having an out-of-body experience, and all I can do is nod.
Luckily, Massimo is fully present and firing with all pistons.
“We keep this on the down low, and we keep it tight. Only those who need to know will know. No one outside the inner sanctum will be privy to it.”
I let out a shaky breath. “What do you need me to do?”
“We need to convince the world that he is dead before we do anything else. Unfortunately, Bella, you’ll have to carry the heavy load right out of the gate. The paparazzi are already lined up out in front of the hospital. I have a trusted associate who will deliver the news to you just in view of the cameras outside. You will react with the grief of a woman who has just learned she is a widow.”
I nod, still hardly believing what is happening. “I can do that.”
“But it won’t be enough to satiate the press’s thirst for a good tragic story. They’ll bribe hospital employees for information.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning you and Nico are going to have to put on a performance for them too.” He thinks for a moment, then adds, “Nico will be taken to the morgue. We have to follow usual procedures, or someone might get wind of something fishy in the air. I will arrange for you to visit him in the morgue to say goodbye. But I will make sure as many people as possible know about it. You will say your goodbyes. He will be transported to the funeral home of our choice. We have one we use. It’s attached to a crematorium that we’ve used in the past.”
I’m not confused enough to miss what he means by that. When you create corpses, I guess having a crematorium in your back pocket is handy.
“I’ll organize private healthcare for Nico, and he can recuperate in a secret location.”
Massimo’s ability to come up with this plan so effortlessly on the spot tells me he’ll make a great don.
Which is what he will be once Nico is officially declared dead.
Which makes me ask, “What about the surgeon and nurses keeping him alive? Aren’t they a liability? I mean, someone has to declare him dead.”
“They will be none the wiser. It will be the coroner who declares him dead.”
“And you know the coroner?”
“Money meet bank account. We’ve used him before. He will declare Nico dead from a sudden complication following surgery. He’s trustworthy.”
I blow out a deep breath. “Wow, you really know your stuff.”
He grins. “Thank you.”
“You and Anastacia should collaborate,” I mutter. “I think you two could rule the world.”
“Do you feel up to this?” he asks.
“Do I have a choice?”
“No, I was being polite.”
“What happens after we leave the hospital?”
“We can work out the semantics later, but for now, we need to keep this simple, and we need to keep it real. Nico is going to die tonight, and you are going to play the role of the grieving widow.”
He’s so confident it makes me believe we might be able to get away with it.
His phone vibrates in his breast pocket. It’s a message.
“Nico is out of surgery. Everything went well.” He gives me a reassuring smile. “It’s showtime.”
An hour later, Massimo leads me into a private room where Nico lies in a hospital bed under a gleaming golden light. Trusted bodyguards are everywhere, inside and outside of the room.
When he sees me, he tries to sit up, but winces and collapses against the pillows. Gauze bandages hug his torso, covering his wounds.
I take his hand, savoring its warmth because it means his heart is beating and his blood is flowing through his veins. “If this is your way of getting me to run away with you and live on an island, then it’s overkill. You could’ve just asked.”
His smile is lazy and heavy with drugs. “You know me, go big or go home.”
Tears prick at my eyes as my adrenaline slowly drains from my body, and I start to realize the enormity of the situation.
A lump forms in my throat. Things could have turned out very differently.