“Is that why you haven’t confessed?”
He scrubs a hand over his jaw. “I do what I feel I must. In another life, a man might pass by a homeless person or judge his neighbor harshly. One man’s sin is not another’s.”
“If there is a God, do you think he would forgive me?” I ask, my voice hitching as I fight yet another wave of tears.
He cups my cheek and forces me to look at him. “Avecita, no one has suffered more or fought harder than you. The very fact that you feel so bad about killing someone who would have killed you… it proves just how good you are.”
“Una would think I’m ridiculous.”
“She just doesn’t understand you, little warrior. Your kindness isn’t weak because after all you’ve been through you shouldn’t have a shred of kindness to give anyone. This...” he swipes his thumb beneath my eye, catching a tear and holding it up in front of me. “Is what makes you so strong.”
I don’t feel strong. I feel fragile. Pressing my face into his throat, I let it go. I cry for a young boy, for a mother without a son, for the loss of even more of whatever small amount of innocence I had left. And Rafael simply holds me, providing that ironclad strength of his.
69
Rafael
I’ve watched Anna go from strength to strength. From the abused girl to the fierce woman I fell in love with. But for the first time, she looks truly lost. She sits with her back to the headboard, staring absently at the wall across from her.
Pushing to my feet, I leave the room, pulling the door closed behind me. I’m seething fucking mad, but I’m trying to keep a leash on it around her. She went behind my back into Dominges’ compound, but I know it won’t have been Anna’s idea.
I descend the stairs and find Samuel waiting for me at the bottom. His arms are folded over his chest, his expression stern as he falls into step beside me. “We lost eight men, and Dominges escaped,” he says.
Eight. Too many. These were good men, closely trusted men. Trust is hard to come by at the moment. “Where are Una and Sasha?”
“He left. She’s…”
The words have barely left his mouth when I spot Una walking down the stairs from the upper level. Her body language is tight and aggressive. She strides towards me, her hand on her gun. I’m done pandering to her though. Pulling my gun, I point it at her as I stare down the barrel of her raised weapon. We’re both right there. Either of us could pull the trigger and end the other, and yet neither of us does.
“You fucked up my operation,” she says.
“You went after Dominges without telling me.”
“For good reason. I had it until you turned up.”
“You were outnumbered, and he had more men stationed nearby.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I have rats everywhere. I’ve been tracking Dominges for weeks. I knew exactly where he was.”
She narrows her eyes. “We nearly had him. We could have ended this, and you fucked it up. Not to mention, you nearly got my sister killed.”
On a growl, I lower my gun and take a step towards her until there’s barely an inch of space between us. “No, Una. You are the one who will get Anna killed. You’re trying to turn her into you, but she’s not, and she never will be.”
“I’m trying to give her some purpose that doesn’t involve you.”
“This isn’t purpose, you’re just adding fuel to an already raging fire.”
“Anna is my sister. You were just her glorified babysitter. She doesn’t need you anymore, so stop trying to keep her here.”
“You have no idea what she needs.” If she could see her sister now, maybe Una would finally start to understand. Anna is not cut out for this. She’s not a ruthless killer, and she never will be.
She squares her shoulders, sliding her gun back into the holster. “Anna and I will handle Dominges. We didn’t come here for your help, so back off.” My jaw clenches so hard that my teeth grind against each other. Arguing with Una is pointless. She knows she has me cornered to a degree because really, she’s accountable to no one and she has the weight of the Italian mafia behind her. I take a conscious step back, biting my tongue as I turn away from her and walk towards the office. I wave for Samuel to follow and he does, closing the door behind him as soon as we’re inside.
“I need you to track Dominges,” I say.
“Okay. I think I have a source on him already.”
“Good. And then I need you to either kill him or bring him back. No long, drawn out plans this time. You find him, you move. Take all the men and weapons you need.”