"Of course I did," he says with a shrug. "I take inventory of what belongs to me even when I'm busy with more important matters."
"And you didn't think to find out where she went?" I ask him, not liking his dismissive attitude.
"You were the one who gave her permission to go to the bathroom alone,” he reminds me. “And I’m not worried about her escaping.”
That makes me pause and I allow a small detour in conversation. “Why?”
“She’s not going to,” he says, like it's a simple fact.
“Why are you so confident in that?”
He leans forward slightly in his seat, his eyes meeting mine. “Winter Chastine’s contract is the only reason her crackhead brother is still alive. She knows if she breaks it, he’s dead. So no, I’m not worried about her running.”
I think his words over for a moment.
I don’t have any biological siblings. But I do have Giovanni and much to my disdain Maximo who have been as close to me as any blood brother could be. I know without a doubt, I’d go through hell and back to protect them.
But do I believe Winter won’t eventually try to run?
Well, I guess only time will tell.
I mentally shake my head, pushing the thought away. I’ve waited a few days to have this conversation with Gio because I know how he gets when it comes down to Maximo. And frankly, if I came to him after I found out, I would have demanded Maximo’s head.
When it comes to other matters, Gio is much like his brother, cold. But there's a certain detachment that he possesses which is drastically different from Maximo. I'm not sure what it says about him considering that Maximo is a complete psychopath, yet he can muster more emotion than his brother. He feels. Those things he may feel may be twisted, but it's something.
Gio feels nothing.
"That does matter right now. What matters is Maximo’s disobedience. Despite you telling him not to touch Winter, he followed her, cornered her, and he raped her."
There's a brief flicker in his eyes but he remains calm. "Are you sure that's what happened?"
I pull back slightly. "What do you mean am I sure?"
"How do you know she didn't want it?"
The question makes my blood boil and for the first time in a long time I want to hit my best friend, wanting to punch him dead in the jaw for his words.
You know how he is with Maximo, he gives him a leash that others wouldn’t, one long enough to hang himself and everyone around him.
And no matter how many Giovanni is often suffocated with said leash, he doesn't see how far gone his brother is. He still sees the kid he had to keep from getting bullied on the playground. The kid who was nearly beat to death after he was caught under the bleachers with another man. The kid he protected from his father.
The kid who wouldn't hurt a butterfly.
He doesn't see the monster who leaves a path of destruction everywhere he goes. The monster who's going to start a war with the rest of the families in the city.
I rub my temple. "Her knees."
His body freezes and he inclined his head. "What?"
"She has scrapes on her knees. I saw them the other night when she came back to the club. I'm willing to bet he forced her in the alleyway and that’s how she fucked her knees up. Have you not noticed that she's limping as well?"
"The limp could be from the heels." “
“She was wearing flats at the clothing store.”
“She could have twisted her ankle or knee.”
"And the scars on her knees?" I know I need to eliminate any doubt in his mind before he'll even consider the fact that Maximo went against him.