Love Burns Bright by Rien Gray

Author:Rien Gray
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: LGBTQIA+, contemporary, romantic suspense, nonbinary, queer, bisexual, interracial, light D/s, bondage, established couple, assassin, artist, dark, Mafia, revenge, PTSD, family issues, #ownvoices
Publisher: NineStar Press, LLC
Published: 2022-06-03T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Campbell

SCOUTING OUT LA Rosa’s estate confirms my worst suspicions: the entire place is essentially a fortress.

Not in a post-apocalyptic bunker sense. The rich don’t need to dive underground in this day and age, not when they can scour themselves off every digital map and hide in plain sight. Looking up anywhere in this neighborhood pulls data years out of date, without a single satellite view to speak of. Acres of trees separate the house from public consciousness, and only a ten-foot-high gate implies anyone lives here to begin with, rather than a park hemmed in by spotless stone walls.

My perch across the street keeps me out of camera range, but offers few other advantages. I’ve been here for hours, and not a single car has come in or out of the property. No other entrance is available, although I was independently able to confirm that La Rosa has a helicopter pad near the house for medical emergencies. But the sky has been clear all morning, so I can rule that out too.

Time to give Enrico a call.

“Hello?” He sounds mystified. Then again, I suppose he’s never heard my voice before.

“It’s Campbell.”

“Oh, shit.” Enrico laughs. “Everyone texts me instead of calling. What’s going on?”

“Is this line secure?” I ask.

“What? Oh, yeah. I make the NSA look like amateurs.”

Sofia has sung his praises for years, and he’s done a lot of work for me by proxy. Breaking online security isn’t my area of expertise. I know the basics to keep myself protected, but in my line of work, social engineering usually goes much further than hacking systems. Except no one associated with La Rosa is going to be caught dead talking to me, much less offer up details about his compound.

“Good. Because Sofia’s in trouble.” I don’t have to sugarcoat this; he’s young, but he’s still a Cattaneo. “And I need your help to get her out of it.”

“Wait, what happened?” Anger punctuates his voice. “Is she okay?”

“She is for now, but it won’t stay that way if Galici and company don’t get what they’re looking for.”

He spits out enough invective to make a sailor’s ears burn. “Of course. Bastards. I have a stack of cash stored offshore—how much are they looking for?”

Smart boy, keeping his money out of the family pot. His uncles would launder it into their own pockets at the first opportunity. “It’s not a ransom. They want Miceli La Rosa dead.”

Enrico is silent for a good ten seconds. “I…I’ve never killed anyone before. Someone like La Rosa? There’s no chance.”

“I’m taking care of that part, Enrico.” I pause, fitting the pieces together. “Sofia never told you what I actually do, did she?”

“Uh, no. She—she said you were a business partner. I thought that meant a friend of the family who couldn’t take the oath.” His laugh is soft, self-conscious. “But she also told me if I was ever in life-or-death trouble, she had someone to take care of it. Is that you?”

I have to give Sofia credit.

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