The Eagle's Vault by Janet Oppedisano

Author:Janet Oppedisano [Oppedisano, Janet]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Just One Thread Publishing
Published: 2023-10-12T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 22

Leigh

Saturday morning, a lifetime away from Friday morning’s panicked escape from Cassaforte, I was in a whole other world. The car, a glossy luxury sedan, wound its way up a serpentine driveway. Rav, all precision and efficiency, manned the wheel. Scarlett, perched in the passenger seat, was the epitome of calm.

“Stay close to Declan.” Scarlett’s words broke the quiet hum of the engine. “Follow his lead and everything will be fine.”

My throat tightened. Declan, next to me, didn’t react. Cool as always. I looked out the window at the whitewashed villa that came into view, perched like an elegant ghost atop the hill. Beyond it, the Mediterranean stretched into the horizon.

Tall cypress pines lined the driveway. Bushes, gardens, and small buildings surrounded the three-story villa southeast of Rome. Giovanni Ferraro must have had an army of gardeners working for him.

“What’s going to happen?” The drive had taken less than an hour, just enough time for me to suppress my need to leap out of the car and run for home fifteen times.

Dinner with Jayce last night had been quiet, but I hadn’t stopped looking over my shoulder to enjoy it. After escaping from Giovanni Ferraro’s security man yesterday, I could have sworn someone was watching me every minute.

“Don’t worry, Leigh.” Scarlett turned to give me a gentle smile. “We’ve worked with Giovanni before. We have a good relationship.”

Her casual tone was a stark contrast to the tension I felt. I swallowed, trying to calm the rapid flutter in my chest.

“Still,” she continued, “you’ll see a lot of men with guns. Some of them big ones—both the men and the guns. Just remember, they’re not there for you.”

“We’re the good guys, right?” Declan’s fingers drummed a quick rhythm on his knees, betraying something underneath his cool facade.

“That’s right,” Scarlett said, grinning at him. “So be a good boy and keep an eye on Leigh.”

“Guess you’re stuck with me.” Declan winked at me, causing the flutter to sink deeper in my belly. The engine’s hum seemed to fade into the background. “Boss’s orders.”

I managed little more than a nod, too caught in the pull of his gaze to form a reply.

“We’ll be fine.” If Scarlett said it enough times, I might believe her.

I sucked in my bottom lip, my heart a chaotic drumbeat. Thoughts ricocheted inside my skull, my desire for the safety of home warring with Jayce’s words that I was no safer there.

Glimpses of crumbling ruins at the base of the hill caught my eye, the hint of a once-grand villa, now reduced to a hollow testament of time and decay. I sat up taller in my seat, scanning the ancient floor plan. It ran toward the sea, a natural pool forming between the remnants of a sea break. That was more like what I was hoping to see when I came to Rome.

If only I’d come a day early. If only Edoardo’s other safe hadn’t required the subtle touch of Declan’s skill. A different timeline, a different Leigh.

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