Chapter 12

Chapter 12


SOPHIA

My entire body betrays me, reacting to his nearness; my heart pounding wildly in my chest.

“No. Stay away.” I manage to say, clinging to the last shred of reason I have left.

I can’t trust him. Pushing him away, I get to my feet and run toward the bathroom, locking the door the second I’m inside.

Who is this man? How does he make things happen so easily? I need to get out of here. Now.

I search for my dress and find it on the counter, along with my shoes. I dress in a rush, my headache throbbing harder with every movement.

Calling him was a terrible mistake.

“Sophia? Why are you doing this? I told you it wasn’t me. Believe me, sweetheart. I’m not lying to you.” His voice comes from the other side of the door.

Dario might not be lying about that, but he’s lying about everything else.

“Open the door. Let me take you home.”

Despite the fear, I take a deep breath and open the door. He’s standing right there.

“Just leave me alone. I don’t know why you’re doing this, but stay the hell away from me.” I move past him toward the exit.

But he stops me, gripping my arm.

“Why don’t you believe me? I’ve been honest with you. That’s all I’ve done.”

“Enough!” I wrench free. “I already know the whole truth! I know who you are! So tell me, why are you doing all of this?” I spit out, adrenaline flooding my body.

He hesitates.

“What are you talking about?”

“What? You’re going to keep pretending… husband?”

“Husband? What?”

The confusion on his face looks almost real. Why does he keep clinging to this charade?

“Stop pretending, Dario.”

Finally, I get some kind of reaction. He actually looks surprised at the name.

“How did you…?”

“Tell me why you’re doing this.”

“Doing what?” He shakes his head as if he doesn’t understand.

“Tell me what the fuck you want from me. Why are you trying to get close to me?”

“Wait… who do you think I am?”

“I got the divorce papers. I saw your picture. So why the hell are you still pretending?”

He blinks, like he’s trying to process it.

“Fuck… you… It can’t be… The same last name…” He shakes his head. “Sweetheart, I swear, I didn’t know.”

Lies. More fucking lies.

“Sure.” I let out a bitter laugh. “You know what? Just stay away from me. Don’t you ever come near me again.” I turn, practically running for the door.

When I open it, I’m met with four men in black suits standing in the hallway.

I freeze for a second, heart hammering, before pushing past them, relief washing over me when they don’t follow.

It’s late, and I’m so shaken, terrified of what Dario might do, that I decide not to go back to my apartment.

I take a cab straight to Chloe’s place.

When I arrive, she immediately tries to calm me down after taking one look at me. I tell her everything I discovered.

By the time I’m done, Chloe looks just as shocked as I am. We sit on her couch in silence for a moment.

“I don’t understand why he’s doing all of this, Chlo… What the hell could he want from me?” I ask, my head resting on her shoulder, feeling completely shattered.

“I have no idea. He doesn’t strike me as the type to run a scam. Unless he doesn’t have as much money as he seems and he’s trying to get something out of this divorce. But that doesn’t even make sense since he’s the one who offered the asset split.”

“You think he’s trying to kill me?” I whisper, remembering the threat I got by email.

But that doesn’t make sense either, since it was connected to the investigation into my parents’ deaths. Or… could Dario be involved in that too?

“Don’t you think he would have done it already if that’s what he wanted? He’s had plenty of chances. Like the first time he approached you. You said you were alone, right?”

“I guess you’re right.”

“Then stop worrying. You figured it out in time. He can’t fool you anymore. You’re safe now.”

“I just wish I knew why.”

“What you need is rest. Have you thought about taking a vacation?”

“Vacation? I have way too much to deal with to even think about that right now.”

“Think about it. I really think it’d be good for you.”

✽

For the rest of the week, I try to erase Dario’s existence. I avoid the university and block his number, but none of it is enough.

He even has the nerve to call from an unknown number, trying to convince me to meet him. I don’t even let him finish speaking before I hang up and block that one too.

I’m not giving him another chance to manipulate me. I’m done. I’m going to forget him and focus on work and on the investigation into my parents’ deaths. An investigation that finally feels like it might be getting somewhere.

Midweek, the detective handling the case contacts me again. He has a new lead now that the previous witness seems to have vanished into thin air.

This time, a set of precious stones that disappeared after my parents’ deaths — worth a fortune — has surfaced as auction items on a cruise set to sail soon.

Even if I can’t be sure this lead will take me to the person responsible, it’s the only one I have, and I’m willing to chase it down myself.

On Saturday, I head to the Manhattan terminal late in the afternoon, where the cruise is departing.

The auction will be held at night, and the place is packed. Everyone here looks like they swim in money.

I still have no idea how I’m going to figure out who put the stones up for sale, but I’ll find a way. Step one: find the organizers.

After settling into one of the rooms, I try making small talk with some of the guests to gather names, but I quickly realize the fastest way to get to the right people is to buy the stones myself.

So that’s what I do: I wait for the auction to start and make the highest bid.

At some point during the event, I get up to grab a drink and am caught off guard when one of the company’s shareholders approaches me.

Xavier has always been one of my father’s most trusted men and now runs the mine. He’s in his early fifties and has always been present at every major meeting.

“I admit I didn’t expect to find you here, Miss Dempsey,” he says, stopping beside me.

Xavier being here cannot be a coincidence. He’s now my number one suspect.

“Likewise.” I force a smile. “Quite the coincidence, don’t you think?”

“What I mean, child, is that you shouldn’t be here.”

What? Did I hear that right?

“Did you… just threaten me?”

“I’m just giving you advice. Walk away from this purchase and leave.”

I can’t believe what I’m hearing.

“You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into, girl,” he says before walking away, leaving me frozen, trying to process every word.

Fuck. I was right all along.

The culprit is someone tied to the company. Xavier isn’t just a shareholder; he’s in charge of the mine. He has more than enough reason to want my parents gone.

And now that I bought the stones, he’s afraid I can use them as evidence.

Which means I need to get off this ship as fast as possible. But first, I need the stones.

I’m forced to wait until the auction ends to finally have them delivered to me.

With them in my hands, I head back toward my room, fear creeping in as I realize my life might actually be in danger.

The smartest thing now is to grab my things and get off this ship.

But as I hurry down one of the corridors, I run straight into the last person I expected.

Dario.

I consider turning back, but he’s already seen me and starts closing the distance between us.

It’s been almost a week since we last saw each other. And despite all my efforts to forget him, to pretend he doesn’t exist, seeing him now is enough to make my heart slam against my ribs.

Dario still hurts to want.

“Hello, sweetheart,” he says, stopping in front of me.

Determined to ignore him, I keep walking, but he stops me, grabbing my arm.

“Let go of me,” I snap.

“Sophia… I just need you to listen to me.”

“Take your hands off me. Now.”

“Let me explain, please.”

“I don’t want to hear a single word from you.”

“I know why you’re here. If you agree to hear me out, I can help you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I know you’re in danger.”

“What? How do you…?”

“This ship is being monitored.”

“How the hell do you know that?”

“I’ll show you. And in exchange, all I want is for you to listen.”

“Why the hell should I trust you?”

Maybe it isn’t a coincidence he’s here. Could he be involved in this?

“Come with me.”