Chapter 84 Caught
ARYA’S POV
I turned slowly, my entire body going rigid when I saw Marco.
He looked exactly the same except now, standing in this dim hallway, calling me by a name that belonged to someone else's life, he looked like a stranger.
"Surprise," he said, that familiar teasing lilt in his voice.
Something snapped inside me. Before I could think, my hand flew up and connected with his shoulder in a solid hit.
"Ow! Arya!"
"Don't you dare prank me like that again!" My voice shook with a mixture of relief. "Do you have any idea what those notes and cryptic messages were doing to me! thought someone was stalking me!"
"Someone was." His grin was infuriatingly unrepentant. "Me."
"That's not funny, Marco!"
"It's a little funny."
I hit him again, harder this time, but he caught my wrist and pulled me into a hug. Despite everything, I melted into it.
My arms wrapped around him in response and I inhaled his warm scent. He hugged me tighter, and I chuckled against his shoulder.
“Well,” I started softly. “I’m not going to lie. I missed you.”
"I missed you too," he murmured into my hair.
I pulled back, searching his face. "What are you doing here? Have you been following me?"
Something flickered in his expression but it was too quick for me to read. "I heard you were around and your father wanted to make sure you were okay."
My brows furrowed at the mention of my father and my heart squeezed in response.
I remembered Giovanni's face when he told me about his family and how he lost everything all because of my father's brutality.
My stomach turned.
"Arya?" Marco's hand touched my arm. "You okay? You look pale."
I couldn’t tell him what I was thinking so I said something else. "Do you know about the Rivera? While we were in Italy, we tried to get information on them.”
Marco went very still. "What?"
"The Rivera family.” I repeated slowly, my eyes searching face. “Do you know about them?”
"Arya." Marco's voice dropped, and he grabbed my shoulders. “How do you know about them? I mean… what the hell is Giovanni getting you involved in?”
I rolled my eyes, shrugging his grip from my body. “I’m not a child, Marco. And he didn’t get me involved in anything, I asked to be a part of it.”
"Shit." Marco ran a hand through his hair, looking around the empty hallway like he expected someone to appear. "You shouldn't be involved with them. Do you understand me? The Riveras are dangerous-"
"I’m not a fucking child, Marco!”
"Keep your voice down." His grip on my arms tightened. "Yes, I know about them. We have been trying to track them for weeks and they're ruthless, Arya. They won't hesitate to use you to get to your father."
My heart skipped. Dad knew about them as well?
I leaned closer. “What can you tell me, Marco. I need anything.”
"No." Marco's eyes flashed with something I had never seen before. "Don't ask me that. Don't even think it. Promise me you'll stay away from them."
I thought about Giovanni and how desperate he wanted to find them. I thought about those brutal men and how they tried to kill me.
"I can't," I whispered.
"What do you mean you can't?"
"I mean…" I pulled away from his grip, wrapping my arms around myself. "It's complicated."
He groaned and stepped closer. "Arya, listen to me-"
"No, you listen." I met his eyes, willing him to understand. "I need to talk to you properly. Not here, not like this. Can we meet somewhere safe?"
Marco studied me for a long moment, then sighed. "Tomorrow. There's a café on Via Dante, three blocks from the Duomo. Two o'clock."
"Okay."
"And Arya?" He watched me for a long moment before he spoke. "Be careful. I mean it. These people are dangerous."
I nodded, steeling my expression. "I know what they are."
"Arya!" Jasmine's voice echoed down the hallway, panicked. "Arya, where are you?"
My heart skipped several beats, I could hear her footsteps getting closer and I knew what kind of problem would occur if she saw the two of us right now.
"You need to go," I told Marco urgently. "Now."
He hesitated, then pulled me into one more quick hug. "Tomorrow. Don't be late."
Then he was gone, disappearing around the corner just as Jasmine appeared at the other end of the hallway.
"There you are!" She rushed toward me, her face pale. "I've been looking everywhere! I thought something happened to you!"
I forced a grimace on my face. "I'm sorry, I just got turned around trying to find the bathroom. I couldn't find my way back." The lie came surprisingly easily.
Jasmine didn't look convinced, but she didn't press.
Instead, she took my hand."We need to go.”
"What? Why?”
She eyed me for a moment before saying. "Gio's here."
My stomach dropped. "What?"
"He's outside. And Arya?" Jasmine's voice dropped to a whisper. "He's pissed."
I could barely register anything as she pulled me back to the club. All I could focus on was the dread pooling in my gut.
We burst through the front doors, and I stopped dead.
The club's entrance was completely empty. There was no line, no music, no people milling around dancing.
Just Giovanni standing in the center of the emptiness, flanked by Enzo and at least six guards I didn't recognize.
Someone had cleared the entire area.
Giovanni's eyes locked onto mine, and even from this distance, I could see the fury radiating off him.
He was dressed in all black, like he had come straight from the warehouse. He started walking toward me, and my heart hammered against my ribs so hard I thought it might break free.
Behind me, I felt Jasmine's hand slip from mine as she stepped back, giving us space.
Giovanni stopped a foot away, close enough that I had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes.
I could see the muscle ticking in his jaw, and the barely leashed control in every line of his body.
My heart stuttered nervously. "Giovanni, I-"
"Get in the car." His voice was deadly quiet.
"I can explain." I said but it sounded weak to my own ears.
"Now, Arya."
The way he said my name made my stomach clench tightly and for the first time, I submissively obeyed.