Chapter 87 Chapter 87
Chapter 87 Chapter 87
Massimo
“Massimo, you’ve got to calm down,” Ms. Tremaine says. “All of this rage isn’t good for your condition.”
“Fuck my condition!” I roar like a beast. My arms swing before my mind produces its next thought. I smash everything on the war planning table to the ground. The maps and ammunition tumble to the floor as several people jump back in alarm.
They know better than to have any other reaction.
Nobody, not even Ms. Tremaine, utters a word.
Tense silence holds the room captive as they stand still with bated breath.
It’s on my timetable—when my temper explodes, it’s up to me when things can resume as planned. The worst thing any of them could do would be to interrupt me during one of these moments.
My rage turns me into an animal. I’m a hulking, seething beast as I glare around the room and stalk over to the window.
Two of my saldatos stumble over their feet trying to get out of my way. One of them loses his balance and falls flat on his ass. But it’s better than remain in my path and incur my instant wrath.
I plod over to the window and peer out at the acres of woodsy terrain surrounding my property. The trees stretch on for miles and miles, so far that it would be impossible to traverse on foot. You’d die of dehydration and exhaustion if the arctic winter temperatures didn’t get you first.
Yet mia ballerina made it.
She left me in the middle of the fucking night and must’ve survived.
I’d sense if she hadn’t.
Though it doesn’t make me any less furious. I bare my teeth at the woodsy scenery as if the towering trees and snow-capped mountain tops are the reason for Ayanna’s absence.
“Keep searching,” I say to the men in the room. “Cover every inch of the land surrounding the estate.”
“Massimo, we have,” Angelo pipes up. “We’ve searched the entire woodland—”
“Cover every inch of the city,” I go on louder. “Turn Dresden upside down if you have to. Ballerinas do not disappear into thin air. She’s out there somewhere.”
“We’ve been all over the city. We haven’t had much luck.”
“You aren’t trying hard enough.”
“Massimo, it’s possible she didn’t—”
“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” I bark so ferociously, everyone in the room flinches. I’ve rounded on Angelo with ragged breaths heaving out of me, my face clenched in fury. “You have your fucking orders. Now follow them—all of you!”
My men scatter like rats. They push and shove each other as they converge toward the door and then their shoulders get stuck in the frame. By the time they’ve fled, the only two remaining are myself and Ms. Tremaine.
She hasn’t budged an inch, still beside the war-planning table. The knit of her brows and flatness to her mouth communicate how she’s feeling, even if she’s remained silent and given me the time and space to sulk.
I pace a few more times, throwing a couple dirty looks in her direction.
Still, she keeps from reacting. She waits for me in the manner an exasperated parent does when their toddler’s in the middle of a tantrum.
I grit my teeth, pacing by the window. Then I cave in and snarl at her. “This is all your fault, P!”
“You said it was security’s fault fifteen minutes ago.”
“It’s their fault too! It’s all of your faults!”
“She was lying in bed with you,” Ms. Tremaine points out calmly. “You didn’t notice she got out of bed?”
“I’m a heavy sleeper—I take medications! You’re the one who encouraged me to… to have that woman here!” I rage, throwing my arms up. “You said it would be a good opportunity to show Ayanna I wasn’t trying to control her. She could still see her family.”
“It was a good opportunity. And it was kind of you to do so.”
“KIND? Who the fuck cares about kindness in this world? I should’ve known it was a trap! That mother of hers is as slimy as the man she signed her daughter’s life away to!” More frustration boils over inside me and I shove at the weaponry on display. The fire launcher’s knocked off its podium and smacks into the ground with a jarring thud. The same happens to a display of bullet-proof gear that I send careening toward the ground.
Once I’ve chosen a path of destruction, it’s almost impossible to stop me.