Chapter 40 Àlvaro's Pov.
I took a sip from the cup of whiskey I was holding when Anthonio walked inside my office, shutting the door behind him.
“Hey man, got your message. So what's your plan with Santiago and Trey?"
If it's true that Santiago is working behind my back, then there’s going to be a fucking war.
“We keep quiet for now.” I said as I turned to look at him, extending a glass of golden whiskey towards him.
Anthonio took it and latched his lips onto the edge of the glass, taking a sip. “And do what?”
“We let it play out until we've figured out exactly what's going on. There's no point accusing him and then waiting to see how he reacts. So we act normal and have him suspect nothing.”
I watched Anthonio as he nodded slowly. I know this is probably a lot for him to digest. Hell! It was a lot for me to digest too. We all practically grew up on the streets back in Spain together. To think that someone could betray you like that changes everything.
“It can't be Santiago.” Anthonio straightened out his spine. “What would've been his motive?”
For a moment I pondered his question because deep down, I didn't know. I've always treated him like an equal. Yeah I'm blunt and sometimes an absolute asshole but that's nothing personal. Santiago knows what I'm capable of. He's seen me at my absolute worst and at my best.
“I don't know.” I admitted after a few moments. “Nothing comes to my mind as to why he would do this.”
Anthonio picks up his glass again and downs the rest of the liquid. “And what about Trey?”
“I'm going to interrogate him soon.”
“Good. I have a meeting I need to attend. We'll talk soon.” Anthonio said as he clasped my hand in his for a handshake before walking out of the office.
Just as soon as he left, the door flew open and Santiago barged in.
“Why the fuck is Camilla asking me about a mole? And that you're suspecting me?”
Of course she had gone blabbing to him, spoiling all my plans. Did she not know that it goes without saying that she wasn't supposed to repeat our conversation to Santiago?
Fuck!
I stared back at the man who has been by my side for years, never once failed me, never once doubted me. Yet at the first sign of chaos, I doubted him. My fears of being betrayed became harsher and harsher as I got older.
Betrayal got my father killed and I refused to end up like that.
In a way, She did the right thing. I should've come directly to Santiago instead of secretly suspecting him.
“You're just so distracted by her that you don't see the war that's brewing all around you. You think Sergei is the only one that has it out for you? Your uncle, Vincenzo, has been going around gathering a huge army. Word on the street is that he's teaming up with Sergei to finally take you down. I wanted to get my facts right before I came to you with everything. But at the first sign of trouble, you thought I was a mole? That I'd betray you?”
“Listen, man. I couldn't just dismis Alessandro's findings.”
Santiago laughs sourly, his expression twisting into something that I've never seen before. “You couldn't dismiss it?” He scowls deeply. “That's all you have to say? What happened to bringing me into the conversation?”
The words 'I'm sorry' have probably never fallen from my lips in all my life. Not that I could remember anyways. And it's definitely not something I want to start. I don't want people to start expecting it from me.
But deep down, I knew I dented part of our relationship the moment I started to suspect him.
“Santiago—”
“Save it.” He retreated. “You might be incapable of apologizing when you're in the wrong but you know me well enough to know that I'd never shit all over the people I care about. I've put in so much work for you. For everything we've worked for. It would be nice to not be appreciated like this.”
Santiago is out the door before I could say anything else, slamming the door angrily on the way out. I saw the hurt in his eyes and maybe I should've apologized despite the fact that it would've tasted like poison in my mouth.
I sat back down on my office chair and just stared ahead.
The glass twiddles between my fingers and I breathe out a deep sigh.
I couldn't seem to control the waves of confusion inside my head and every part of my body. I couldn't grasp what was going on with my emotions lately and it's slowly pulling me apart.
It's something I needed to come to terms with because I needed to focus on the safety of my empire and how to take down Sergei and whoever the fuck is teaming up with him.
Camilla’s Pov.
It was almost 3 in the morning and I was slowly walking towards Àlvaro's office when I noticed that he wasn't in his room, trying to be as quiet as possible.
When I was in front of the door, I could see the light seeping in from underneath the door confirming that he was still in there.
I didn't know exactly what I was doing here. Maybe I felt guilty and wanted to apologize for coming in between two friends whose bond could easily be mistaken as brothers because I told Santiago about Àlvaro's suspicions of him. I shouldn't have done that but Santiago had every right to know.
Maybe I was here because I wanted to thank him for finally listening to me and getting me a phone.
Maybe I was just so horny and wanted to feel his dick in my pussy.
I took a deep breath before knocking on the door.
In less than a minute, the door opened and I was now standing face to face with him as he stared down at me with his dark look, making me hold my breath.
"Camilla, what the fuck are you doing here?" He furrowed his brows in confusion but still made a way for me to enter, closing the door behind me. "Did something happen?" He sounded worried.
I turned to face him, shaking my head. "No, I just couldn't sleep."
"You couldn't sleep? And you came here?" He asked again, even more confused and I nodded, feeling extremely awkward under his intense gaze.
"Go to your room, Camilla." He sighed, walking past me to sit on the chair behind his desk. "You're the last person I want to talk to right now and I got a shit ton of work to do."
"You got work to do at 3 in the morning?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as I approached his desk.
"Yes." He replied sharply, looking through some documents, visibly tired. His hair was messy and his eyes were swollen like he hadn't slept at all lately.
"I'm sorry for telling Santiago about your suspicions of him. I shouldn't have."
"Just go to your room, Camilla. I don't expect you to fully understand how the mafia works just yet." He said, eyes still glued to whatever document he was looking at.
I walked around the desk to stand behind him and placed my hand on his shoulders and his body immediately tensed but he didn't push me away.
"What are you doing?" His voice was deep and cold and even though I couldn't see him, I knew he was clenching his jaw.
"You look tired." I murmured as I started massaging his shoulders. "I just want to help."
He stayed silent, only making small sounds while I massaged his shoulders and I took that as a yes but all of a sudden, he turned the chair so we were now face to face.
"If you really want to help me, get on your fucking knees."