I shift uncomfortably in my seat. “I don’t know yet.”
I canfeelDante’s stare through the phone. “That’s not good enough.”
“It’s going to have to be.”
“You can’t keep her forever,” Dante says, and I can hear the exasperation bleeding through his professional calm. “Eventually you’re going to have to either return her, use her as leverage for negotiations, or—” He stops himself, but I know what he was going to say.Or kill her. “What happens when Connor stops threatening and actually starts acting? When he brings an army to your door? What happens to Emma then?”
I’ll worry about that later. “I’ll handle it,” I tell Dante impatiently.
“How? By doingwhatexactly? You’ve already got her locked in a bedroom like some kind of fairy tale villain. You’re having her meals delivered by armed guards. You threatened to force-feed her through a tube this morning?—”
“How did you—” I stop myself. Of course he knows. The guards report to him too. “She was refusing to eat.”
“Can you blame her? You kidnapped her on her wedding day, Leo. Dragged her out of a cathedral at gunpoint in front of three hundred people. She’s terrified and alone and has no idea what you’re planning to do with her. Of course she’s not eating.”
“She’s eating now.” It comes out more defensive than I intended.
“Because you threatened her with fucking medical torture!” Dante’s composure finally cracks. “Do youhearyourself right now? Do you understand how fucked up this situation is?”
I breathe angrily through my nose. Why the fuck does Dante not see this the way I do? “Connor killed Gabriel?—”
“I know!” Dante yells, cutting me off. “I know what Connor did. I was there when we found Gabriel’s body. I was there when you had to tell your mother. I know you want revenge, and I understand why. But this?” He pauses, and I can almost see him pinching the bridge of his nose the way he does when I’m giving him a headache. “This isn’t revenge, Leo. This is just you hurting an innocent woman to hurt her father. That’s not justice. That’s just more violence.”
“She’s fine,” I say, even though I’m not sure that’s true. “She’s safe, she’s being fed, she has everything she needs?—”
“Except her freedom, her family, and any sense of control over her own life.” Dante sighs heavily. “Look, I’m not saying Connor doesn’t deserve to suffer for what he did because I want to see the bastard burn for what he did to Gabe. I’m saying this isn’t the way. And the longer you keep Emma, the more complicated this gets. You need an exit strategy before this situation becomes untenable.”
I clench my teeth so tightly they start to hurt. “I’ll figure it out,” I bite out.
“When? After Connor declares war? After someone gets killed trying to rescue her? After she—” He stops again, and this time I can hear real worry in his voice. “She wasn’t eating until you forced her, Leo. What happens if she tries to hurt herself? What happens if this situation breaks her?”
“She won’t,” I say with more certainty than I feel, looking at Emma on the monitor. She’s still curled up on the couch, her face hidden against her knees. “She’s stronger than that.”
Dante scoffs in disbelief. “You’ve known her for three days.”
“I’ve been watching her for six months.” The words come out before I can stop them, and I immediately regret the admission.
Dante goes very quiet. “Sixmonths?” he asks in a deadly whisper.
I wince, hating my big fat fucking mouth. “I needed to know everything about her before?—”
“Six months, Leo. You’ve been planning this for sixmonthsand you still don’t have an endgame?” He laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “Jesus Christ. This is worse than I thought.”
“I’ll figure it out,” I repeat, knowing it sounds weak.
“Figure it out fast.” Dante’s tone shifts back to business. “Because Connor’s not going to wait forever. And when he comes for his daughter—and hewillcome—you better have a plan for what happens next.”
He hangs up before I can respond.
I set the phone down and run my hands through my hair, frustration and a sliver of guilt warring in my chest.
Dante’s right, the bastard.
I’ve put us in an impossible situation with no clear way out, and every day Emma stays here makes it worse.
But I can’t let her go.
Not yet.