A part of me missed having Griffin right upstairs. When I took my lunch, I could spend it with him, eating and screwing on the dining table. Or if the gallery was slow, I could close early and spend the afternoon with him. But having him work directly with my father every single day was a dream come true.

It was all I ever wanted.

I’d dreamed of having a husband my father would embrace like a son. Now they were friends, two men who respected each other. They had their own relationship, commonalities that had nothing to do with me.

It was perfect.

Spending my day painting in the gallery and running the business was the best utilization of my time. The day passed quickly, and I enjoyed every second of my line of work. When I painted in the gallery, customers walked inside to see my brushwork with their own eyes. They were usually impressed by the images I could create from memory, and after conversation back and forth, they usually took home one of my pieces.

It was a dream job.

A dream that only happened because Bones believed in me. He told me to drop out of school and bought me this gallery. He believed in me more than anyone else, even my parents. His faith was probably based on a mixture of love and obsession, but that didn’t change anything.

I sat at my desk and looked out the window, seeing the empty sidewalk at the hottest time of the day. It was humid in Florence, so most of the tourists were in the museums or eating gelato.

I noticed the blacked-out car across the street, with completely tinted windows and unusual rims. It wasn’t a small car that usually traveled down these narrow streets. Bones’s truck stuck out like a sore thumb because those kinds of vehicles weren’t common in the city. The fact that the windows were completely blacked out was disconcerting as well. A dread grew inside of my heart, and that sensation immediately reminded me of Knuckles, the man who broke in to my apartment and kidnapped me.

Or was I just being paranoid?

I didn’t consider myself to be a paranoid person. I only worried about things when danger was looking me straight in the face. I turned back to my computer, not trying to make it obvious that I was suspicious.

A few minutes passed, and another car just like it parked on the side of the road.

There was no way that was a coincidence.

My heart started to race in my chest. My palms grew damp with sweat. The adrenaline associated with fear spiked in my blood. There were no guns in the gallery. All I had were random objects and my fists.

The front door on the first black car opened, and a man dressed completely in black stepped out. In a black leather jacket and with a terrifying demeanor, he looked like bad news. Other men got out as well.

“Shit.” I only had time for one phone call, so I skipped calling the cops.

The phone rang twice.

“Griffin, pick up!” The doors to the second car opened, and another series of scary-looking men appeared. If they were there just to take me, it seemed unnecessary. They must be prepared for Bones to show up.

He finally answered. “Hey, baby. I’m in the middle—”

“Shut up and listen. Eight men are about to walk into the gallery and take me.” I blurted out everything as fast as I could. “They’re all armed and all dressed in black. They’re headed right this way. I have less than thirty seconds.”

Instead of panicking like anyone else would, Bones spoke with a calm voice. He didn’t pause longer than a second before he spoke. “Don’t fight them, Vanessa. Be quiet and cooperative. Don’t be scared because I promise I will get you.”

“I know you will, Griffin.” They were almost to the door. “I love you.”

“I love you too. Tell me everything you can about these guys before they get to you.”

“Two black Mercedes. Blacked-out with tinted windows. Eight men altogether. The man in front has a scar underneath his left eye. They look foreign, maybe Middle Eastern.” I watched the first man open the door of the gallery and point a gun right at my face. “I have to go.”

“Baby, I love you—”

I could have left the phone on, but I didn’t want Griffin to hear what would happen next. I hung up and set the phone on the desk. The gun was pointed at my face, but I refused to show fear. Bones told me not to fight them, and I would listen, knowing I was outnumbered and these men were seriously evil.

The guy walked right up to me, snarling like I’d done something to wrong him. He kept the barrel trained right on me, his finger on the trigger. “Get up.”

I looked straight down the barrel, just the way my father did when he was on the ground and outnumbered. Just because I couldn’t fight with my fists didn’t mean I couldn’t have dignity. “He’s going to kill all of you.” I slowly rose to my feet, meeting his gaze with defiance. “If I were you, I would take this opportunity to walk out with your lives.”

The corner of his mouth rose in a malicious sneer. “If he wanted peace, he shouldn’t have killed my father.”