I gave him a strained smile before I stepped out of his reach and approached Remo who leaned against his desk, watching us with keen eyes. I wondered what Adamo had told him about our relationship and what the Capo thought of it. “Over the years, I made sure to stay up to date on your life,” Remo said cryptically.
I didn’t show a reaction. As the daughter of the Pakhan who loved to live a flashy life, I was in public more often than I preferred. I’d never hidden, and Dad wouldn’t have allowed it either. He wanted me in the spotlight, dressed in pretty dresses for the world to see. Few people dared to speak of the past, even if rumors had spread after my return. “So did I. You and your brothers have kept things interesting over the years.”
Remo’s eyes flashed with amusement.
“Why would the Capo of the Camorra have any interest in the daughter of his enemy? My life didn’t provide the same excitement as yours.”
Adamo and Nino watched our conversation but didn’t intervene.
“I wanted to see if I was right in my assessment of you.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What assessment?”
“If you’d prove as strong as I considered you to be.”
I scoffed. “I was a scared child who allowed people to use and abuse her. I wasn’t strong. I’m not the same person I used to be. I changed.”
Remo pushed away from the desk and moved closer, towering over me, which caused Adamo to tense. I met Remo’s gaze unwaveringly. Maybe it was foolish of me not to fear him but I could only see him as the man who’d freed me from my tormentors. “Even back then I saw your strength, even if you couldn’t. That you are here today, shows I was right. Maybe you changed on the outside, but deep down you are the same resilient child that survived.”
I swallowed, because his words awakened emotions I didn’t want to deal with. Adamo took a step closer, and his protective expression didn’t bode well. This was between Remo and me. If I wanted to get to the bottom of my past, I needed to talk to Remo alone. I had a feeling he wouldn’t be as forthcoming with information as long as I needed Adamo as my babysitter and bodyguard. He was testing me. I cleared my throat and looked at Adamo. “I need to talk to Remo alone.”
If Remo was surprised by my request, he hid it well.
Nino exchanged a look with his older brother before he left without another word. Adamo, however, pulled me against his side. “What’s the matter?”
“Your brother and I need to talk alone.”
“Still don’t trust me, hmm?” Adamo asked wryly.
“No,” I growled. “That’s not it. But the truth I’m going to find out today is my truth. One I want to process before I share it with anyone else. Even with you. It’s my past.”
Adamo sighed. He leaned in and kissed me. “All right, but remember I’m here if you need me.”
He sent his brother a warning look that made me want to ask him to stay after all. When Remo and I were finally alone, silence fell over us for a while. Remo watched me closely, and whatever he saw seemed to please him. “Few of my men feel comfortable in my presence. Most women would rather be locked inside a cage with a fight dog than me, but you ask for a tête-à-tête and don’t seem frightened at all?”
“Do I have reason to be scared of you?” I asked.
Again the twitch of his mouth. “I think you already answered that question for yourself before you set foot on Vegas ground.”
I shrugged. “I had my assumptions, but of course I couldn’t be sure. My father is your enemy. You and him would kill the other if you ever met.”
“Your father isn’t in the top ten of my enemy list, Dinara. He’ll probably live.”
My lips thinned. “My father is a strong man with an army of loyal followers.”
Remo chuckled. “Ahh, a Bratva princess after all? One could think you don’t care for your father’s business considering how recklessly you walk into Camorra territory and become part of our racing camp.”
“I’m loyal to my father, just like Adamo is loyal to you and the Camorra.”
Something shifted in Remo’s eyes, and I realized I was treading dangerous ground. “Have you tested his loyalty?”
“I didn’t and I won’t. Adamo has his place and I have mine.”
“But the lines have become blurry, haven’t they? You and Adamo have gotten close over the last few weeks,” Remo said, and the hint of suspicion and threat swung in his deep voice.
I knew it would be futile to deny it. I wasn’t sure how much Adamo had told his brother, and I had a feeling Remo would have smelled the lie. “We have. We share a passion for racing.”
“But that’s not why your paths crossed, Dinara, am I right? You joined our race camp for a reason.”
“I did,” I said firmly, not looking away. If I’d lowered my gaze or tried to avoid the topic, Remo would have seen it as an admission of guilt. I was definitely guilty of seeking Adamo’s closeness initially to find out about the Falcones and to use him to get in contact with Remo, but sleeping with him or spending so much time with him had never served that purpose. My body and soul had yearned for it. When I was with Adamo, I rarely longed for the rush of drugs that had haunted me for so many years. He was my drug of choice. “My father was always careful to divulge as little information as possible to me about my past. I knew you were the only one who could reveal the parts he left in the dark.”
“So you think I’ll do that? Why would I reveal information without asking for something in turn? And unlike your father you don’t have anything of value to offer.”
For a moment I was thrown off. My father had always insisted Remo wouldn’t help me with my past. I’d be lucky if I wasn’t killed by the crazy Capo. Again I noticed the flicker of challenge in Remo’s eyes. Remembering Adamo’s words about his brother’s manipulation skills, I straightened my shoulders. “My father must have offered you a lot for my mother. There’s nothing he’d rather do than kill her with his own hands. But whatever he offered was never enough for you, which means he’s got nothing you want. Maybe you are as twisted as everyone says and just want to hold her fate over his head to taunt him, but then the peace which lasted many years doesn’t make sense.”
Remo’s smile widened. “Go on. I’m starting to enjoy your analysis.”
“Maybe you waited for me to show up. Maybe my father isn’t the one you want to hand information to.”
“And why would I choose you, Dinara?”
“Because it’s my past. It’s my right to know the truth. No one else’s.”
Remo inclined his head. “Well said.”
“So will you tell me everything?”
“I will but first I want to talk about Adamo.”
“Adamo’s a grown man. He can protect himself.”
“Oh, I know, but I have a feeling you might be in need of his help again soon for a path you can’t walk alone. He’ll do what you ask of him because he cares for you and because it’s a path he can’t resist. You should be sure that what you want from Adamo doesn’t end the day you reach the end of that path, because if it does, you better end it now.”