Lily almost fell to the floor as the horror washed over her face, except Ryan held her tightly to his side, keeping her upright. “Oh my God.”
“Do you believe me now?” Dax asked quietly, even though he could see she did.
“I called her this morning. I wanted help with my room. She declined, but I wanted to know if she called you. I know how much she likes you.” Lily covered her mouth as a strangled sound escaped. “So I asked. My father was right there. I didn’t ask where they were going, but he and Travis left a little before I did.”
The air left his body as if he’d been sucker punched in the gut. That icky, swarming feeling now made sense. Sarafina needed him.
“Pack your shit. Be ready to leave with those agents outside within ten minutes.” He pointed a finger at Lily. “You either choose your husband or you choose your father. You have ten minutes to decide.”
He raced for the front door. Ryan’s words only stopped him for a second. “Where the hell are you going?”
“To get the woman I love. To make sure he hasn’t harmed her. I can’t live without her. There’s your answer.”
Sarafina glanced between the two, settling her eyes on Travis, who looked hurt, but not frightening like Mr. C.
“You said you had no contact with Dax. Why would you call him?” Travis asked, the pain clear in his voice.
“Perhaps she would like me to answer.”
Sarafina looked at Mr. C, his lips curling into a vicious grin. She decided she liked the thin-lip look much better than this one.
“You overheard my conversation, didn’t you, my dear Fina?”
“What conversation?” Travis asked, looking between the two.
“I’ve been trying to teach you the ropes of the business. It hasn’t been going as smoothly as I like. Getting arrested already. Very amateur, Travis.” Mr. C shook his head. “Daxton Delcroy, Special Agent for the FBI. Isn’t that right, Fina?”
“Did you know this?” Travis asked, the pain not only in his voice but now etched on his face.
“I saw him at the precinct when you were arrested. Yes, I knew. And yes, I overheard you on the phone Mr. C. I didn’t want to believe you could be a bad man. I didn’t.” She wiped a tear away. “But when you said you wanted him taken care of and it’s unfortunate about Ryan as well, that makes you a bad man. That’s your daughter’s husband. You’re just going to take him away from her?”
“It’s business. She’ll mourn and she’ll move on. She’ll have her family by her side.” Mr. C shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal he put a hit out for his daughter’s husband.
“Shit, Dad. You’re not going to kill Ryan, are you? What did he do?”
Mr. C, with a smug like grin, turned toward Travis. “He brought an FBI agent into our family. At his own damn wedding. If he loved my daughter, your sister, like he said he did, he would’ve never done that. That’s not the Chilani way.” He turned toward Sarafina. “I’ve always thought of you as a daughter. Now is your chance to prove that you’re part of the family. Did you call Dax? And if so, what did you say to him?”
Another tear slid down. How could she answer that? This man, a man she had known since she was a little girl, was about to kill her. A cruel, heartless man. How had she been so blind?
“Your silence is answer enough, Fina. I’m disappointed in you. This almost breaks my heart.” Mr. C pulled a gun from his jacket.
“Shit, you’re not going to kill Fina, are you?” Travis asked as he took a step closer to her.
Mr. C shook his head. “Of course not.” He walked further into the living room and shoved the weapon into his hands. “You are.”
Sarafina stumbled back, almost tripping over the coffee table. Travis glanced at her, then back at his father. “This is ridiculous, Dad. I can’t—”
“You will or you’re dead to me. You’ve been resisting taking over this entire operation and I’m done. You show me that you have what it takes to run this business. You show me right now. She betrayed the family. One of the most important jobs in this family is to keep it together. She slept with him. It’s written all over her face. How does that make you feel, Travis?” Mr. C stepped back, raising his brows with curiosity.
She couldn’t stop the downfall of tears. They were silent, but they were there. Travis couldn’t possibly do this. She couldn’t believe Mr. C wanted him to do it.
“Please, Travis…” Pleading might not work, but she had to try.
He stared at the gun, then looked at her. “Did you sleep with him?”
She was going to die. She could see it in his eyes. The pain. Why didn’t she see this sooner? No sense in lying anymore. “Yes.”
“Do you know how long I’ve loved you? And not as a brother.” The gun shook in his hand as his voice wavered a bit.
“I have no idea.”
He raised the gun, pointing it straight at her chest. “For the longest time. I was too scared to admit the truth. I love you, Sarafina.”
“I love you, Travis. I’m sorry it’s not in the way you want.”
“Me, too.”
The loud sound of the gunshot rang throughout the house.
15
Dax’s heart stopped beating the exact moment the gunshot echoed around him. Ears ringing, hands shaking, mind disoriented, he whipped his gun out from behind his jacket and threw open the front door.
It took only two steps to see his world shift, yet again.
“Put the gun down, Travis.”
A pair of eyes, muddy brown, filled with pain and heartache, looked at him. “Special Agent Daxton Delcroy. This is your fault.”
Dax took another step. “Do you really believe that? Please put the gun down. I don’t want to shoot you. For Sarafina’s sake.” He glanced at her, offering a smile that everything would be okay.
And it would be. Everything would be okay. She was unharmed. Safe. Protected. Damn if he didn’t love her like there was no tomorrow.
“I killed my father,” Travis said in a trance. His eyes were glued to Martin Chilani lying in the middle of the living room with a bullet hole dead center in his chest.
“And you saved Sarafina’s life, didn’t you?”
Travis’s eyes jerked toward him as the gun leveled at his chest. “I hate you. I won’t let anyone hurt her. Nobody. That includes you.”
“I would never hurt her,” Dax said calmly, then chanced a glance her way. She stood with silent tears streaming down her face, her eyes glazed with terror. As Travis had been doing when he busted in, she also couldn’t tear her eyes away from Martin Chilani. Not even the brief smile he gave her had dissuaded her from staring at his body.
“Are you sure about that? Did you call her the next morning? Or was she just a pawn to take down my family?” Travis took a step toward him, the gun steady in his hand.
Dax raised his hands, gun high in the air. “Shoot me, Travis. If it’ll make you feel better. I deserve it. I didn’t call her.”
“Travis, no,” Sarafina cried, rushing toward him.