Annabel Patrick の小説

Cassie:I woke up to cold sheets and an empty bed.My hand reached across automatically, searching for Luca's warmth, but found nothing except rumpled blankets and the faint indent where his body had been.He was gone.I sat up slowly, squinting at the bright morning light streaming through the windows. The clock on the nightstand read 10:47 AM. I'd slept later than I'd meant to, exhausted from everything, the emotional revelation last night, the weight of carrying a secret that felt too big for my body.My phone sat on the nightstand, and when I picked it up, I saw a missed call from Luca at 6:23 AM. There was a voicemail too.I pressed play, holding the phone to my ear.“Hey baby, I'm sorry I had to leave. Matteo called, we have a lead on the mole and I need to follow up on it immediately. I didn't want to wake you, you need rest.”A pause, and I could hear the exhaustion in his voice.“Dr. Ricardo should be there around eleven. He'll check on you and the baby, make sure everything'

Luca:The clock on my office wall read 4:17 AM when I finally admitted defeat.I had been staring at the same financial records for the past two hours, the numbers blurring together into meaningless patterns. My eyes burned from exhaustion, my head pounded from too much caffeine and not enough sleep, and the whiskey I had been nursing had gone warm in the glass.Matteo had left around midnight, taking half the files with him to cross reference at his place. We had made progress, eliminated a few suspects and flagged some suspicious transactions, but we were still no closer to identifying the mole.And every hour we wasted was another hour Renzo had to plan his next move.I rubbed my hands over my face, feeling the rough stubble that had grown in over the past day and a half. When was the last time I had showered or changed clothes or actually eaten something instead of just drinking coffee and whiskey?Cassie would be upset if she saw me like this.Cassie.I stood abruptly, my chair s

Cassie:Oh God no.I stared at the two pink lines on the pregnancy test, my hands shaking so badly I nearly dropped it into the sink.Positive.The word did not feel real. It felt like something happening to someone else in some other life, not to me, not right now, not in the middle of everything falling apart.I set the test down on the bathroom counter with exaggerated care like it might explode if I moved too quickly. Then I picked up the second one I had taken twenty minutes ago.Also positive.And the third one from this morning.Positive.Three tests. Three unmistakable results.I was pregnant with Lucas baby.My legs gave out and I sank onto the cold tile floor, my back against the bathtub as I stared at the three plastic sticks lined up on the counter like tiny bombs about to detonate my entire world.How did this happen.The question was stupid. I knew exactly how it happened. Luca and I had been enthusiastic lately and I had been so distracted by everything, the fund, Renzo

Luca:The sun had barely cracked the horizon when Matteo walked into my office, his face carved from stone and his eyes rimmed with exhaustion that mirrored my own. He carried a stack of manila folders thick enough to be a weapon and the way he dropped them onto my desk sent papers scattering across the polished wood.Neither of us had slept. Neither of us would, not until we found the bastard who had sold us out."Boss, the reports from all three sites," Matteo said, already pulling out documents before I could respond. "Fire Island, Sandy Hook, and Montauk. I had our men document everything. Shell casings, positions, timelines, and the estimated number of shooters."I leaned forward, ignoring the way my muscles protested after hours of sitting rigid in this chair."Walk me through it."Matteo spread out three separate maps, marking each location with red Xs where our men had been hit. "Fire Island, two injured, both took rounds to non vital areas. Professional shots meant to disable

Luca:I shouted, grabbing Cassie and pulling her behind a large rock.A gunshot cracked through the night. Antonio dropped to his knees, clutching his shoulder. Sal immediately returned fire, and Marco dragged Antonio behind cover."How many?" I yelled to Sal."At least three, maybe more."Fuck. We were pinned down, and they had the high ground.I looked at Cassie, pressed against the rock, her eyes wide with terror. "Stay low. Do not move from this spot. Do you understand?""Luca...""Do you understand?""Yes."I kissed her hard and fast because I did not know if I would get another chance, then moved to better cover. I could see muzzle flashes from three different positions in the trees. They had set up an ambush, waiting for us to come out.This was not random. They had known we would be here, which meant we had a much bigger problem than I thought."Sal, cover Marco!" I shouted. "Get Antonio to the car."Sal laid down suppressing fire while Marco dragged Antonio toward the SUV. Bl

Luca:Cassie and I left the penthouse at midnight. I had insisted on waiting until we were certain the city was quieter, when we would be harder to track. Cassie sat beside me in the back of the black SUV, wearing dark jeans and a hoodie, looking smaller than usual. She looked vulnerable.I hated that I was taking her into potential danger, but keeping her locked away was not an option either, not when finding the lighthouse was our only lead to the slush fund."You okay?" I asked, reaching over to take her hand."Yeah, I am just nervous.""Do not worry, we will be fine. Marco is driving, and I have two of my best men following in a second car."She nodded, but I could feel the tension in her grip. She was scared, and I did not blame her. After Renzo's visit, after his threats against her mother, she had every right to be terrified.I should have told her to stay home, should have done this alone, but the truth was, I needed her there. The lighthouse was her memory, her father's clue.