Not Juliet (15 page)

“Yeah. I’ve
arranged for twenty of the nearest sleepers to meet me. When I’ve
explained to them what needs to happen, I plan to simply walk onto
the campsite and ask to talk to Petulengro. I hope they haven’t got
to him yet.”

“No,” Cosimo
said. “They would want to keep it a surprise. I reckon you’ve got a
good chance, son.” He was quiet for a moment. “While you’re
there…”

“Already
thought about it, Dad.”

Cosimo laughed.
“That’s my boy!”

A few hours later, Luca
closed the distance to the bed in three long strides and shook the
king’s hand. “I know what you might think, but I assure you it’s
not true. Not all of it, anyway. May I have an hour of your time?
It really is vital that you listen to me. Both your life and
Riella’s are in danger.”

“I’m
listening,” Goliath said.

Luca didn’t
keep anything back. He told Goliath Petulengro all he knew about
Riella’s trip to Italy, how they’d met, how he’d shadowed Zamir,
the shooting and the bulldozers, and also how he’d lost her trust
by keeping the truth from her, in a sorry attempt to protect her.
He didn’t try to hide his shame, or blame it on someone else, fate,
or unlucky circumstances.

He finished by
explaining how he’d got there and what he was planning to do to
when Karalius would show up. And then he spoke openly about the way
he felt about Riella, and his plan to get her out of there
alive.

Goliath
listened and then kept silent for a few minutes.

Eventually, he
asked, “Tonight, then, you think?”

“From their
point of view, it would make sense to act as soon as possible. That
way your chances to defend yourself would be lowest.”

“I agree.”

“How many men
would you be able to get together in a couple of hours?” Luca
asked. “I brought twenty, and they’re already on site. If we’re
going to bring in many others, we should do it soon. I don’t think
we have much longer than that to sort out our defenses before
they’ll have us under observation.”

Goliath began
to laugh. When he ran out of breath, he said, “It won’t make any
difference to the outcome, so the wisest thing to do would be to
spare as many lives as possible, wouldn’t you think? Send your men
away.”

“It would break
Riella’s heart if you didn’t try to save yourself.”

“Yes, but if I
resist I might make her own situation worse, not to mention risking
the lives of others.”

“Who might not
be that innocent. I know the way he works. Karalius infiltrates a
structure before he attempts to blow it up. I wouldn’t be surprised
if half the people you think you can rely on are working for him
now.”

“And I’m sure
you’re right. But innocent or not, it’s not these men’s turn to go.
Karalius has a quarrel with me and my family. Why hurt others? No.
I can probably find a way to get my wife off the campsite,
especially if we can keep any news of future events, so to speak,
quiet. She must not find out that Riella will be here later.”

Luca nodded his
acceptance. “I have a plan to intercept them and keep Riella
away.”

“You mustn’t do
that.”

“You’re saying
I shouldn’t try to save her?”

“Not at all.
Just that you mustn’t interfere with my challengers’ plans in any
way that would put them on alert. I’m sure they’ll try to use her
as a bargaining chip. Otherwise it would make Zamir’s trip to Italy
a bit pointless. No. They wanted her so they can use her.”

The two men sat
in silence for a while, considering their options. Goliath was the
first to break it.

“They will
offer her a bargain she can’t refuse. And, of course, they have no
intention of keeping their end of the deal.”

“It’s what I
think, too.”

Goliath nodded.
“They’ll probably blackmail her – go with them and they’ll let me
live, or something like that. The details are really not at all
important. What is important is that she is taken by surprise, or
she won’t react true to form and they’ll start to suspect I have
help. She must feel cornered.”

“But she will
go with them. I know she will.”

“I agree.”

“You do?”

“She loves me
too much.” Goliath took a deep breath. “You said you love her, and
I believe you do. So now it falls down to you to save my only
child. I really can’t entrust such an important job to anyone
else.”

“What exactly
do you want me to do?”

“First, I need
a decent amount of contact explosives.”

Luca nodded,
then settled to listen to Goliath Petulengro’s plan. Before he
finished speaking, he received a call from Zamir.

“Everything
okay?” Luca asked.

“They’re on a
TGV to Paris. Zamir made a deal with you on my behalf, apparently –
the only way you would agree to let her come home.”

“I wonder what
I was supposed to have asked for,” Luca said sarcastically.

Goliath
chuckled. “I’ll tell you as soon as I have a word with my wife.
Could you give us a moment, please?”

Luca stepped
outside for a moment, and used this time for a quick ground check.
The campsite was surrounded by forest. Only the side closest to the
road, about ten percent of the total area, was inhabited, and at
the moment seemed unnaturally quiet. The rest had been left to the
mercy of the elements, or used to dump any unwanted junk in
haphazard fashion. The place was in need of a firm hand; not
something a king confined to his sickbed could provide anymore.

From the edge
of the forest, Luca watched as Isadora Petulengro was accompanied
to a car by a handsome man in his twenties. Something about the way
he held himself reminded him of Riella, or maybe he was just so in
love, he was seeing traces of her everywhere. The young man got in
behind the wheel and drove away.

Luca turned his
steps back, toward Goliath’s trailer, to continue his strategy
meeting. As he opened the door, a large Scania long-distance
haulage truck pulled in. No one tried to stop it. From the top
step, Luca watched it drive to the far end of the field and turn,
so that its back doors were to the forest and it faced the exit
from the campsite.

His guess had
been right. Karalius was on the move. He stepped in and stared
straight at the king.

“Don’t tell
me,” the old man said. “The artillery has arrived.”

Luca chuckled.
“Love your sense of humor. I would have really enjoyed being your
son-in-law, you know?”

“Don’t be so
cocky, son! I was beginning to think you and Riella would make a
good match,” Goliath scolded him with a smile.

Luca took one
deep breath and steeled himself. Man, this felt so much harder than
a one-on-one battle with a champion wrestler. Goliath noticed his
unease and waited for him to speak. Luca was grateful.

“About me and
Riella…”

“Yes.”

“I would be
honored if you gave us your blessing. I love her with all my heart,
and I intend to spend my life making her happy.”

Goliath stared
at him for long enough to make him uncomfortable, then he cracked a
smile and said, “You had my blessing the minute you walked in that
door, son. I know your father well, and I know any man Cosimo
raised can only be a real man.”

Luca smiled in
gratitude. “Thank you.”

“Not so fast,”
Goliath stopped him. “I know I won’t be right by your side for much
longer, but I’ll be watching. If you so much as cause her to shed
one unhappy tear, I’ll be haunting you until you beg for mercy. You
got me?”

“Your
punishment couldn’t ever be as bad as the one I’ll be meting out
myself.”

“Rightly so.
Now, come over here,” Goliath motioned for Luca to approach. “I
reckon no one will worry about me until they’ve got everything
unloaded. Still, let me show you your hiding place. Then we can
talk.”

Darkness was falling
when Riella saw the entrance to the camp, just beyond a
long-distance truck parked on the side of the road. Her mood lifted
a little. She’d see her father and maybe, just maybe, he’d be able
to help her make sense of the last few days’ nightmare… and her few
hours of paradise.

That she was in
love with Luca, she was not denying. What to do if he really was
the ruthless gang master’s master Zamir was implying he was – that
was the real question. The more she thought about it, the less she
believed him capable of having traded her for a spot of arms
dealing. His countenance that morning, when he could see he was
losing her, had been realistic. His remorse, his facial expressions
– all real. No one could act as well as that.

Or was she
making allowances because she loved him so much?

Luca may love
her, or he may not, but if he did, she would ask him to give up his
life of crime, give up on these stupid power games, and live simply
alongside her. When two people loved each other as much as she
thought the two of them did, what else did they need? They had
happiness already.

Without a word,
she leaned into the car door. Zamir’s hand on her shoulder stopped
her.

“Just a minute,
princess.”

Riella paused,
waiting for an explanation, but Zamir said nothing more.

“What are we
waiting for?” she asked.

Zamir looked
over to the back of the field. A light flashed twice, then he said,
“Okay. Let’s go.”

Still confused,
Riella walked alongside him to her father’s trailer. To her
surprise, he followed her inside. She turned to tell Zamir he could
go, when her eyes fell on the kitchen end of the trailer and the
two masked men with machine guns who stood there, motionless, guns
at the ready.

She gasped and
turned to her father. Goliath was breathing normally, laying in
bed, just as he had during her previous visit. He seemed all
right.

“Dad? What’s
going on?” She turned to look at the armed men, then back to her
father.”

“Nothing to
worry about, baby girl. Stay calm, okay?”

Riella hadn’t
even realized her breathing had turned to fast gasps. She worked on
taking deeper breaths. This didn’t look like the right moment to
pass out from hyperventilation. Zamir put his hand on her shoulder
casually, but instead of calming her, his touch made her feel
trapped.

“Really?” she
asked. “I would worry a lot less if there were no guns in my
immediate vicinity. Why are they pointing the guns this way,
Dad?”

“Because… Well,
baby girl, they’re protecting the new king.”

“The new
king?”

Riella glanced
around the trailer again, but apart from the two gunmen, she
couldn’t see anyone that would fit the description. Just then,
Zamir stepped in front of her, looking ever so smug.

“You?” she
asked, disgusted.

“I think I
deserve a bit more respect than that, princess,” he said, brushing
his hand over her cheek.

Riella recoiled
from his touch.

“I have a
proposition for you.”

“I don’t want
to hear it!”

“Listen to what
he has to say,” Goliath encouraged her.

She pressed her
lips together and turned to stare at Zamir.

“I’m sorry you
had to get tangled in all this, princess, but the truth is your
life is on the line.”

Riella felt the
shock of his words, but not as strongly as she would have expected.
She continued to breathe slow and deep.

“After last
week, I expected that much.”

“The good news
is that I’ve been able to make a deal with a powerful man. I can
keep you alive…” He paused for effect. “But only as my wife.”

“In your
dreams!”

Goliath
chuckled, but Zamir didn’t look amused. “If you walk out of this
door without me, it’ll be like you’ve painted a massive bull’s eye
on your forehead.”

“Watch me! No
one tells me what to do! Especially not you. You’ve been lying to
me, haven’t you? Luca was right all along.” She remembered her
father and turned to him, eyes wide. “Dad, I can explain. You won’t
believe this, but whilst I was in Italy, I got married.”

Goliath
continued to chuckle gently, not looking ruffled at all. Why?

Zamir grabbed
her upper arm and swung her around to face him again. He stared at
his old friend as he spoke to her.

“All right. If
you won’t do it because it makes sense, maybe you’ll do it to keep
your father alive.”

Riella froze.
“What do you mean?”

“I’ll call my
very powerful friend right now and explain we can bring your father
along to live with us for the rest of his days. I might have to
plead, because he really wants to see the end of Goliath
Petulengro, but he might agree… Maybe if we assure him that you
will also show your gratitude to him in some way…”

Before she even
knew what she was doing, Riella’s palm struck Zamir sharply across
the cheek, so hard he staggered back, and the joints in her arm
jarred, all the way to her shoulder. Her hand stung and
smarted.

Zamir grabbed
hold of both her wrists.

“Not wise,
princess. I have the power to unleash hell on this community, and
guess who’s going to get the blame? Hmm? If you won’t do it for
your father, will you do it for your people?”

Riella stopped
struggling and turned to face her father.

“Dad? Can he
really do what he says?”

Goliath looked
straight into her eyes. “Don’t you waste one minute worrying about
it, baby girl. What will be, will be.”

“Yes or no?”
Zamir snarled at her, stepping between Riella and her father and
cutting her direct line of sight to him.

“Fine. I’ll go
with you. Call your big scary boss and ask him to leave my people
alone.”

Zamir leered at
her, and took out his phone. He turned his back and began pacing,
his fingers pressing buttons.

“Riella,”
Goliath said, holding his hand out to her. She took it and held it
between hers. “If my people need a hero, I’m sure he will appear
and save them all. As for you and Luca Anziano… You have my
blessing. He’s a good man, Riella. You chose well. I’ll watch that
huge wedding my old pal, Cosimo, is sure to want from my personal
small fluffy cloud up there.” He raised his eyes skyward for a
moment. “Tell Kai he should give you away.”