When Sookie returned, she was distraught, not knowing how to face Enzo. No matter what Enzo asked, she took 1 to 2 seconds to respond. Enzo, seeing her odd behavior, attributed it to fatigue, after all, the intimate encounter from the previous day had consumed a great deal of their energy.
Enzo’s inner turmoil was unprecedented. Rarely had he felt so out of control over the years. Was it because her body was exceptionally alluring, or was it because he hadn’t been with a woman in a while?
Making love to her felt almost predestined.
He struggled to clear his mind of distractions, but as he looked at the small figure wrapped in blankets on the bed, he longed to walk over, press her down, and indulge in a repeat of what they had just done two hours ago.
No, he couldn’t. Enzo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He needed to think about how to explain things to Tessa and Landon, and he hadn’t cleanly dealt with the issue of the witness.
But if he told them, they would kill the girl.
He didn’t seem capable of doing that, so he chose to close his eyes and try to catch some sleep.
Meanwhile, Sookie’s inner world was becoming increasingly chaotic. She didn’t know who the Mia mentioned by Hayde was, she didn’t know her own feelings towards Enzo, and she didn’t understand why she had gotten involved in this mess.
That night, while Enzo slept deeply, Sookie remained awake, agonizing over how to solve the predicament in front of her. She didn’t want to be expelled or imprisoned, disappointing her parents, nor did she want to offend Enzo, risking his capture.
When she was at her wits’ end and just slipping into a dream, a ringing interrupted. Enzo cursed under his breath, sat up, and found his dropped phone on the floor. He glanced at the caller ID-Landon.
It was 3 a. m.
He irritably ran a hand through his hair and answered the call.
“It’s only 3 am, you better have a good reason,” Landon’s voice was loud and urgent. Enzo suddenly felt a pang of unease.
“You damn well better get out of there now! Our people have spotted a large group of Polish men heading towards the factory.”
They were moving fast.
Enzo furrowed his brow and responded, “Okay, I got it, I’m on it.”
Landon’s tone was grave, “Tessa is convening a meeting right now. It looks like a war is brewing.”
“It’s fine, I’ve weathered bigger storms before.”
Enzo got off the sofa, picked up his pants from the floor, and hurried to the window. He opened it, letting in the chilly air that helped clear his mind and dispel his drowsiness.
Landon wouldn’t stop talking, “Buddy, you need to move fast, they’re getting closer to you.”
Enzo acknowledged and then went to a bookshelf, pressed a hidden switch, and a door opened to reveal an array of firearms-shotguns, a 0. 75 pistol, an AK47, and some explosives. He quickly stashed them in his backpack.
He then went to wake Sookie, “Wake up, princess, we need to hit the road.”
Sookie grunted, “What’s going on?”
Enzo’s expression was serious, “Polish thugs will be here in a few hours, maybe one hour.”
These words instantly dispelled Sookie’s drowsiness. Fear crept into her widened eyes.
Enzo looked at the fear in her eyes with a hint of regret, but he had no choice. Letting her go now would mean certain death. He ordered her to quickly get dressed and meet him downstairs. He needed to get the car from the underground garage.
As he walked, Enzo pondered whether he should tell Landon and the others about Sookie.
Forget it, let’s just get out of here for now.
Fear instantly engulfed Sookie. She could feel her heart beginning to pound in her chest, its rapid beats almost suffocating her.
Enzo turned, grabbed a jacket and the car keys. Sookie grabbed the temporary phone given to her by the FBI agent, Hayde, and tucked it into the bottom of her backpack, ensuring that Enzo wouldn’t find it.
She followed Enzo into the elevator.
Inside the elevator, Sookie’s gaze fell on the gun in Enzo’s hand. As he loaded the bullets into the gun, it made an ominous clicking sound.
She had never seen a real gun before-well, not until that night at the bar.
She suddenly wondered if this was the same one that had been pointed at her head that night?
As the elevator descended, she felt her heart racing twice as fast. This wasn’t the fantasy of a romantic storyline, nor was it the thrilling collision of hormones when encountering a rugged man in the dark of night.
This was real danger.
As soon as they reached the underground parking lot, Enzo held the gun tightly. He pulled Sookie behind a truck. Instead of heading straight for the car, he surveyed the surroundings, watching for anything out of the ordinary.
Soon, Enzo confirmed the location of the car. He said to Sookie, “I’ll count to three, then we run together.”
“Run?” Sookie seemed caught off guard, but she knew she had to follow him at that moment.
“Three.”
His hand gripped her arm, and she felt her knees begin to tremble.
“Two.”
She felt her palms start to sweat.
“Now!”
As they moved, she heard the metallic sound of bullets piercing the car’s body.
Enzo roared, shielding her, and they dashed towards his car. As he pulled her behind the vehicle, she screamed when she heard the whistle of metal objects flying over her head, and she covered her head with both hands.
Enzo opened the car door, shoved her inside, then, dodging the bullets, he quickly got into the driver’s seat and sped away.
As they left the garage, explosions erupted behind them. Sookie huddled in the passenger seat, holding her head, trembling in fear.
“Do you trust me?” Enzo turned to shout at Sookie. She met his gaze but couldn’t find the words to say what she wanted to say.
She didn’t know.
Especially after she had seen the file about him from FBI Agent Hayde. But she had no choice now; she could only nod.
“Okay, then I’ll get you out of here.”