Chapter 280: Big Toes
"That man... who is he to you?"
Lola turned to the man beside her. "Vito?" she asked. "I told you last night who he is."
"I’m concerned."
She laughed, noticing their car had come to a stop. Before getting off, she faced him squarely. "Don’t be. That guy is a lot of things, but he will not do anything to me. He won’t even try unless he loses his mind. Aside from that, he’s just a pest."
Lola winked as she opened the door and jumped out of the backseat. Instead of leaving, she looked back and lowered her head, eyes on him.
"See you later," she smiled. "Let’s have dinner later."
"I’ll pick you up."
"There’s no—" She bit her tongue when his brows rose in warning. "Sure. Text me."
"Mhm."
She slammed the door shut and jogged toward the building. Atlas remained in the car and watched her enter. Once she was out of sight, the car began to move. Atlas pulled up his laptop and was greeted by multiple notifications.
Checking the mails from his assistant, Allen, a profile immediately filled the screen.
Vito Ricci.
Leader of the biggest and most dangerous organized crime group in Southern Florentia. Extortion, corruption and bribery, arms trafficking, illegal gambling, cyberhacking—every sort of crime was tied to the group. They controlled the entire South.
According to the reports, this man had either joined forces with a few crime bosses or negotiated truces with those he’d clashed with. Interestingly, he had some government ties as well.
Atlas read everything about the man, whose territory lay thousands of miles from Novera. Yet here he was. Vito left an impression on Atlas even through these written reports.
She said their relationship is complicated, he thought, remembering what Lola told him.
What she’d said lined up with the reports: dangerous, indebted, and entangling. Lola had saved him from death. So, he’d helped her "recover." Even so, she realized she’d lost her freedom before she even noticed. She hadn’t gone into detail about how she’d regained it, only that she’d done things for Vito she would never be proud of—paginated debts that bought her temporary safety. One wrong move could send her straight back to the life she’d fled.
A shallow breath escaped Atlas as he stared at the photo on the screen.
"Baby," he called, shifting his gaze to the driver’s seat. "I’m not going to Summit Partners."
Baby glanced in the rearview mirror, meeting his boss’s calm face.
"Take me to that resort," Atlas ordered. "I want to meet the person who put a leash on Lola."
Baby nodded without hesitation and took a wide turn.
*****
Meanwhile...
The building that had been empty since yesterday was now full of people—new faces and familiar ones. A smile curved Lola’s lips.
Finally, things are starting,
she thought, chuckling.Lola didn’t stop for anyone. She headed straight to her office. Silo, Amala, and Haji were already there when she arrived.
The moment the door flew open, the four of them whipped their heads toward her.
"Lola!" Silo shouted, running up and grabbing her shoulders, bobbing his head as if scanning her for injuries.
"What are you doing, Silo?" she asked, brows knitting.
"I’m checking—are you hurt? Where? Did they hurt you? How? Should I call the police? No—calling the police— I’m going to beat them!"
Confused, Lola shifted her eyes to Amala, who was approaching. Amala looked Lola up and down, then met her gaze. "We heard someone came here last night?"
Haji stopped a few paces away, eyes fixed on Lola, expression grim, clearly waiting for orders.
"Ah..." Lola nodded, brushing Silo’s hands away. "I’m okay. Vito just sent his stupid goon, Salvo. But I’m fine."
She flashed a reassuring smile, set her bag on the desk, and ignored the attentive stares.
"You guys know Vito," she said without looking back. "He’s not going to hurt me. The only time he would is if he planned to kill me."
She paused and looked at them. "I really am fine, guys."
If anything, she had other things to worry about, she thought, leaning back on the desk and crossing her arms. "Vito’s words are his bond; he won’t go back on them."
"What did he want?!" Silo demanded, rushing to her side. "Do you know how worried I was last night?!"
"How did you even know about it?" Lola frowned.
"That son of a bitch sent Amala a message last night," Haji said, hands on his hips. "He didn’t do anything to you?"
"Lola, I’m really sorry I didn’t know," Amala said, sighing. "I tried finding where he was staying, but he keeps moving."
"And thankfully that superstar answered Silo’s call quickly," Haji added. "He told Silo you were home."
"Slater?" Lola frowned. Slater hadn’t been home last night; he was with Penny.
Did he call Atlas? She wondered, but pushed the thought away and smiled. "Vito just wanted to chat for a short while. I’m fine. No need to worry."
"Boohoo!" Silo sighed, then, without thinking, hugged her. "Lola, that scared me! I thought he’d beat you up!"
"Even if he did, are you going to beat him up? You? He’d kill you before you can even lay a hand on him," she quipped, patting his back as she shot Amala and Haji a look. Her reassurance made their eyes lighten with relief.
*****
It took time to calm Silo down. Once Haji dragged him away to tend to Cedrick, Amala stayed behind in Lola’s office.
Amala’s concerned eyes studied her. "Lola, are you sure Vito didn’t tell you anything?"
"Like?"
"Like... wanting you back?"
Lola leaned back in her chair, maintaining eye contact. "Amala, do you really think Vito would want me back?"
"You’re one of his best spies," Amala said. "From what I’ve heard, Vito’s having problems with the organization over one of their businesses. If he doesn’t find who’s responsible, the whole organization could fall apart."
"Amala, that’s his problem," Lola said with a weak smile. "I have my own to worry about. Whether he dies or not isn’t my problem."
"And that’s the problem."
"Why is that?"
"Because Vito is the only one protecting you from everyone who wants your head," Amala reminded her. "We might’ve left, but that doesn’t mean those people won’t try to settle scores. You stepped on a lot of toes—big toes."
She raised an eyebrow, resting a hand on the desk. "Lola, unless we kill all of them or you die, Vito protects you... and Haji, me, and even Silo, whose only sin is becoming your friend."
"Especially now that we’re going public, things are going to be different, Lola," she added. "It’s a risk we were willing to take, but it’s still a risk. Let’s not forget that."