Chapter 49: Echoes of Two Heartbeats

*Layla*

As Nicolo escorted me onto the private jet, I felt uneasy. The luxurious interior felt like a gilded cage, a prison of a different sort than the one I had just escaped.

"Where's Dante?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly as I looked around the empty cabin. "Is he not coming with us?"

Nicolo shook his head, his expression unreadable as he gestured for me to take a seat. "Mr. DeLuca has some unfinished business to attend to in Cape Town," he said, his voice carefully neutral. "He has instructed me to ensure your safe return to the States."

I felt a stab of pain in my chest. I knew, without having to ask, that the "unfinished business" he spoke of was Natasha.