Free Sure as Hell by Julie Kenner Page B

was up. Not only had she never told him that she loved him, but as soon as he’d spoken of his father, she’d started easing away. His words were the harshest reminder of what she was here for. Of who she was.
    And of what she had to do.
    Except, damn it all, she didn’t know what to do.
    “I like the approach you’re taking.”
    Startled, she whirled around, finding her father standing beside her, his Armani suit crisp and perfect.
    “It’s brilliant.” He stepped closer and kissed her cheek. “I always knew you were the cleverest of my children.”
    She knew he was lying, but it was a nice lie, and she wanted to cry on his shoulder, but her father had never been that kind of a father. So instead, she stood a bit taller, held her chin high, and looked him in the eye. “I’ve been researching Moreau,” she said. “I can’t imagine why he’s important to you.”
    “Hmmm.” Her father tapped his fingers together. “Yes, I’ve been keeping tabs on your progress. Your days have been productive, though the nights less so than I would have hoped.”
    “He’s not here,” she spat. “I can hardly assassinate an absent man.”
    “And yet you haven’t run off to find him elsewhere.”
    No, she thought. I haven’t.
    “No matter,” he said. “As I said, your reason is clear. Get close to the son, get close to the father.”
    “I’m not using Dante for this.” The idea was unthinkable.
    “No?” Her father’s voice rose, the epitome of innocent curiosity. “Then you have a plan?”
    She let out a slow breath, then nodded. “The roof of the main casino tower. It overlooks the west wing garden. He’s coming in tomorrow for a dedication ceremony. I’ll have a direct shot. A single bullet. And then I’m done.”
    Her voice broke a bit on the last. Because being done in Monte Carlo meant being done with Dante, too. But she couldn’t dwell on that. Couldn’t let her father see weakness in her eyes.
    And she wasn’t weak. She was simply bound by the inevitable. There was no future with Dante. Even if she weren’t about to kill his father, there could be no future. It wasn’t as if she could be with him forever. She was immortal. He was not.
    This was a fling. An interlude. A delicious vacation before she got down to the serious business of running her father’s very vast empire.
    And she was fine with that.
    Really.
    In front of her, her father smiled. “Good. Very good. I’m glad to see that my darling Lucia hasn’t lost her touch.”
    “Tell me why, Daddy.” She had to know. There had to be a reason. Something large that she could cling to and say, yes, this was worth losing out on love.
    But he waved the question away as if it were nothing. “Competition. I told you. I’m looking to expand my gaming interests. And Moreau has always been a thorn in my side.” A gentle caress to her cheek. “But what does it matter to you? Once he’s gone, you’re in the catbird seat. And I would think you would do anything to get there, now wouldn’t you, my dear?”
    She hesitated, wishing she could deny it. But she couldn’t. She was desperate to leave her life as an assassin, and this was her way out. Her one last job, and then freedom.
    Freedom. That had a price, too. Because once she was free of the shackles of her profession, then what was she if she didn’t take her father’s offer? Simply some immortal girl spinning her wheels. She could have Dante, true, but to what end? To watch him grow old, then die? She couldn’t even bear the thought.
    She was who she was, and that was a sad fact that she had to live with. More than that, she had to live with it for eternity.
    She was the devil’s firstborn. And his kingdom was hers to inherit.
    She straightened her shoulders and drew in a breath. “Yes, Daddy,” she said, the words so simple and yet meaning so much.
    “Good girl.” And then he was gone in a puff of smoke. And Lucia could do nothing except fall on her bed and cry, just as she had