Chapter 95

"Is there a problem? Don't you want to see her?” Santino countered.

Clifford's gaze sharpened, a new layer of scrutiny in his eyes. After a moment, he let out a short laugh. "I'll have Ziven send you the address. Don't be late."

“Of course,” Santino replied with a nod.

Clifford rose and left the office. The moment he was out the door, the smile vanished from his face, replaced by a cold mask.

Downstairs, he found Latisha sitting on a sofa in the lobby, her unfocused eyes staring at the floor, lost in thought.

A shadow fell over her, and she looked up to see Clifford standing there. He was already a tall man, and from her seated position, she had to crane her neck to see his face, which was obscured by the light behind him. His hands were tucked in his pockets, the long coat draped over his shoulders accentuating his lean frame.

Latisha paused for a second before quickly getting to her feet. His features came into focus, as cold as ever-perhaps even colder.

"Let's go."

With those two words, he turned and walked ahead. Latisha followed silently behind him into the elevator and down to the underground parking garage. He was driving a different car today, a discreet black Mercedes.

She had just buckled her seatbelt when he spoke abruptly. "Stay away from Santino."

Her hand froze on the strap. She turned to look at him, but his face was cloaked in shadows, only the outline of his profile visible.

Sensing her gaze, Clifford turned to meet her eyes. "Did you hear me?"

Latisha's lips tightened, her grip on the seatbelt clenching. A moment later, she signed: *Why don't you just give me a list of everyone I'm not allowed to talk to?*

There was a defiant edge to her gesture, and he couldn't have missed it. He stared at her for a long moment. "Who do you think you're fooling with your little games?"

Latisha froze.

"You wanted to get close to Santino to drive a wedge between him and Renata," Clifford said flatly. "Do you honestly believe they have any real feelings for each other?"

She lowered her gaze, unable to meet his. His words, like his stare, were a knife, cutting her open and exposing the darkest, most secret parts of her heart to the light. She felt transparent, as if everyone could see right through her.

"Santino isn't an idiot," Clifford continued, his voice merciless. "Did you think he wouldn't see what you

To ere doing? He not only saw it, he

ayed along and used you. A

you

were sitting there, feeling proud of yourself."

Latisha clutched the seatbelt, biting her lip so hard it hurt. Every word was a blow, a mockery of her ignorance and naivety.

After what felt like an eternity, she found the courage to look up and sign, *How did you know?*

Clifford let out a cold laugh and tossed his phone to her.

She picked it up. Displayed on the screen was a message from Renata: [Clifford, can you please control your mute wife? Do you have any idea what the staff is saying?]

Renata's message was meant to stir

up trouble, but it was clear Clifford hadn't been fooled or misled. It wasn't until Latisha had followed Santing to the office that he had pieced together all the fragments and seen the full picture.

Latisha had expected Renata to complain. She had thought Clifford would go after Santino, just as he had with Nikita. She knew how much Renata adored Santino; if Clifford

made a move against him, his sister would surely turn on him.

Meanwhile, Renata's jealousy and anger would create a rift with

Santino. On paper, her plan had been flawless.