His Discarded Bride: Lied to from birth. Manipulated into marriage. Does love stand a chance? by Melita Joy

tempered.
    “Leilani,” he snapped impatiently.
    “I’m sorry, but she hasn’t been here since you left together?” her eyebrows furrowed possibly wondering what to make of her irrational boss.
    He ran his hand through his hair, irritated and called Savino, “she’s not here.”
    “Impossible, my men even have footage of them walking into the apartment,” he denied.
    Savino was one of the most exhaustively thorough people he knew which was why he was the best. “When did your man leave? Is it possible I just missed them leaving?”
    “He’s still in the street and he knows he is to stay until either she leaves, or I give word otherwise.”
    “Well, I’ve been through every bloody room in the place, and she is not in there and the staff haven’t seen her here since we left for Pontelandolfo. It doesn’t make any sense.”
    “Check your phone I just sent you the footage.”
    “I do not doubt the footage Sav, but where the heck is she?” he banged his hand against the stone wall; the pain averted with his frustration.
    “Let’s both review the clip and we’ll go from there.” At least one of them was thinking. It was unlike Renato to allow his emotion to take control. He opened the video clip, and it was as Savino described. Anselmo and Leilani had parked out the front of the building and walked hand in hand through the front door of the apartment building.
    Finally, his brain kicked into gear, and he ran out to the driveway dialling Sav on the way. “Where is your man parked exactly?”
    “He’s four houses up on the left.”
    “Anselmo’s car has already left which is something your man should have realised.”
    Savino swore and said he would get to the bottom of it, but Renato was already striding towards the surveillance car. The investigator rushed out of his car noticing with an enormous amount of trepidation Renato’s arrival.
    “Where is she?” he clipped completely invading the shorter man’s space.
    “She’s still in there,” the investigator was used to confrontational situations. However, he was no rival for Renato, and his fear was apparent.
    “Siete incompetenti,” he fumed. “Has it escaped your attention that Cordoni’s car is no longer here?” The investigator caught out, blustered with indignation. Finally, Renato was able to get to the bottom of it.
    “I hope the pay-off you received was worth the loss of your job. Get out of my sight.” He needed to take stock of the situation as the table had turned, and the situation was no longer what he initially thought. This moment was inevitable, and he would be present to ensure the outcome did not divert from the original plan. He would not be repudiated after all these years of work.
     
    The conversation had gone better than she expected, and an offer was extended to her to stay for coffee. She accepted eagerly and while he stepped out of the room for a short period she took the opportunity to take a look at some of his family photos on the wall. She thought back to her family photos and happier times.
    A memory of a snow trip many years ago triggered. She would have been no more than six years old. Her parents had chased each other, slipping on the icy snow while she giggled at their mishaps. In retaliation, they threw snowballs at her before making the obligatory snowman that she only really remembered from the photos that were taken. A lopsided fella with round stone eyes, a twig for a nose and a leaf mouth adorned with her father's tweed hat.
    The memory broke up the reality of her family life. The constant bitter arguments and her mother’s idle threats to leave. Leilani learned to tune them out, a good pair of headphones didn’t hurt either. She wasn’t close to either of her parents, her mother was a sewing machinist and worked long hours. When she wasn’t working, she was making it very clear to Leilani that all her hard work was for her. She complained incessantly about the hand she was dealt and not having