Daughter of the Mafia

Breaking Protocol: Part 10

"Stop laughing," Jaci hissed, throwing the pillow at Amanda and glancing at the door between the two hotel rooms. "You'll wake your father."

"Sorry," Amanda said, putting a hand to her mouth to muffle the mirth that shook her shoulders. "It's just too funny. Your father telling you to fake that you're in love with some Swiss guy and refuse to come home? Who's going to buy it?"

Jaci scowled. Indeed, who? Not her mother. She knew Jaci was crazy in love with Ricky. Not to mention she'd just gotten over Joey.

But maybe the Joey angle was the way to play it . . .

"People just snap sometimes, right?" Jaci said. "Especially after a really stressful, self-defining experience."

"Yeah, I suppose sometimes they do," Amanda said. "And you think you can pretend like you snapped?"

"Why not?" Jaci shrugged. "I've already proven myself to be a bit impetuous under duress. Like chopping all of my hair off or kissing a boy while I'm dating another." She grinned, even though the memory of the latter still shamed her.

"Yeah, but your mom doesn't know about all that."

Jaci waved a hand. "Besides the point. Maybe I really am impulsive. I don't care about school anymore, I'm not even sure I want to go to college. I've snuck off to Switzerland to see my father without telling my mom. Is meeting a boy and running away such a big stretch? Maybe that's what's next."

Amanda eyed her. "Are you going to include Ricky in these plans?"

Oh. Ricky was bound to find out. Her stomach twisted. "I'm talking with him online later tonight. I can tell him then."

"Is your dad okay with you telling him?"

Jaci hadn't asked permission and didn't plan to. "Ricky won't tell anyone."

"So he already knows you were meeting your dad here?"

"Well, no," she admitted. "I'll just have to let him in on everything."

It was the only way. Because her mom would be tracking Ricky down as soon as this whole thing broke loose and interrogating him.

With an eight-hour time difference between Idaho and Switzerland, Jaci quickly set up the Wi-Fi on her laptop so she could call home before her mom left for work. It was a little after seven a.m. there. Today she could play it cool and normal; she hadn't done anything wrong yet.

"Hi, girls!" Mrs. Rivera said, smiling at the camera. Cesar waved in the background, munching on a bowl of cereal. "How is Switzerland?"

"My dad's still asleep, so we've just stayed up here in the hotel room," Amanda said over Jaci's shoulder. "It's really safe and clean, though!"

"That's good, you wait for him to be awake and with you. Don't wander the streets by yourselves."

Jaci shot Amanda a look. "Mom, we're not babies anymore."

"But you can still be hurt. You stay with him."

"Yes, Mom," Amanda said, popping a chip in her mouth and winking at Jaci.

It didn't really matter what her mom said. It was all about to hit the fan, anyway.

She hated to put her mom through hell.

Again.

"What are your plans tomorrow?" Mrs. Rivera asked.

Jaci pulled up the calendar app on her phone. "If the weather's nice, we're going to Lake Zürich for a boat ride, maybe walk around the Old Town. Otherwise we'll do the Museum of Art, maybe the mall." She shrugged. "I don't know. We're pretty flexible."