Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 118965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 595(@200wpm)___ 476(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 595(@200wpm)___ 476(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
The first man I killed was for Sabella. Well, not literally for her but to get the information I needed to tie her to me. I was twenty at the time. However, I got my hands dirty long before then. My father taught me all the tricks of torture and how to get the toughest of men to talk before I turned fourteen. To date, Gianni has only seen me do the work. It’s about time I take care of his initiation.
When Gianni just stands there, irritation slips into my tone. “Don’t you have a gun on you?”
He shakes his head.
“Never face an enemy without a fucking gun.”
Taking my gun from the back of my waistband, I give it to him. He accepts the weapon with a trembling hand.
“If you want him to die slowly, aim for his stomach,” I say. “If you want to make it quick, go for the heart or the brain. Between the eyes is always a solid choice if you don’t want to waste time or bullets.”
Gianni stares at the Glock. A drop of sweat runs down his temple.
Geoffrey wails.
My tone is dry. “Any time now.” I fold my hands in front of me, widen my stance, and wait.
The first time is always the hardest.
Gianni lifts the gun and aims. He shakes so much the barrel is all over the place.
“Steady,” I say.
“Fuck.” Geoffrey starts to pray and then interrupts himself to beg. “Please.”
“I—” Gianni wipes a forearm over his brow. “I can’t.”
I place a hand on his shoulder. “Easy now. It’s just us. Me and you.” No one else here to witness his cowardly display. “Aim and pull the trigger. He’s a sitting duck. You don’t even have to chase after him and hit a bullseye in the run.”
Gianni falters. He drops his arm. The gun dangles uselessly at his side.
I sigh and hold out my palm. “Give it here.”
“You can’t,” Geoffrey screams.
Gianni clenches his jaw, raises his arm, and shoots.
Geoffrey howls. Not dead. Gianni hit him in the bicep. Idiot. Before I have time to react, Gianni pulls the trigger again. Geoffrey yells like a pig that’s being slaughtered. The bullet tore into his knee.
“For fuck’s sake,” I mumble. “Just put him out of his misery.”
Gianni starts crying.
Wrestling the gun from my cousin’s hand, I point the barrel between Geoffrey’s eyes. My aim is steady. The shot I fire kills the traitor on impact. His body goes slack. Finally, silence. Except for Gianni’s wheezing.
I grip his arm and make him face me. “It’s us or them. Always.” Tapping the barrel against his forehead, I say, “Remember that. If you let them go, they’ll come back to fuck you over. To torture and kill you. Letting enemy soldiers go sends the wrong message. It says we’re weak.” The memory of dismissing Sabella’s bodyguard, Roch, instead of putting him six feet under enters my mind. I should’ve killed him. For once, my uncle was right. But my mother’s death was still too raw. I couldn’t dishonor her memory like that.
Gianni shakes off my touch.
“Got that?” I ask.
He wipes his nose with the back of his hand before nodding.
“Clean up your face,” I instruct.
He dries his tears on the sleeve of his jacket. When he’s presentable, I open the door.
My uncle stands on the other side, nervousness etched on his features.
“Take him for a drink.” I tilt my head to Gianni who follows. “He may need a stiff one.”
My uncle gives his son a pained look. “Did he…?”
“No.” I make my way to the car with long steps. “I did.”
Chapter
Three
Angelo
* * *
It takes a week to do a proper cleanup in the warehouses, interrogating every man and going through every square inch for cameras or bugs. The checks are done routinely, but after catching a spy on the premises, I prefer to be extra cautious.
By now, Marziale would’ve gotten my message. He knows I’m coming for him. If he’s clever, he’ll run. He’ll get out of Corsica while he can. Not that it’ll help. I’ll always find him, and when I do, I’ll crush him.
I sleep on the sofa in the warehouse office and use the onsite shower, too weary at night to bother with going to a hotel. During those hours that I lie awake in the dark, my thoughts return to the same place and person—the new house and the woman who lives there.
My woman.
How did she react when she discovered what I’d done? Is she cursing me as she’s lying in her bed? How much more does she despise me? How much time will it take before she gets over it? Definitely more than the week I’ve been gone. Perhaps an eternity. She’ll hate me even more when she finds out I left Heidi with a very clear instruction not to go to the new house while I’m gone. I don’t want Sabella to make Heidi do something that will surely get her fired, something like going to the pharmacy and buying her an emergency contraceptive. Heidi has been with me for too long. I don’t want to be forced to kick her out. Sabella sent me to the pharmacy when I took her virginity, and that was one time too many. I told her that then, and I never go back on my word. When she falls pregnant, I won’t allow her to get rid of my baby. I’ll lock her in a cage for the whole nine months if I have to.