AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I hand him my guns and stand still as he pats me down. When he nods at the others, they walk with me again. I already know where I’m going. Straight to Emiliano’s office.
There are two more guards posted there as we approach, and one of them opens the door for me. I straighten my shoulders and walk inside the warm room.
Mahogany is the main theme here, and the yellow lights give it a comfortable appearance. The bookshelves all around the room remind me of my foster dad’s office. Bianco kept tons of books on his shelves too. I remember staring at them when he forced himself on me.
Shrugging the thought away, I advance inside the office as the door closes behind me. I ignore Lucky sitting on a dark green leather sofa on the side of the room, and instead go toward the desk, even though I know her eyes are on me like a hawk on its prey.
“Nathan,” Emiliano greets me, standing up as if seeing an old friend. He comes around his desk to shake my hand and clap my shoulder gently.
His son is next. Vito straightens from where he was leaning against his father’s desk, his dark eyes digging into me, and shakes my hand briefly.
“Please, please, take a seat,” Emiliano says, pointing at one of the burgundy leather armchairs in front of his desk.
I unbutton my tux and take a seat, folding an ankle over my knee, and look over my shoulder. “Watch and learn, Lucky, it’s called politeness. Maybe next time, try to talk before threatening to kill everyone.”
She cocks an eyebrow at me, but only gives me a smug smile as a response.
I turn back to Emiliano, and he waves a hand dismissively. “Ah, you know how Lucky is. We love her because she has her own methods.”
I dig my gaze into his, pausing for a second so I don’t reach for the paper holder on his desk and smash it against his skull.
“I want to see my wife, Emiliano. It’s a low blow to go for a man’s family, and you know I never would have.”
He nods, but Vito takes over quickly. “Oh, please. Your psycho ass would kill a blind man’s guide dog and not feel a thing. Don’t talk to us about a low blow.”
Would I, really? No, I’m sure I wouldn’t do that. Who knows.
“Nathan,” Emiliano says slowly, picking his words carefully, even though the ball is in his court. That man must never be underestimated. He’ll tell you he’s about to kill you with a reassuring voice and a sorry stare. He’s been in this business long enough to not need useless violence. “Your dad—”
“Foster dad.”
He nods. “Mateo Bianco was pointlessly ruthless and look where it led him. You don’t want to be like him.”
“I’m not like him.”
“You took our suppliers. The Canadians work for us. You separated yourself from the Cosa Nostra, cutting all ties with us and the Rossis. That’s a move he would have done. Hungry for world domination, drunk on power.”
I roll my eyes, not needing a life lesson from someone barely older than Bianco was.
“Have the Canadians, then. I don’t care. But I want to see Kayla. Right now.”
“You’ll see her,” Vito continues. “You just have to switch places with her.”
“Fine.” I don’t even hesitate one second.
“Fine?” Vito repeats.
“Fine. Tie me up in your basement. Torture me, cut all my fingers, be a brave Cosa Nostra boy. I don’t fucking care, Vito. Let her go.”
There’s a low, mocking whistle behind me, and Lucky laughs to herself. “The boy is in love, gentlemen.”
My head snaps toward hers, and I offer her a chilling smile. “You should be worried about what I’m willing to do for her. Who I’m willing to kill.”
“I’m shaking, Nate,” she says with a voice as flat as mine.
There’s always that funny thing that happens between two psychopaths. Not only do we recognize each other, but we also weirdly fucking hate each other. We can see through the masks we’ve spent years practicing, and the effort we’ve put into making others believe we’re emotionally functioning falls to the wayside all of a sudden.
That’s how Lucky and I interact. Because we’re exactly the same, and I can’t fucking stand her. It’s like looking in a mirror. Fuck, I must be exhausting to other people.
