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“Is that who I think it is?” Enzo asked, the scar that curved at the edge of his right cheekbone drawing deeper on a scowl. He grew his hair long to conceal it, but the mark was more prominent when he was pissed off. “She was talking about George. She’s Crawford’s fiancée. The one you saved that night you killed Duarte’s men.” He didn’t finish with a question. It was a statement of fact: a condemnation.
“Why is she here?” Gian demanded. “And why isn’t Crawford dead yet? Unless you’re keeping her as bait.” His frown deepened. “You’re not usually this sloppy, Massimo.”
“She’s not bait,” I snapped back. “But I am keeping her. She’s not going anywhere without me until Crawford is eliminated. She was almost shot tonight because of him.”
Enzo hissed out a disapproving breath. We might all be perfectly happy with our lawless lifestyle, but none of us liked collateral damage. Innocent civilians were to be kept out of the line of fire. At least, that was the way we conducted our business in Naples.
“Send her back to the feds,” Gian insisted. “You’re not her babysitter. Let her be someone else’s problem. We have enough of our own to be dealing with.”
“Not happening,” I refused. “I’m not sending her back to the DEA. Crawford will be able to get to her.”
“She might want to be with him,” Gian countered, infuriatingly calm and rational. “She’s his fiancée, after all.”
“She’s mine.” The fierce declaration left my chest on a snarl that I usually reserved for my enemies, not my closest friends.
Enzo blinked and took a step back. Gian looked like I’d punched him in the face.
A beat of heavy silence passed, and I forced my fists to unfurl where they’d clenched at my sides.
“I won’t let her go,” I declared, a hint of a growl still roughening my tone. “She’s safest with me.”
“Massimo, be reasonable.” Gian maintained his cool demeanor despite his shock at my aggressive outburst. “I get it. She’s beautiful. But just because you want to fuck her?—”
“Don’t talk about her like that!” I thundered.
Enzo took another step away from me and placed a restraining hand on Gian, a warning to back off. The brothers weren’t afraid of me; they cared about me. I was rarely this unstable, and Enzo knew my moods well enough to recognize that I was on the edge of violence. Back in that dirty alley, I’d ended the man who’d taken a shot at her, but it’d been too quick. I’d failed to kill Crawford too. I needed an outlet for my rage, and Enzo wasn’t willing to allow his brother to draw my ire.
“Fine.” Gian was smooth as ever, placating. “Keep her if you want. Just don’t forget why we’re here. We have to conclude our business with Duarte and his Colombian partner, Rodríguez. If we fail, we won’t be able to take on the Boss back home.” His eyes glinted on the last: hatred and something more fervent, a burning need to wrest control from the old man who commanded our lives with the Camorra.
Most of the aggression drained out of me. “I won’t fuck this up for you,” I promised. “You know where my loyalties lie.”
I would die for my friends. Gian and Enzo loathed our boss, Cesare Salerno, a personal vendetta that went deeper than resentment of his casual cruelty. They’d made it their mission to overthrow the bastard and take everything he held dear.
We’d bided our time for years, and our work here in Mexico was the first clandestine move in our planned coup. Once the three of us controlled the lucrative new trafficking route into Europe, we’d have the global connections we needed to take on the boss. We would have powerful friends to back us up when the time came. Then we would be kings of our own domain, truly free for the first time in our lives.
It was everything we’d always dreamed of, going back to those early days of deprivation in Le Vele. It’d taken us over twenty years to get to this point; I wouldn’t mess it up for us now that we were so close to attaining everything we’d ever wanted.
When it came to stalking Crawford, my obsession with Evelyn had proven to be a dangerous distraction. But now that I had her in my power, I wouldn’t have to worry for her safety anymore. I could keep her close, and I would continue the work I’d started here in Mexico with my friends.
“I trust you,” Gian finally replied. His posture remained relaxed, but his mouth still twisted in a frown. “But I’m worried for you, Massimo. Enzo and I are returning to Italy tomorrow. You have to stay here with Duarte while we arrange the payment on our end. We won’t be around to watch your back.”
Shit. I hadn’t realized my friends would be leaving so soon. It would be up to me to play the role of charming Italian guest to solidify our alliance with the drug lord, a man who was notorious for his lavish parties. I would have to figure out how to navigate the social niceties with one of the most dangerous men in the world, and I’d have to manage it while keeping Evelyn close.
No matter the challenges, releasing her wasn’t an option. Cartel violence had almost claimed her life twice now, and Crawford had done nothing to stop it. Evelyn wouldn’t be safe as long as he was breathing.
“I’ll be fine,” I promised the brothers. “I can handle myself.”
“We know you can,” Enzo agreed. “But this isn’t a situation you can fight your way out of. You almost attacked us over this woman. You can’t lose your shit like that around Duarte’s people. Especially when we won’t be around to help you.”
I offered him a grim nod, acknowledging my fuck-up. My possessiveness when it came to Evelyn clearly worried my friends, but now that I had her under my control, I’d be much calmer than I had been when Crawford still staked his claim over her.
I fixed Gian with a steady stare. The coup meant everything to both of them, but we all knew that Gian would be the one to take control of our organization when the time came. He was the cleverest of us, and his keen strategies had gotten us this far. I owed my fealty to him above all others.
“I will do everything in my power to seal this deal with the cartel,” I vowed. “We’ve been planning this for years. I won’t fail you now.”
If I had to play the part of affable guest to Duarte’s mercurial host, I would do it. Evelyn might try to put up a fuss, but she was no match for me. She’d be more amenable once she realized that I would take better care of her than Crawford ever could.
I resolved to lavish her with beautiful clothes and expensive gifts. I would prove to her how I could keep her safe and comfortable. And give her more pleasure than she’d ever known. Then, she wouldn’t want to leave.
