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What? I have to fight not to blink quickly or stand and demand to leave so I can call her. Pregnant? That news is amazing and fantastic.
And I’ll murder these assholes myself if they touch her.
“Oh, my God,” Elena whispers, gripping onto my arm. “Carmine, no.”
“It would be a shame, wouldn’t it, if Anastasia was in a horrible car accident and they both died?”
You. Mother. Fucker.
But my expression is impassive when he looks down into my face.
“Carmine, this is insane. Since when do we threaten the lives of innocent people?”
“Since always,” he says, not even sparing her a glance. “You’ve just been very sheltered, Elena.”
“No,” she says and stands to pace, stopping by Shane. “Stop this.”
“Don’t you have anything to say?” Carmine asks me.
“What do you want me to say?”
He shuts the computer with an angry snap and paces away from me. “Don’t you give a shit about your family, Archer?”
“You haven’t been listening to me,” I reply as I stand and prop my hands on my hips. “They aren’t some small, meek people in the middle of nowhere that you can bully. If you do this, if you hurt anyone I love, you have no idea the wrath they will unleash on you. On all of you. You think the fucking mafia is scary? Try fucking with the Montgomerys. We have deep contacts with law enforcement, with the military. Hell, the O’Callaghans may have ties with the Irish Mafia, for all we know. The connections and money my family has are endless, and they will end you if you hurt us.”
Shane laughs, surprising Elena. “I have to respect your arrogance, Montgomery. You’re foolish, but you’re confident.”
“Nothing I’ve said is a lie,” I reply.
“Archer,” Carmine begins and walks to me, putting his nose only inches from mine. “We know everything there is to know about you and your connections. Do I look concerned?”
“You should be.”
“No, my friend.” He shakes his head. “You should be worried. Because that wrath you speak of? It’s about to rain down in ways you’ve never dreamed of.”
“I’m not your friend.” I stare at him, unblinking. “Bring it.”* * *Less than an hour later, Rocco returns to the apartment with an older man that looks just like him. With his dark hair slicked back, dressed in a dark suit with a dark shirt, and the signature mafioso ring on his right little finger, this man screams mafia boss.
I glance down and see Elena shrink against me as if she’s a scared little girl afraid of the bogeyman.
And that pisses me right off, igniting more anger in me than I’ve felt even in the time we’ve been here. Even after Carmine threatened my family.
“Uncle Carlo,” Elena says and lifts her chin, but she doesn’t pull away from me.
The man stops in front of us. His face is stern, but his dark eyes soften as he stares at the woman he hasn’t seen in many years.
“Little one,” he says and immediately tugs Elena into his arms for a firm hug. “Oh, how I’ve missed you, sweet girl.”
In her shock, she doesn’t hug him back right away, but then her arms encircle him, and she holds on tightly.
“Are you surprised?” he asks when he finally pushes her away.
“Shocked,” she admits.
“Oh, don’t get me wrong. We’ll be having a stern conversation before the night is out, but for right this minute, I want to look at you. You’re a beautiful woman, Elena. And a smart one.”
He pats her cheek and then walks away without even acknowledging that I’m standing here.
“Maybe too smart,” he continues. “However, you underestimated me. You see, Elena, I’ve known where you were since the minute you left Seattle eight years ago.”
Elena’s eyes grow wide, and Carmine rounds on his father.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Carmine demands. “You knew? Why would you send us off on some wild goose chase if you already knew where she was? I just wasted weeks of my life.”
Carlo is impassive as he stares at his eldest son. “Because, my dear boy, you have to earn my trust back.”
He dismisses Carmine and turns back to Elena.
“You know there’s a price to pay for deserting the family the way you did.”
“Grandma sent me away,” Elena replies. “For my own safety.”
“That wasn’t her call to make,” he says easily. “She wasn’t in a position to make those decisions. Do you think the men she called to help with your arrangements didn’t immediately report back to me? They were my employees, not hers.”
“Then if you knew where I was, why didn’t you come for me before now?” Elena asks.
“Because I didn’t have a need for you. You were safe, and I kept an eye on you.”
She narrows her eyes. “I’ve seen black SUVs around town, but I always brushed them off.”
Carlo smiles. “See? I told you, you’re a smart girl. We kept tabs on you, watched out for you. That break-in you had a few weeks ago was unfortunate. I suppose boys will be boys.”
