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At their feet was a man lying in a mess of smears and pool of bright red. He had no fingers on one hand and slashes across his chest. His face was nothing more than a mess of mangled flesh.
Blood. Blood. Blood. Blood everywhere.
My stomach lurched and I truly thought I was going to hurl my guts.
When I looked to the men around him, Matteo held a knife, looking beyond pissed, mixed with disbelief. Angry enough to rip someone’s head off.
When my eyes met Luca’s, there wasn’t just rage, but a churring pool of disappointment and, nervousness. My heart was being dug out of my chest with a spoon, making my chest cavity recoil from the pain.
Why him? How was it possible for the one man that ever made me feel so much be the man standing across the room now covered in blood?
But I wasn’t the only one concreted in place. Nobody moved. The room had gone so silent you could hear everyone’s heavy breathing. We all just stood there not knowing how to make the first move.
That’s when the man on the floor fished a small knife from his boot with his good hand, lunging at Luca and catching everyone off guard. He swung wildly. Luca jumped back just in time for the knife to catch his shirt but miss flesh.
Every man in the room pulled a gun, emptying the clips. BANG! BANG! BANG! The sound so intense in the large space I threw my hands over my ears and winced at the assault to my hearing. The man’s body fell to the floor in a heap.
My whole body started shaking uncontrollably. The adrenaline rush hit me so hard my legs almost gave out, leaving a tingling feeling in my fingertips.
“Becka.”
I slowly turned my head, unable to move faster than a snails pace. When I looked at Arianna, I expected to see shock reflecting in her golden eyes. Fear and incredulity, like me.
But there was none. Only nervousness. She put her hands up in a calming gesture and turned her back on the scene. My eyes bulged out of my head.
There are some things you just don’t do. Basic instincts built into all of us. Like not turning your back on something dangerous.
I realized then that to her, I am the danger. Not the bloody massacre going on in the back of the warehouse, but me. How I would react was the danger.
Something clicked in my brain. Russo. Matteo Russo.
The Russo crime family.Drugs, guns, prostitution… They were feared and had most of the influential people in the city in their pocket. An incredibly powerful crime syndicate.
The Mafia.
HOLY SHIT!
My heart that had settled back into place, fell into my stomach. I have to get out of here.
I glanced back at Luca— for God knows why— his intense eyes swam in regret, but his face was still set in stony rage.
“Becka. It’s going to be ok. Just calm down.” Concern echoed in Arianna’s voice. I realized I was near hyperventilating. My gaze shot back to her face, but I couldn’t see Arianna anymore.
She’s part of all this. I saw a stranger. I felt like I didn’t know a damn thing about the person staring back at me. It broke my heart in two.
Then she reached for me gently and I reared back. There was movement out of the corner of my eye as men slowly made a move.
I bolted. Spinning on my heels fast enough to break an ankle, I ran for the door. I could hear heavy footsteps pound on the floor behind me.
I reached the door just as it swung open and crashed into a wall of hard flesh. I went flying backwards right into the arms of the man who had come to get Mark earlier.
I screamed as his arms banded around me hard enough to crush my ribs. Throwing my head back I connected with his nose, his cursing loud in my ear as he released me.
Before I could move, another set of hands bit into my arms so hard I cried out in pain. The large man who’d come through the door was at my front, holding on tight. I raised my knee and sent it straight to his balls. He fell like a stone. As he sank I put my other knee to his face. Blood splattered across my skin.
Another hand on my arm spun me so fast I had no time to react before the first guy connected a massive backhand to my face. I screeched, my head flung sideways with a CRACK of sound.
Ouch! Fuck!
“DON’T HURT HER!” Avoice roared through the warehouse. Luca?
I wrenched my arm from the death grip and stubbled backwards. Damn heels! My foot tripped over the other guy’s leg. I fell backwards, with no way to catch myself.
The back my head hit the concrete with a THWACK, my body went limp. The pain was debilitating. My vision blurred to almost nothing as my mind slowed to a grinding halt.
Then I was being cradled in a strong pair of arms that held me close. The black at the edges of my sight closed in.
