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“I said they wouldn’t let us bring our guns,” Sonny commented. “Just stating a fact, Salvatore. Marcello and his team have already accounted for that variable.”
I pushed my hands to my hips, my gaze traveling between them. “We dock in twenty minutes. Get your heads back in the game.”
* * *
We arrived atIsola del Diavolo, also known as Devil Island. Dock lights illuminated the palm trees. Through the thick encasement, I could see a glimpse of the seaside fortress that looked like it could withstand any attack.
As we walked through the forest, men guided us down a lit path toward the gate surrounding the Tuscan-style mansion. From the look of it, they had more security on this side of the island, which made sense.
Drake Battle’s artificial intelligence software helped us to gain some insight into the layout of the island, down to the number of guards posted at each end of the property. We knew the guards’ shifts, even identified a few. They were Sicilian, Made men tied to the Calabrian crime family.
I shoved my cell phone into the inner pocket of my suit jacket as we stopped at the gate. A dark-haired man around the same height as me ran his hands over my back, shoulders, and chest, all the way down my arms and legs. I handed over my guns before he continued his slow exploration.
The Knights followed suit.
Marcello moved to my right as Damian and Bastian clung to my left side. We walked through the gates and into the busy courtyard as a team. I recognized a few men we’d given loans for their shady businesses. They nodded, while others glared at us.
At a place like this, we had just as many allies as enemies. It was impossible to know who was working with the Basile crime family.
Men smoked cigars and sipped from snifters as we passed them. Before we reached the front doors of the estate, a man I recognized strolled through them.
Lorenzo Basile.
I thought about his stupid fucking note in the shipping container and wanted to spit in his face. It wasn’t just a message to my family. His note was a lesson not to fuck with the Sicilian Mafia.
“Luca.” Lorenzo extended his hand. “Welcome to my home.” His gaze drifted to each of my brothers, and then to the Knights. “Gentleman.”
People in our world claimed The Lucaya Group ranIl Circo, but the leaders of the group were a mystery. No one, not even the CIA, had enough intelligence on the terrorist organization. We assumed the Russians were behind it. An ex-KGB officer posed as the head of the organization. He was a ghost, untouchable, and therefore the perfect scapegoat.
The Russians were the tip of the iceberg. They never wanted Alex. It was always about Viktor Romanov’s daughter for them. But for the man standing before me, this was about revenge.
Payback for my mother.
He had the one thing all of us valued most in his possession.
Our queen.
No amount of money or favors could ever satisfy his need to avenge my mother’s death. He blamed my father, who he never liked but tolerated to make my mother happy.
Lorenzo placed his hand on my shoulder with a sick grin pulling at his mouth. “The auction is about to start. Glad you could join us.”
I met his cold, hard stare, pretending as if he hadn’t gotten under my skin. “I wouldn’t miss it.”
With a face full of makeup, and wearing a wedding dress given to me by another man, I walked down the spiral staircase with my brother. My throat felt like it was about to close up from the nerves choking me. Between my raging anxiety and my waves of pregnancy sickness, I struggled to keep down the food in my stomach.
The estate was massive, with high ceilings, ornate molding, and marble floors that glistened when the fluorescent lights hit them. It reminded me of the Salvatore Estate, from the expensive paintings which donned the walls to the sixteenth century Italian architecture, which filled every room.
Aiden clutched my hand, holding me close to his side. Like he was afraid if he let go, I would drift away. After months of separation, I was so happy to have him by my side. But not under these circumstances.
I was already engaged to four other men, one of which had put his child inside me. My chest ached when I thought about them. About how this would crush each of them in different ways. There was no way they would get me off this island, not without getting themselves killed.
Guards surrounded the place like it was a military base on the sea. The only way off the island was by boat. You could hear and see everyone coming and going from the island. So unless my men stole a submarine, we were stuck here, completely at the mercy of the terrifying Mafia boss.
I tried to stay positive and believe in a happily ever after with my guys. But I also understood the odds. They would die trying to getting me off this island. And they would all do it willingly, because I was their queen. Because love was a powerful weapon that could lighten even the darkest heart.
When my feet hit the ground floor, a wave of nausea swept over me, rocking me to the core. I dug my fingers into Aiden’s arm to steady myself.
He lowered his head, eyes on me. “Are you okay?”
