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“Plenty taken,” I snap at him, trying to wriggle free of the arm around me. “He admitted what he’d done. It wasn’t like it was his word against mine.”
I’m shocked when he suddenly grabs my hair and pulls hard on it, making me cry out and bend my neck back.
He sneers at me. “Sure. Maybe he did touch my fiancée. That’s worth a hand or two. But I just can’t help but wonder… What if the light of my lifewaslying to me? What if she’s a deceptive little snake, a Lilith intent on destroying my perfect paradise?”
Light of his life? The only thing he likes about me is how attractive I am. There’s no paradise here, and he’s the largest snake of all.
Pavone grips my chin and forces me to look at Vanessa.
“Damien, go ahead. Show Lucia what happens to snakes.”
“She’s not a snake!” I say. “If you’re going to do something to anyone, let it be me.”
Pavone laughs. “But that’s not going to teach you the right lesson, babe,” he chides, almost cheerfully. “It’s better this way. Go on, Damien.”
I should look away. I want to spare Vanessa any humiliation. But I have to know what kind of people I’m dealing with, too. I already know that Pavone is a monster, but I have no sense for his consigliere.
With a perfectly calm expression, Rossi pulls a pair of scissors out of his jacket pocket. I tense up, remembering Angelo’s use of the scissors just a few hours ago.
Vanessa clearly remembers too because she starts sobbing again. “No, please. I’m sorry, please don’t.”
Rossi ignores her and draws the closed scissors along her throat. “Hush. If you move, I might miss.”
Miss? But that lets me know he doesn’t intend to murder her. I think.
Rossi taps Vanessa’s collar with the scissors, then moves them slowly across to her shoulders—and cuts the strap of her tank top. He repeats it on the other side, so that Vanessa’s shirt starts to slide down her torso.
She gasps and grabs the fabric to prevent it from falling away completely.
“Let go,” Pavone orders. “Show us your pretty little tits,sis.”
Vanessa is looking at me with such desperation that I’m nearly choking on my rage. How dare he. How dare he do this to my sister!
The fact that it’s technically my fault isn’t lost on me.
Angelo had warned me I was playing with fire. Uncertainty starts to twist with the rage. Did he tell Pavone what I’d done? Pavone had seemed fine before…
If he did, I’ll kill Angelo myself for being the reason my sister is suffering right now.
“It’s okay, Vanessa,” I say quietly, trying to keep the murderous edge from my voice. “I’m right here.” Not that there’s a damn thing I cando.
Vanessa lets go of the tank top, and it slides down. I avert my eyes, not wanting to look at my sister’s bare chest.
Pavone makes a disappointed noise. “Eh. I definitely picked the right sister.” He slides his hand down to my chest and squeezes my breast harshly. “Bet it sucked, seeing your big sis get all the luck in the looks department, huh? You ever wish you were Lucia, Vanessa? Wish you weren’t born the ugly duckling of the family?”
Vanessa’s only reaction is to whimper. As far as taunts go, I think it’s weak. Vanessa isn’t ugly, and we’ve always been close. There’s never been competition between us. If Pavone thinks this is going to hurt her, he’s got a very bad read on us.
Victor would have done a better job of it.
“Giulio might like her,” Rossi says as he trails the point of the scissors around Vanessa’s nipple. “There’s a market for the girl-next-door type.”
“You hear that, babe?” Pavone says. “Vanessa might have some use after all. We can set her up as one of our club girls.”
“You don’t need to do that,” I say, wishing desperately that I was the one with the scissors—or a gun. I’d happily take a gun right now and shoot them both point blank to get them the fuck away from my sister. But losing my temper isn’t going to help. I have to stay calm and collected for her sake, no matter how difficult that’s proving to be. “I’m behaving, Emilio. You said you’d leave her alone as long as I behaved. I’m doing everything you want.”
“Did I say that? That doesn’t sound like me. Damien, did you hear me promise anything?”
Rossi looks up, blinking at us as if he’d forgotten we existed. “No, sir. We’re only taking care of the Bellini women out of the goodness of your heart.”
