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“Great.” I tugged on his arm until he moved closer. “Stop playing around.” I grabbed the gun that was tucked into the back of Luc’s pants, took aim, and fired a shot into Ben’s chest, thinking only of avenging my dead friend. Somehow, she would know. I had to believe that.
Then I held out the gun, waited for Luc to take it, then pivoted on my heel and walked past the other bosses with my head high. I didn’t regret it for a second. That fucker would have kept coming back, and I had a baby to protect. He had to die.
I was done there. I passed through the open door then shut it behind me. Through the closed door, a slow clap sounded then Stefano’s commanding voice as he said, “You realize she’s made now.”
I was Mafia through marriage, and I was at peace with it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
LUC
Istood there, dumbfounded, with my gun in the same position Summer had left it pressed into my hands.What just happened?Stefano’s voice registered. I turned back to Ben. Blood dripped from a small hole in the center of his chest, and his arms and legs hung limply from his body. I shifted and directed the gun to his head then fired a shot into his forehead to ensure he was gone.
“And the reason for that?” Max asked
“She made her point. That was to ensure he would never draw another breath.”
“You realize with that kill, Summer’s been made,” Stefano repeated, no longer leaning against the wall.
I dropped my arm to my side, unwilling to release my hold on the gun. “She’s my wife. What does that matter?” I was a Brambilla boss, minus the technicality of the swearing-in ceremony.
“I find it amusing”—Stefano winked—“that she was made before you.”
I shook my head, grinning. “Good. Maybe no one will mess with her in the future.”
“Let’s go upstairs and figure out next steps.” Max waved at the prone body. “I’ll get someone to clean this up.”
We filed out of the room, and Max shut the door behind us. Once on the first floor, I had an overwhelming need to check on Summer and make sure she was okay after shooting Ben. He deserved it and then some, but I didn’t want her to suffer for even a second.
I found her on the couch, where she’d been before, surrounded by a few of the wives and Nicole. She had a bag of peas pressed against the lump on the side of her forehead. They chatted as if nothing had happened.
“Are you okay?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Yes.”
I grinned, thoroughly impressed by the lioness that was my wife. “I’m assuming that was your first kill?”
“What?” Lil jerked around at my words.
El and Emiliana laughed, and Nicole looked at Summer, clearly concerned.
“You were playing with him.” She shrugged. “And I wanted him gone. It was time. And it’s not like you guys weren’t going to end him anyway. He was a soldier, not a boss.”
“You lied to us.” Lil crossed her arms over her chest. “Did you honestly think we would have stopped you from doing that?”
Some of the color leached from Summer’s face. “I wasn’t sure. It was something I had to do, and I didn’t want to take a chance that you guys would have.”
“We wouldn’t have,” Emiliana responded. “We would have helped.”
“For future reference”—El winked—“remember it.”
Summer grinned, the sudden tension leaving her posture. “I will.”
The rest of the guys joined us as Nico entered the room. We all turned to him. “Any news?” I needed to know so we could end the Amato threat against my wife.
Nico’s resemblance to his older brother, Marco, was noticeable in the shape of his features. The only difference was his dark-brown hair and eyes, in contrast to Marco’s black hair and green eyes. I’d noticed at our wedding that Marco had their mother’s coloring.
After Nico hit a few buttons, the blinds lowered, and we were enveloped in the dark until he projected an image onto one wall from a device attached to the phone he held.
