AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You have a pretty big problem there, brother.” Antonio hisses as Celia’s body shifts beside him on the bed, her leg brushing against his cock jutting toward the air.
My eyes zero in on him, waiting for him to take this a step further. One foot straddled over the line, the point of no return. Antonio and I constantly push each other’s buttons until we’re both standing on the edge of something we’ve both thought about more than once, but never took that final step.
“I’m sure you could help me with it…” My voice trails off, daring him to take that next step. Our eyes lock with each other’s, the tension in the room so thick we could cut it with a knife. The last threads of my control are fraying, but I won’t be the first one to break.
“Can we table you two’s bullshit for a few minutes?” Matteo runs his hand through his dark hair. A nervous habit he’s had since we were kids.
He’s never said a word about these games Antonio and I play with each other, both mentally and of the forbidden nature. For him to say anything means whatever problem he’s discovered is putting him on edge.
“Either you two need to fuck or shut the fuck up for a few moments so we can figure out our next move,” he barks, pacing back and forth in front of the bed.
His eyes flick to Celia with every pass, as if making sure that she’s still there, safely tucked away into Antonio’s side.
I step in front of him as he comes to a dead stop, his eyes wild with concern, and even a small trace of fear. It’s that look of fear in his eyes that makes me wrap my hand around his neck and pull him into me, resting my forehead on his. “What is it, Matteo? What happened?”
“There have been reports of an explosion at Celia’s building.” He whimpers, his eyes clenched together tightly. “The place went up in flames a few minutes after we left.”
“What?” Antonio pulls Celia tighter into his side.
I release Matteo, taking a step away from both of them as my entire body shakes with rage. This entire situation unnerves me. Not only because of Celia, but how close we all came to meeting an untimely end.
“I talked to our man in the police department. It was a small bomb strategically placed near the furnace in the basement. The entire place went up in a matter of minutes. No survivors.” Matteo launches his cell phone at the wall, shattering it to pieces.
Her apartment is gone. But how does that make any sense? They used that place to monitor her and make contact when they needed information. Why would they set it ablaze?
“Call Santiago. He owns the bodega around the corner from her apartment. See if he knows anything.”
“Already done. He hasn’t seen anyone fitting O’Banion’s description since this morning.”
“Are we sure? Do I need to make a trip down there myself?” I growl, my anger slowly bubbling towards the surface.
Matteo shakes his head. “Trust me. If Santiago knew anything, he’d tell us.”
“Bring him here, and I can ask him my-fucking-self.”
“No one is stupid enough to lie to us, Salvatore. He knows nothing.”
Celia stirs slightly, and we all freeze. Waiting for her to wake up and ask us what happened is something none of us is ready for. Not right now. Not until we have a plan in place.
There’s no way she’s going to understand why we are keeping her under lock and key. She’s lived most of her life searching for a family, a place to belong. Similar to most kids in the foster care system, she probably spent her younger years waiting for her parents to show up again to take her home. But then as the months turned into years, she gave up hope and learned to take care of herself through insurmountable odds, and now we’re asking her to trust us.
“What else have you learned?” Antonio chimes in as he slides his pants on and pushes to his feet.
The thought of something—anything—happening to Celia causes bile to rise in my throat. She has no one in the world to protect and look out for her, but she’s also fiercely independent. Evident from her ability to shed the person she was before her sister disappeared and she chose to do anything in her power to protect her. What will she do now? Will she finally tell us the entire truth, letting the last wall around her crumble to the ground?
“I had Gabriel check all the surrounding cameras in the area for any clues about who set the blaze.” I motion with my hand for him to continue. “He saw someone enter the building around noon, and they left about ten minutes later.”
“Did we get a good look at him?” Antonio comes to a stop beside me, gripping my shoulder tightly and holding me in place.
Matteo shakes his head. “None of the cameras got a look at his face. We lost the guy when he ducked into one of the subway stations about a block away. We may get more information, but Gabriel needs to hack the public transportation system, and that takes time.”
“Time we don’t fucking have,” I growl, shrugging out of Antonio’s grasp and climbing into the bed. I need to be closer to her. To feel her small body wrapped in my arms is verification she’s safe here with us.
My mind knows these feelings are completely irrational. We were each taking turns fucking her on our dining room table when the bomb went off, but this was too close. She could’ve easily been in that apartment instead of tucked safely in our home.
“What’s our next move?” Antonio comes to a stop beside me, his face hardened and arms crossed over his chest.
For once, Antonio isn’t laughing and cracking jokes at my expense. It is easy to see the hardened, ruthless killer that lurks behind his eyes when he’s like this. A force to be reckoned with for anyone that threatens the safety of the ones he loves—which now includes Celia.
