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Veronica shook her head, then openly told Nikolai her concerns. Nikolai’s expression softened. “My poor Veronica,” he murmured. “You have endured more tragedy than you should, but let me assure you, your suffering has come to an end.”
“Nikolai, can you truly guarantee the safety of our future children?” Her voice cracked and Nikolai tightened his grip on her.“I won’t be able to continueliving if our children are taken from us.”
“I know, and I won’t allow that to happen,” Nikolai said. He met her gaze. “Trust in me, Veronica. I will keep you and our future kids safe. After witnessing me destroy one Familia, the others will think twice before crossing me again.”
Nikolai seemed to be deep in thought, then he said, “We can raise our children elsewhere, somewhere peaceful perhaps. Would that ease your mind?”
“You would consider such a thing? What about your empire?” Veronica asked. “No, Nikolai. I won’t have you make this sacrifice.”
“It’s not a sacrifice, especially if it’s for you and our family. Besides, I think I deserve a break after years of work.” Nikolai smiled fondly at her. “I could travel back-and-forth to deal with business matters. I can give you this gift, my love. We can raise our children in peace and spend more time together.”
“I love you, do you know that?” she asked, before kissing him on the mouth.
He gripped her close, slipping a hand under her dress to touch her damp panties. She wiggled on his lap.“I love you too, baby,” he said, before deepening the kiss.
****
“Can’t you drive any faster?” Paolo La Russa yelled at his driver.
He could hear the frustration in his voice but didn’t care. Paolo had always been proud of his emotionless public face but appearances didn’t matter, not now while he was running for his very life. How the hell did he manage to get himself in such a situation?
The man only let out a grunt of acknowledgement. Paolo silently fumed as he stared out the car windows. Vito should have been here by his side, along with his most loyal men, but no, it was only him today. Paolo didn’t expect the isolation would affect him so much. He’d been so used to being surrounded by vicious men who would eagerly do his bidding without question. He’d gone from being one of the most powerful men in the city everyone feared, to nothing. Paolo disliked the feeling immensely.
Curse Nikolai Baranov and his bitch. This was all their fault. How had that bastard managed to outmaneuver him? By rights, Nikolai and his wife should be dead by now. He would blame Vito too, for being so careless about his activities.
Once word got out to the press and the authorities of Vito’s operations, a hammer landed on the entire La Russa Familia. The FBI paid him a visit yesterday morning. The two agents they sent pretty much spelled the truth out for Paolo—he was done. His options were limited. Paolo sure as hell wasn’t going to go along with the investigation and end up in jail, not after everything he’d done to get to the top of the underworld.
Uncertain of the Familia’s future, plenty of his men handed in their resignation letters. Some offered their services to Paolo’s other rivals. All of them were fools. Their actions astonished him, then pissed him off. Did loyalty mean nothing these days? Paolo had paid these men handsomely over the years. In the end, he was left standing alone when the wolves came at his door. He didn’t even have the clout or money to hire someone to hunt the backstabbing traitors down.
One thing was certain. Paolo would not take this defeat lying down. During his exile, he would plan on his amazing comeback. He would make Nikolai Baranov, his wife, and everyone who had wronged him pay dearly for their actions. They would all suffer terribly before Paolo killed them. Well, maybe he would leave Nikolai for last. Paolo remembered the sordid video that had somehow made it to his phone, that of Vito during his final moments.
It could be Paolo, begging for his life while his enemy knifed him in the gut. What an awful way to die. He shuddered. Nikolai was a sadistic beast, one he severely underestimated. Next time, Paolo would certainly tread with more caution when it came to trading blows with that foul creature. Revenge would be his fuel the next few years. It would keep him going. Paolo didn’t care how long it would take. He would rise to the top again, no matter what.
Paolo frowned as the car stopped and he looked out the windows, seeing a private airstrip. Relief filled him. He was using the last of his dwindling funds to get away from this miserable city as fast as possible. In a few minutes, Paolo would be off this forsaken rock. He could relax once he was out of this country’s jurisdiction. Paolo would be untouchable on foreign soil. Maybe he could take a vacation before embarking on his new path of vengeance. Surely, after everything he had been through, he deserved some rest.
“Thank God we’re finally here,” Paolo said.
He checked his jacket for his passport, suddenly worried he left it behind. Feeling the weight in his left breast pocket, he relaxed a little. Everything was going as planned, but still, a nagging feeling told him something was about to go wrong.
Paolo’s phone beeped and he pulled it out. He received a one-line message from an unknown number.
“Enjoy your surprise!” Paolo read it out loud.
Three smiley emoticons ended the message. Was this some kind of terrible joke? A bad promotion of some sort? Shaking his head in silent rage, Paolo shoved his phone back into his jacket. For God’s sake, Paolo was turning fifty this year. He shouldn’t be scaring himself silly.
His driver had gotten out and was opening his door. About time. Good help was so hard to find these days. Paolo’s driver of twenty years had resigned, along with most of his staff. Well, soon enough, Paolo would also make that man regret his decision. Paolo would make a list of all the people who wronged him during the flight. That would be the most productive use of his time.
“Finally, that took long. What are you doing, man? Go get my luggage,” Paolo barked as the door swung open. “Is this your first day on the job or something? Don’t you know who I am?”
Paolo froze. A grotesque face grinned back at Paolo, one covered in scars. The uniform he wore seemed ill-fitting for his muscled frame. Paolo immediately recognized Hyde. He swallowed. For the next few seconds, he felt like a rat in a cage. Then he remembered he could use the other door. Paolo needed to get away.
He backed away as the hitman pulled out a slim revolver equipped with a silencer from inside his jacket. This was the surprise? That bastard Nikolai must have sent him that blasted text.
“You can’t do this. I hired you!” Paolo shrieked as Hyde pointed the gun squarely between his eyes.
Hyde didn’t answer. The assassin simply fired and Paolo La Russa was no more.
Epilogue
