AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Italian-Americans had a custom of displaying a saint statue in their front yard. I wouldn’t have taken the Marchianos, however, as being the godly sort who would follow this tradition. After all, they spent their lives killing people—and enjoying every minute of it.
After Alessio got out of the car, I followed and attempted to stand, but as my legs gave out under me, he caught me and scooped me up into his arms.
I felt too dazed to voice anything except for a small gasp, so instead I let my body sink into his comforting hold, and I relished the warmth of his body against mine.
He was tall, easily over six feet in height, and his whole body was a machine of finely honed muscle, from his broad shoulders down to his powerful thighs and calves. He was wearing black jeans, a black fitted top and black boots.
Black was, of course, the clothing color of choice for most Made Men—no other color hid the bloodstains so well—however, together with his almost-black hair, dark eyes and his precise movements, he gave off the aura of a highly-trained assassin.
He carried me into the garage and headed past all the vehicles and through a door leading to more rooms.
Was this a back way to enter the house? After walking past the luxury exterior of the main house, these rooms were a harsh contrast with their stark emptiness and desolate air. “What is this place?” I asked, looking around in confusion.
He didn’t bother to answer me.
He went into the first room we came to, put me down and closed the door behind him, the sound echoing with a sinister finality.
I felt unsteady on my feet, but that was the least of my worries right now.
The room felt a few degrees colder than the temperature outside. There was no heating or air conditioning, and the room only contained the bare essentials of a table, two chairs, and a storage closet.
My breath caught as the realization hit me of what this place was: the closet would be full of torture equipment.
“Why have you brought me here? What are you…you going to do with me?”
“That depends on you, on whether you cooperate.” His words were casual but hinted at something darker beneath his careful veneer.
“I don’t know anything,” I said quickly.
He prowled toward me, his proximity unnerving me. “Didn’t your parents ever teach you not to lie?” His voice was cruel now, in complete contrast to the man who had soothed me earlier, and I realized just how dangerous this man truly was.
My eyes swiftly swept around the room trying to figure a way out. My breaths were coming in shallow rasps. “I thought you came to save me from the Bratva?”
“So, you do know something—you know who your captors were.”
I desperately tried to understand what was going on. “I know that my captor is now you,” I said harshly. “And anyone would know that those other guys were Russians with the accent they had.”
“What did they want with you?” As he fired questions at me, he was rolling up the sleeves of his dark top, revealing his strong forearms dusted with dark hair.
A bead of cold sweat trickled between my breasts, making me shudder. He was a Made Man: a man who had been brought up to torture and kill, a man who had no conscience, and a man who thrived on cruelty. I should have known that he wasn’t my savior. I should have known that he was just like every other Made Man. He was a person who lived and breathed violence, and a person who could only bring pain and suffering into my life.
“I d-don’t know. I was staying the night at my father’s house and woke up to find them in the house. I don’t know what they wanted with us.”
He pierced me with his eyes, and I could sense his mind trying to figure out what I knew. “Tell me, what did they say to you?”
“Nothing, I swear. They barely said a thing to me.”
He sighed. He knew I was lying...
CHAPTER 4
ALESSIO
She was lying.
I had dealt with enough deceit in my life to know when someone was not telling the truth.
Her body was shaking, and her eyes were wide. Her father was in a bad way, and we probably wouldn’t be able to question him for a while, meaning that it was imperative that the girl talked and that she talked now.
