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I exited my truck and headed toward where a few guys were gathered, waiting for orders. Normally I only did this with Leo or Alberto being in charge, but this time around Dom had placed me in charge. I knew he was testing me, wanting to see how well I did in a more leadership role. I also suspected he would have one of the guys briefed and told to push the limits to see how I handled the situation.
“You all waiting for a written invitation?” I asked, as I walked over to them.
Their heads snapped my way. I could tell they were a mixture of confused and annoyed. Not everyone cared for me. Some of the guys that had been around longer felt like I had wormed my way into their spot. It didn’t matter that they were complete idiots and not senior management material. If they had worked for me, they would all have been fired by now. Though, I wouldn’t have actually allowed them into the organization in the first place.
“Waiting on Leo,” one of the guys said.
“He’s not coming. Get a fucking move on,” I snapped. I didn’t want to be here, but if I was going to be here then I wasn’t going to tolerate these guys dicking around.
I began to walk through the compound, keeping an eye on the guys as they grabbed the women, securing the hoods before loading them up into the moving vans. I had to turn my eyes away from a couple of women who were fighting against one of the guys. They were the newer women and weren’t ready to accept their fate.
I hated having to do this, having to be a part of this. I wanted to help them, but I didn’t know how. I hated that I didn’t know how to help them. How to fix this. After I took care of Dom, I would need to figure out how to resolve the issue. Right now, my main focus needed to be on killing Dom.
Walking into the house, I let out a shaky breath. These nights were always the hardest on me, but normally I could contain my emotions better. I could keep the wall firmly in place and not let any of it affect me. It was almost impossible tonight to keep myself separated from my surroundings and the emotions stirred up within me. I kept seeing Alexis’ face on each woman. I felt like I was losing my mind and it was going to snap at any given moment.
“You ok?” Gab asked, as he came around the living room.
“Great,” I responded as I slumped against the front door.
“What did he have you do?” Gab asked, and I could hear the worry in his voice.
“Just a relocation. Natalie ok?”
“Ya, she’s asleep. I can stay,” he offered, and I appreciated it, but I wasn’t in the mood for company, not even from my best friend.
“I’m good.” I forced myself to move away from the door so he could leave. I could tell he wanted to argue and stay, but he respected my decision to be alone.
I made my way into the kitchen as I heard the front door closing. I couldn’t seem to stand still. I felt like ants were crawling underneath my skin. I’ve never felt this way before and didn’t know what to do with myself. All my emotions were bubbling up, and it was becoming too difficult to contain.
Before my mind knew what I was doing, I was reaching out, grabbing the first plate I could get and throwing it. It was quickly followed by every other dish on the counter. I swiped my arms across the island, knocking everything off it. I grabbed everything within reach and threw it to the floor as my emotions consumed me before bringing me to my knees,
Chapter twenty-three
Natalie
A loud bang jerked me out of a sound sleep. I didn't even remember falling asleep. I heard a couple more bangs but couldn’t hear any voices. I sat there as quietly as possible, straining my ears to hear what was going on downstairs. It went deadly silent and I debated for a moment if I should go down and check out what had happened.
It might be nothing, but someone could be down there with Gabriele. I didn’t hear anything that sounded like a gunshot, but that didn’t mean someone wasn’t down there who could hurt me. I didn’t hear any footsteps, nothing indicating that someone was coming up the stairs or moving around.
I was now presented with two options. I could either stay up here and hope that no one was downstairs who shouldn’t be, plus no one was hurt. Or I could go downstairs and hope that no one was down there who could be looking to cause me any harm. There was no real good option, and I had never been the type of person to sit back and hide. I scanned the room for something I could use as a weapon, just in case I needed one. There wasn’t really much that I could use.
This room was designed to keep someone in and not give them a weapon they could use against their captors. My eyes landed on the bedside lamp. It wouldn’t be much, but it was better than nothing. I got out of bed and went over to quickly unplug the lamp before I picked it up and headed to the door.
Being as quiet as possible, I opened the door, thankful that it didn’t squeak. I made my way out into the hallway and slowly toward the stairs. I listened to see if someone else was here with Gabriele and me, but I couldn’t hear anything. When I reached the railing, I looked over and down at the living room, but could see no signs of damage, no blood, nor signs of a fight. I might have been overreacting.
Gabriele could have knocked some dishes or pots and pans down in the kitchen. I made my way down the stairs, keeping an eye on my surroundings as I descended and headed toward the kitchen. I gripped the lamp tighter in both hands as I took the last step.
I crept around the corner into the kitchen and saw dishes all over the floor; some were broken and others had survived the fall. Anything that had been on the counters was swept to the floor as well. I didn’t see any blood or a body, so I was taking it as a positive sign.
I moved so I could look around the island; that was when I saw Armando sitting on the floor with his back against the wall. His knees were brought up and his arms were crossed over the top of them with his head on his arms. He looked broken, and I was surprised by the hurt that flashed through my chest at the sight of him.
This man had been strong from the moment I met him. He had been the picture of dominance and power. It felt wrong to see him like this - broken, sitting on the floor surrounded by glass and ceramic pieces. I didn’t know what he had to do last night, but whatever it was, it was bad enough that he had reacted like this.
I was surprised by my urge to make it right. To try and do something to make him feel better and take away whatever pain or stress he was currently under. I placed the lamp down on the island countertop before I made my way over to him.
I softly spoke, “Armando.”
At the sound of my voice, his head snapped up. I could see he was surprised that I was here. He hadn’t heard me coming down, and I mentally praised myself for my stealthy movements.
