Chapter 29
York sprawled out,legs spread, my cum dripping from his hole as he soundly slept, had to be my new favorite view. My phone was in my hands in seconds. I snapped a picture from every angle before I covered him up. I leaned over the side of the bed, kissing his soft lips and nearly falling into the trap of York all over again. Even as he slept, I wanted to impale him on my cock again and fuck him back awake.
”Be good while I”m gone.”
York didn”t budge, he was worn out and I”d made sure of it. The amount of cum I”d dumped into him attested to it.
”I”ll always protect what”s mine,” I said with a final kiss.
Getting in the bed and curling up against York was a temptation I wasn”t normally strong enough to walk away from. The threat to his life, and the stubbornness of my boss, meant I had no choice but to leave my man well-fucked and out of it. I left the bedroom and found York”s phone still on the floor in the living room. I scooped it up and stared at the passcode. My boss was a well-trained FBI agent and he was considered one of the best. So his password to his phone had to be hard, but if York had one flaw, it was his love for his children.
I typed in the girls’ birthday and the lock screen disappeared. I shook my head, searching through his messages. York really hadn”t texted anyone on the team. For a moment, I felt bad that I was going behind his back, but the feeling was gone in the next second. York would willingly sacrifice himself for the world, but I”d burn the world down for him.
There was only one new message. I got the address and deleted the text out of York”s phone. They were going to hit the location tomorrow. I locked his phone back up and placed it on the coffee table before heading to the door.
”Mitchel. Andrew,” I called out.
Two of the three guards on the floor made their way over to me. ”Yes, sir?”
”I”m stepping out. York isn”t to leave this place.” I grabbed my wallet by the door before I fucked up and forgot it. ”I find out that he did in fact leave here, know that I will make you beg to go to hell.”
Both of them nodded, but I didn”t put it past York to try and escape the moment he woke up.
This needs to be handled tonight.
”Get two more guys down here.”
”I can guard inside,” Mitchel said.
The thought of a man inside my place with my girls and York made me irrationally bloodthirsty. Killing him wasn”t in the plans, and Mitchel hadn”t done anything wrong, but logic meant nothing to me. He took one look at my face and took a healthy step back.
”Sorry, sir. I only meant for guarding purposes.”
”Yeah, I don”t care. Next time, I”ll knock every tooth out of your mouth. Stay away from what”s mine.” I pointed to both of them. ”Guard them from right here.”
A single nod was all I needed. I calmed myself down as much as possible before leaving the apartment. I headed for the elevator while simultaneously calling Benito. The phone rang twice before it was picked up.
”What do you want?” Harlow”s voice was unmistakable as it came over the line.
”Harlow, where is Benito?”
”Whatever you need my husband for, you can tell me.”
I blew out a breath and typed in the code to head up to Benito”s place. ”It”s business related.”
”Benito, I will kill your goddamn brother for real this time if he keeps talking to me like I”m some mindless trophy husband.”
I wasn”t, but this was sensitive. I knew Harlow was helping with the business, both legit and underworld, but I needed to run it by Benito first. Harlow was his husband but he was married to the boss; he wasn’t the boss.
”Calm down—Ah, fuck, really, Harlow? You”re going to pay for that.” Benito grunted as his voice got clearer. ”What, Paolo?”
The elevator dinged and opened up. Benito stood in the middle of the living room with an object protruding from his arm.
”What”s that?”
He glared at me while hanging up the phone. ”A fucking fork.”
I looked around for Harlow, knowing instantly who the culprit was. ”Maybe you should get rid of all the sharp objects around the house.”
Benito rolled his eyes and yanked the fork out. His blood covered the tips of the prongs. He headed for the kitchen and I followed behind him as he tossed the thing into the sink.
”Won”t matter. He”s a psychopath who can make a weapon out of a spoon.”
”Like a shiv?”
”I can have one made in a few minutes to stab into your kidneys,” Harlow said, appearing out of nowhere.
I turned to the angry-looking man. His long jet-black hair was down and framed his face, softening his features. It did nothing to take away the absolute batshit insanity that glimmered in his gray eyes.
”Ah, I think I”ll pass on that. I”ll leave stabbing to you and Benito.”
My brother grunted and headed for his husband. I expected him to punch Harlow, but instead he grabbed a fistful of hair and dragged him in for a kiss. When they pulled apart, Harlow didn”t look so bloodthirsty. His body was molded to Benito’s. I was pretty certain only someone like Benito could deal with a nut job like Harlow and vice versa.
”What did you need, Paolo?” Benito asked.
Right. ”I have the top Triad”s location.”
Harlow and Benito both stiffened.
”Including Qiang?” Benito asked.
Before I could tell him I wasn”t sure, Harlow answered.
”He doesn”t stay with everyone else. That old bastard is overly cautious. He”s probably moving from location to location if he isn”t out of the city.”
”You think he”d run?” I questioned. Qiang had been the leader of the Triads for many years. He”d held down some of the major drug industries in New York. He was the reason why the Triads had influence outside of Chinatown.
”Anything to save his ass. His right-hand and sons, on the other hand, are more honor bound.” Harlow cracked his knuckles as if he couldn”t stay still while talking about Qiang. ”There”s been plenty of times when he”s run the opposite direction, especially if he doesn”t have a clear plan to win.”
Benito grabbed his husband”s hands and pulled them to his lips. ”Don”t worry, mostricio; you will have his dead body at your feet soon. There is nowhere he can run that I won”t find him.”
Harlow visibly relaxed, smiling at Benito. ”I want him to suffer.”
”Consider it done.” Benito looked at me. ”I”ve told the other two, but Qiang is ours.”
I raised my hands. ”Fair, but I want the leader of the Acetos. Tasso, I believe it is. He”s a lot stupider and ballsy than Andre.”
”Reason?”
”He”s trying to kill York and the girls. He”s the one who put a hit out on them. The Triads might have helped, but he initiated it.”
”The fed?” Harlow sighed. ”Your brothers have a type.”
”What”s that supposed to mean?” I asked him.
”Exactly what I said. I like Tex now, but his past profession wasn’t ideal. Your choice, on the other hand, seems stupid. What”s going to happen after you”re done saving his life and the threats against him and his kids are gone?”
”I”ll figure it out when the time comes.”
Harlow opened his mouth but Benito stopped him. ”Gianpaolo, as head of this family, if I need to fix a problem, I will.”
The threat was unmistakable, there was no flowery facade that it wasn”t what it was. I nodded. ”Yes, and if it comes down to it, then it”s best you put a bullet in my head. I’m not going to let anyone hurt them. No one,” I emphasized.
We stared at each other for another moment, neither of us speaking as the tension thickened. If it was about York and the girls, I wasn”t going to let anyone touch them. Not even my family.
”How many people are we going to need?” Benito asked, breaking the moment of silence.
I sent him the address. “It’s on the edge of the Acetos’ territory, but it was empty before. We’re going to need more than a few bodies. Clearing out those warehouses is one thing. But they are hiding out here on purpose; they are probably more armed and ready for an attack.”
”That, and the Acetos won”t be getting involved after the blow we handed them.” Benito had a crazed grin on his face. He was probably reminiscing about everything we”d done, the blood shed and dead bodies we”d piled up.
I”d lost count of how many lives each of us took. If York ever found out, he”d probably try and run. I”d be forced to cut both of his achilles tendons, making sure he never got far.
Harlow punched Benito where he”d stabbed him with a fork. ”Still pissed that you left me out.”
Benito calmed his husband down as I took a step back. I checked the cameras. Everything was still quiet at the apartment. ”We have to do it tonight, the FBI will be conducting a raid tomorrow.”
”Two nights in a row? Shit, Paolo.”
”I know it”s risky. There are already reports hitting the headlines.”
”They are attempting to pin it on the Vitale name,” Benito reminded me.
”If we don”t go tonight, then I”ll go alone.”
”Don”t be fucking stupid.” Benito moved toward me, placing his tattooed hand on my shoulder. ”If you go, we all go. Better call in a few favors.”
I blew out a sigh as the tension spilled out of me. I would have gone alone if I’d had to. No matter what, I wasn”t going to let York put himself in harm”s way. Even if I had to take on a few more kills. My soul was black, and I was destined for hell, if there was one. York, on the other hand, meant everything to me. Without him, life would be meaningless. I never wanted to experience it and I planned to never have to.
”Okay.”
”Meet back up in twenty,” Benito said.
Harlow smiled. ”I”m going. I already texted the nanny. She will be here in ten. Like fuck if I’m missing this.”
Benito didn”t argue with his husband, pulling him close. ”Of course not, mostrico, I can”t wait to see you covered in blood.”
Seeing them together made me think of my man, still in bed, passed out from our fuck session. I”d lost my mind a bit but that was always the case anytime I got to have York. He made my mind numb and my body alive with electricity. I had my phone in hand again and checked the camera feed. The one in my room showed York curled around my pillow and the sheets resting low on his hips. All his dark brown flesh was on display, begging for me to come back and touch. Desire pooled in the middle of my body, making me have second thoughts on my plans for the night.
I checked the other feeds, making sure everything was okay, when I froze on the spot. In the kitchen, Shelly had a wooden spoon in her hand and waved it at the girls. Navy flinched with every jerky movement. Nyra stood next to her, eyes watering.
”I”ll be right back.” I turned on my heels without another word and practically ran to the elevator, my phone in a death grip. I hit the button on the side trying to turn it up as loud as possible.
”You two have been getting out of control. There is no reason to be running out of here and playing with those men.”
”But Paolo said it?—”
Shelly hit the counter, and I missed what she said, but both girls started crying. Fuck this. I did my best to treat her like a human being but I drew the lines at threatening my girls.
She”s dead.
I couldn”t focus enough to see what else she was saying to them. My blood rushed as anger rolled through me like a tsunami. The elevator doors opened on my floor and I rushed through them before they could open fully. There were an additional four men outside my door. Each of them nodded at me as I headed for the apartment. I couldn”t get the code in fast enough, my fingers fumbling the first try before I got it right. The soft click was all I needed as I entered and went straight to the kitchen.
”Have you lost your goddamn mind?” I growled.
The twins turned to look at me, tears streaked their puffy cheeks. Navy wiped at them but Nyra instantly ran toward me and dragged her sister along with her.
”Girls!” Shelly shrieked.
”Don”t talk to my kids.” If it wasn”t for the girls being in the room, I”d pull my gun out and kill her.
”They aren”t yours,” she scoffed. ”You will never be what I am for them. I have mothered them.”
”They don”t need another mom. Dawn was great and you will never compare. Your job is to be a nanny.”
Shelly”s face reddened with each word that came out of my mouth. She pointed the wooden spoon at me. ”You wouldn”t know anything.” She looked at the girls. ”Get over here, now.”
When the twins didn”t budge from behind me she took a step toward them, her hand outstretched as If she was going to snatch my girls away from me.
I responded on instinct. I snatched her up, hand around her slender throat. Her eyes widened before she started to swing and let out a scream that sounded closer to the squeal of a pig.
”Let go!” She hit me with the spoon.
”I told you to never talk to them again.” My breathing was even. Snapping her neck would be easy.
”He-Help!”
I pulled her close. ”No one here will help you. They”d all watch you die and piss on your corpse before saving you.”
Little hands tugged on my shirt, and I let Shelly go. She was lucky I wasn”t going to kill in front of the girls.
”We”re okay, Paolo,” Navy hiccuped.
I glared at Shelly as she scrambled away from me. Her back hit the wall, stopping her retreat.
”It”s okay if you”re not.” I turned to them and squatted down. ”I won”t let anyone hurt you.” My instincts said this wasn”t the first time Shelly had raised her hand to them. ”She”s done this before?”
They looked at each other before facing me. Clinging to one another, Nyra and Navy nodded.
I turned on my heels and stood up to my full six-foot-five-inch height. ”You”re dead.”
”Help!” Shelly shook her head, screaming. ”I only disciplined as a parent would.”
”But you aren”t one.”
”Stay the hell away from me.” Shelly threw the spoon at me. It hit my chest before clattering to the floor.
One extra kill for the night would be okay.
I was so focused on Shelly, I didn”t hear York leave the room. He was in my face in seconds, blocking me from getting to his nanny. His eyes narrowed as he came toe-to-toe with me.
”Move, York.”
”Have you lost your fucking mind?” His breathing was irregular. His fists were balled up at his sides, but I could barely focus when Shelly stood up and clung to his back.
”Mr. Washington, please help me.”
York didn”t look at her, his gaze was focused on me. ”Girls, room. Now.”
”Daddy—”
”Now,” York barked.
They looked my way as they left the kitchen and headed to their room.
”What the fuck, Paolo?”
”Move, York, I need to take care of her first.” My anger was hot as it rode me.
”No, what the hell is wrong with you?”
Shelly started the water works, clinging to what was mine. If she thought her future was bleak before, she had no idea the thoughts swirling through my head now. She”d beg me to end her life when I was done cutting off every inch of her flesh that was currently touching York.
”Shelly, calm down, he”s not going to hurt you.” York glared at me. ”Are you, Paolo?”
”I am.”
She let out a scream that made me smile. York shoved me away and I backed up a bit.
”Out!” York stared at me as if he was seeing me for the first time. ”Get the hell out.”
”York—”
”No. You”re threatening her life in front of my children. Get the fuck out.” The emotion I”d seen in the dark depths of his eyes was gone now. ”I don”t want to see your face. I want you out of here and out of our lives.”
An ache built in the middle of my chest until it felt like there were hot knives steadily pumping in and out of me. York couldn”t mean it. I knew he could get angry with me, but we were working it out.
”Don”t look at her,” York snapped. “Get the fuck out, Gianpaolo.”
York had my shirt on and the black button up was left open as his sweats hung low on his hips. Looking at him, everything screamed mine, but the words coming out of his mouth said otherwise.
“You don’t understand. The girls?—”
“I will handle my children,” he snapped. “And my nanny. I did not ask you to interfere with my family.”
I couldn”t move, but it didn”t matter as York broke free of Shelly and grabbed my arm, yanking me toward the door. The heat from his hand did little to erase the pain steadily radiating in the middle of my chest. He opened the door and shoved me out. Before the door could close, I slapped my hand against the wood.
”York—”
”I don”t want to hear a goddamn thing out of your mouth. I was stupid to think you could be anything but a monster.” His eyes were fierce; it was the same look he sported when he talked about catching criminals.
My hand dropped and the door slammed in my face, cutting me off from the one man I was willing to give the world too.