32. Leo
Chapter thirty-two
Leo
T he second the plane hits the tarmac, a blacked-out SUV pulls up, its tires screeching to a halt.
I stride toward the driver’s side in the torrential rain, yanking open the door. “Get out. I’m driving.” The guard stumbles out of the vehicle as Vin, Alex, Mauro, and I hop inside. My foot slams down on the gas pedal, flooring our way out of the private airport. I look down at the GPS, which says we’ll be there in fifteen minutes. My foot presses down harder, ensuring we’re there in half that time.
As we come within a few miles of the property, I spot a familiar family crest on the line of awaiting vehicles.
The Marchetti men are here.
“Pull over.” Vin points to the closest armored vehicle, and I pull up beside it without missing a beat. The four of us jump out and approach it.
Dressed like he’s ready for battle, Cain, Marco’s younger brother and the cousin I hate the least, steps out and advances toward us.
“Cousins,” he greets us with a head jerk, clasping his hands behind his back. “Well, don’t you look a little…disheveled.”
Vin points to Alex, getting straight to business. “We need your men to get him inside first. Once he gets to his house, he’ll be able to restore power and cell service.”
“Of course.” Cain nods, pushing back his wet hair. “Marco said the matter was urgent, and since I happened to be at our headquarters, I figured I would lend a helping hand.” He smirks. “It’s been too long since I’ve killed a man.”
“Let me guess, two days?” Alex asks.
Cain shrugs. “Twenty-four hours.”
Every second away from Scarlett is sending me into a furious tizzy. “What are we waiting for?”
Cain appears amused. “Someone’s in a hurry.”
I nearly snarl. “If your wife was inside those walls with the fucking devil himself, tell me, cousin, how patient you would be to get inside?”
Cain’s eyes darken as he realizes the urgency of this matter. He signals to his men. “We move now. The tanks go in first—”
“Tanks?” Vin questions.
Cain points to the front of the line of armored vehicles, where a few tanks stand idle. Jesus Christ, we look like we’re going into fucking battle. Well, technically, we are.
“You have tanks?” Vin’s eyes widen in disbelief.
“Don’t you?” Cain asks, arching a brow.
Vin wipes a hand over his face. “Looks like I know what I’ll be getting my brothers for Christmas.”
Cain smirks, shaking his head. “Alessandro, you get in the front tank, and Vincenzo, Mauro, and Leonardo get in the next one.”
“Don’t have to be so formal,” Alex chides as he passes him, heading toward the front of the line. “We’re related, after all.”
“Let my men regain control of the estate, which won’t take long, and then you’ll be free to handle the situation however you please,” Cain states over his shoulder as he approaches the third and final tank.
Vin, Mauro, and I make our way to the second tank, and within a minute, it begins moving toward the north side of the property where the front gates reside. My knee bounces as my neck and shoulder muscles tighten. My fingers drum on my thigh as I stare at the floor.
“We’re going to save her,” Vin says. “All of them.”
I nod, lost in thought.
Because I can’t even think about what will happen if we don’t.
It’s not an option.
The tank comes to a stop.
“What’s going on?” Vin asks the driver.
“The first tank is making entry now, sir. We’ll follow suit once they’ve cleared the way. Thirty men are at the gate entrance attempting to stop them, but…” He grins. “Nothing will be able to stop us.”
Vin grasps his shoulder. “Now, that’s the fucking spirit!”
An explosion thunders not far in front of us, and then our tank begins rolling. As we breach the gate, the driver asks, “Which way do you want to go, sir? The rest of the armored vehicles are divvying up throughout the property.”
I lean forward. “When you get to the fork, take a hard left.” I eye Vin. “They’ll be at the banquet hall.”
After what feels like hours but is only minutes, we arrive at the hall just as an explosion goes off by the entrance. The three of us quickly exit the tank and make our way over, finding our men and Marchetti’s men working together to round up the intruders.
Vin grabs one of the assailants, pulling him up by the collar of his shirt. “Who the fuck do you work for?”
With blood spilling out the corner of his lips, he gasps, “Igor.”
Vin drops him, letting the other men handle him. He scratches a hand over his stubble. “I’m guessing Igor lent his men to Anthony and Dolion, thinking he was a part of the team and not a part of the decoy.”
Eli charges out of the front of the hall on high alert, and I feel immense relief, knowing Scarlett will be with him. But as he continues moving toward us, I see Alina by his side, not Scarlett.
Terror fills me.
“Where’s my wife?” I roar.
“She’s safe,” he says reassuringly, temporarily easing me until his next words follow. “She ran to Dolion’s house for help about an hour ago. I was trapped inside with Alina and the other guests until just now.”
I gaze up at the sky and let out an unhuman-like growl as rain pellets my face. Thunder rumbles in the distance, echoing me.
“Dolion is Le Diable,” Vin asserts. “And we’re pretty fucking sure he’s been working with Scarlett’s father, Anthony Balcom, this whole time.”
“What?” Eli snarls, his head snapping in the direction of Dolion’s cottage. “I thought her father fucking died!”
“So did we,” Vin answers, his eyes roaming around the property. “Wait, where’s Madeleine?”
Eli’s body stills. His eyes darken to almost black. “She’s not with you?”
“Fuck,” I rasp, calculating how many bullets I have left in my gun. Two. That’s all I need.
Alina trembles, wrapping her arms around herself. Mascara runs down her cheeks as she stares at the ground, swaying on her bare feet. Mauro’s arm promptly closes around her waist, holding her securely to his chest. She presses her face against him and sobs into his shirt as he runs his hands down her wet hair, calming her.
Suddenly, the lights throughout the estate turn on, and all four sets of men’s eyes follow the path leading directly toward Dolion’s cottage.
“I’m going to murder the both of them.” I wipe a hand across my rain-soaked face. “They may not know we’re here yet, but if they do, they’ll get desperate, doing anything necessary to win.” I look at Vin. “I need you to create a distraction at the front of the house while Eli and I case the back.”
“You got it,” Vin answers, motioning for a few of his men.
“No one is to touch Dolion. He’s mine,” I grit out as I glance around at each of them. “It’s time to end this motherfucker once and for all.”
I sprint toward the house with Eli, both of us veering right to sneak in the backway. Nothing but darkness surrounds us as we round the back with our guns drawn. A large window illuminated by lights catches our attention. Eli stands on one side of the window while I crouch under it and stand on the other side, hearing a man’s voice. Dolion .
Eli and I peek inside, and horror fills me.
Dolion is standing with a gun aimed between Scarlett and Madeleine while Anthony is slumped over in a chair with blood covering the center of his shirt. Dolion’s waving the gun in the air like an unhinged monster. His face is red with fury, his eyes jump erratically, and he quickly paces the room.
Fuck, this isn’t good.
If he wasn’t standing behind Scarlett, I could take a shot.
But my path isn’t clear, and I won’t risk it.
Looking over my shoulder, I spot the back door. I jerk my head, signaling to Eli what I’m doing, and quickly dash over to it. The door is locked, with one metal bolt keeping it sealed shut. I peer around in a panic for another point of entry, but there’s nothing.
A gunshot sounds from inside, and I lose whatever is left of my sanity.
Aiming my gun, I shoot the metal bolt and then, lifting my leg, find all the force within me and kick the door open. As I step inside, an explosion erupts in the front of the house, and I hear men yelling as another shot is fired. It’s complete chaos as I move swiftly through the halls, smoke filling the rooms.
When I reach the main room, I come to an abrupt stop as my heart malfunctions.
Eli is lying on the ground unconscious, with blood pouring out of his arm in front of a horrified Madeleine.
And Dolion is binding Scarlett before him with a gun pressed to the side of her head.
Please, God, don’t let anything happen to her.
Dolion faces Vin and the other soldiers who have entered the front of the house, meaning he doesn’t know I’m here. With stealth and precision, I work my way closer, seeing the tremble in Scarlett’s body, which only drives the beast inside me crazy with the need for blood.
“Drop your weapon, Dolion!” Vin shouts with an authoritative tone, directing his gun at Dolion. “It’s over. Let Scarlett go.”
My fingers tighten around my gun, aiming at the center of Dolion’s head, when I quickly realize that I don’t have a clear shot. He’s leaning down, his face right beside Scarlett’s. It’s too close to her. Fuck . I scan his body and note a few inches of space on his right shoulder that I can hit without risking the bullet passing into Scarlett.
“No. I don’t think I will,” Dolion responds. “In fact, I think we’ll go together.”
Scarlett whimpers as Vin roars, “Drop the gun!”
Dolion takes a step back, his feet stumbling as Scarlett stands her ground, giving me the one second of time that I need.
The shot echoes in the air as the bullet pierces him in the shoulder. He screams out in agony as he drops his gun to the floor and collapses to the ground, our men rapidly collecting him and his weapon.
Scarlett spins on her heels, facing me. Tears stream down her pretty face as relief washes over her features at the sight of me.
My wife.
My lifeline.
My reason for existing.
And she’s alive.
“Leo,” she breathes, suddenly paling and dropping to the floor. But just before her body lands on the hard surface, I catch her in my arms.
“I’m here.” I look her over, ensuring there are no fatal wounds. There are bruises around her wrists and ankles, which I’m assuming were tied up, a red handprint on her cheek, and a cut on her hand oozing blood, which all makes me see red. I brush my lips against hers, breathing in her familiar floral scent. “Wake up for me, baby. Please.”
Her eyes flutter open, and my heart squeezes in my chest.
“Thank fucking God.” I kiss the top of her head, holding her closer to me.
“You’re…alive.” She lets out a sob, clutching my damp T-shirt, anchoring herself to me. “I thought… I thought…” She chokes on her words, rolling in her bottom lip. “I thought I was never going to see you again.”
“Nothing would keep me away from you.” I brush back her hair and wipe the tears from her cheek before she buries her face in the crook of my neck, and the sobs begin to wrack her body. I run the palm of my hand up and down her spine. “I’m never letting go of you.”
“Sir.” I turn to the side, my grip on Scarlett strengthening as I face Asher. “What do you want us to do with him?”
A few men drag over a barely conscious Anthony Balcom. The asshole who thought he was going to take over my family’s home.
He’s alive.
Oh…this is going to be fun.
“Take him to see Dr. Rose,” I instruct.
“Sir?” Asher’s brows furrow as he looks at me like I’ve lost my mind.
I grin. “He needs to be in perfect condition before he answers to me and my brothers.”
Asher smirks and nods in understanding. “Of course, sir.” He jerks his head, and the guards drag Anthony away. “And reporting that your sister and Eli are being transported now to the hospital. Madeleine was being held here, and she had a few cuts and bruises, but Eli took a bullet for her. He jumped through the window before the shot went off, and it got him in the arm. He’s expected to be all right.”
“Jesus Christ.” I drag a hand through my hair, sighing. “Thank you for the update.”
“Of course, sir.” Asher clears his throat. “I’m… I’m sorry for not seeing this sooner. I should have known it was Dolion.”
I shake my head. “None of us did.” I look at Dolion, seeing him in a whole new light as a few guards detain him. My eyes wander over the space, pausing on a wall of pictures. I focus on the photographs, observing Scarlett in every single damn one. My blood boils with an unrelenting need for violence that I, somehow, keep contained so as not to scare Scarlett any further this evening. “I trusted him with my life, which meant I trusted him around the most important person in my life.” My arms tighten around Scarlett. “We’ll deal with the aftermath tomorrow. For now, I need to take care of my wife.”
Asher tips his head and walks off.
I return my attention to Scarlett, who looks up at me as if I’m in charge of letting the moon rise and the sun set.
“Maddy’s okay?” she asks.
“She’s okay.” I brush her hair back, my fingers needing to feel every part of her.
“And Eli will be okay?”
My lips curve up. “Eli will be okay. He’s faced much worse over the years. A bullet to the arm is nothing to him.”
She slumps against me. “I can’t believe Eli took a bullet for Maddy.”
“I guess they don’t hate each other as much as they seem to.”
“I guess not.” She presses her forehead to mine, letting out a deep breath as we hold on to each other, neither believing the other is truly here.
I cup her cheeks in my hands, pressing my lips to hers. “Let’s go home.” She instantly relaxes in my arms as I lift her in the air. Her legs wrap around my waist as her head rests on my shoulder. “I’ve got you, Firefly. I’ve always got you.” I brush my lips against her temple and carry her to the car, déjà vu hitting me.
But this time, I know she’ll be okay.
Because this time, she knows she isn’t broken.
She’s strong and resilient.
Brave and beautiful.
And most importantly…mine.