Chapter Thirty-Nine
Devious
T he sting from his blow burns like fire, and blood leaks from my nose. I wipe it with the back of my hand.
“I asked you a question, Devious. Where is my fucking sister?”
He eyes Roselyn up and down, and a smile spreads across his face. All his soldiers’ guns are pointed at us, and fear burns in Roselyn’s eyes as they bounce between me and Cashel.
“I’m going to give you to the count of three to take me to my sister. If you don’t, then I’m going to blow your and your wife’s heads off.”
I need to come up with a strategy real quick. I straighten my back like a needle, trying so hard not to break my composure.
“Aiden has her. Give me a few hours and I’ll go get her.”
“You have two hours. Meet me at the warehouse where we used to torture our enemies. Until then, I’m taking Roselyn.”
My heart beats rapidly, and my hands shake like the wind as he grabs her by the arms, dragging her out of the room. She screams and kicks, calling my name, but if I move an inch toward her, we’ll be dead in a matter of seconds. I clench my fists, keeping them rooted to my sides.
“If so much as a hair is harmed on Maya, you’ll be a fucking widow again,” Cashel says. “I’m going to fuck her in the exact same way I fucked Shelby.”
I follow them to the stairway, and he pushes Roselyn into the back seat of his SUV.
If I don’t get Roselyn back, I don’t know if I can forgive myself for putting her in harm’s way. I waited too long to attack him.
Once I’m inside, I pace the living room floor, stop, and flip the TV over that’s on the entertainment center, and a black line spreads across the screen.
“This bastard got me!” I shout.
I check the security on the wall, and there is no indication of an alarm going off for breaking and entering. The code was used to get into the gate. How the fuck did he know the code to the gate?
I rush outside, and soldiers’ bodies are scattered across the yard. This was an inside job, I realize. One of my own betrayed me and is working for Cashel. I rush upstairs to my bedroom, grab my phone from the nightstand, and call Charlotte to get rid of the bodies, and then I call Lex. He doesn’t pick up the phone, so I call Aiden. He picks up on the third ring.
“Gather all the soldiers and weapons and get Maya. Bring her to the manor.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Cashel took Roselyn. He figured out we took Maya.”
“I’ll be there in forty minutes.” The phone line goes dead.
Regret floods in my chest. I hope Roselyn isn’t being tortured; she’s already caught in my crossfire for vengeance. Nothing matters anymore. Not my vengeance. Not my well-being. Just her getting away from Cashel. I feel like an idiot for not telling her how I feel and putting her in harm’s way. I do love Roselyn, but I wasn’t going to say it to her because I’m afraid that if I say it out loud then I’ll lose her. I tend to lose the people I care about. Falling in love in the mafia is dangerous and puts a target on their back. I should have told her how I felt. The look of hurt in her eyes damn near broke me.
I pace the floor, praying as I call Lex. Then I leave a voice mail.
Where the fuck is Lex? He’s supposed to answer the phone every time I call. I send him a message.
Me: Call me. Roselyn is in trouble.
Minutes later, the door flies open, and Maya and Aiden walk in.
Aiden ushers her to the living room. Anxiety eats at me as we take the elevator to the top floor, which is where my gun room is located.
Aiden slides his hands in his pockets. “How the fuck did Cashel get inside without detection?”
“We have a snake amongst us. He typed in the code and caught my guards off guard and killed them one by one. He knew when I’d be home. It might be a soldier. I’m going to find out after we get Roselyn out of Cashel’s care.”
I’d never admit my emotions out loud, but I’m fucking scared. I’m scared that he will hurt her beyond repair, and I won’t be able to forgive myself for allowing him to take her. He took the woman I love.
“He knew my plan. He mimicked exactly how I said I was going to break in.”
“We have only an hour left. Bring Maya in here,” I say.
He disappears and returns with Maya. She sits in the chair in front of me.
“Have you seen any of my men hanging around Cashel?”
She laughs. “You want my help. That’s rich.”
I grab her by the hair, wrap it around my fist, and she yelps. “If you don’t cooperate with us and help me get my wife home safely, you’re going to be next in a body bag. I’ll torture you so bad, you’re going to be begging for your life to end, and I’ll gladly give it to you. I don’t care if you’re my brother’s wife. If my wife dies, you die. So, choose your words wisely.”
I’ll burn down this whole goddamn city to save my wife.
My brother grabs me by the collar and balls up his fist, ready to strike me. “Don’t put your hands on my wife.”
I push Aiden’s hands away. “Don’t push your luck. I’ll kill anyone who stands in my way of getting Roselyn back. So have the bitch speak up.”
She gulps loudly. “No, I haven’t, but there is this guy who hangs out with him. He goes by the name of Twenty-Six. He’s Italian. But from the old generation.”
“What the fuck? Devious, is it the guy who had Roselyn kidnapped?” Aiden asks.
I nod. “Meaning?”
“Several years ago, he approached me at a strip club that I worked at and said he knew my family, and he wanted to know how to get in contact with Cashel. He paid me a lot of money, so I told him,” Maya states.
“Go on,” I say.
“They were talking about taking you out, and that he and Cashel will rule over your territories.” She pauses. “I don’t want to go back to Cashel or my family. I don’t want to be reminded of what happened to me and how they… I’ll help you get rid of Cashel.”
Anger blazes in Aiden’s eyes, and he yanks her by the arm. “What did they do to you, little dove?”
“Don’t worry abou—”
“Tell me.”
Tears glitter her eyes, and she shakes her head. “Please, Aiden. Don’t push me to say. Besides, it’s not like you love me anymore, right? You married me out of revenge, remember?”
Aiden doesn’t reply, but worry creases his face. She and Liam were close, especially in high school, so it’s not making much sense for her to try to help us.
“Why the fuck would you help me? I killed Liam.”
“I know you killed him, and I will forever hate you for that, but for once I have to think about my well-being. I have to look after myself. I have to figure out which lifestyle would be better for me.” She looks at Aiden with sad eyes.
“I’d rather be with someone I used to love who made me feel alive than go back to a home where I was never welcomed and loved because of who my mother was.”
It’s no secret she was born from a mistress, and she used to get shunned a lot as a kid. They treated her as if she was trash. I don’t know the relationship between her and Cashel, and I don’t care. As long as I get Roselyn out of there and safe in my arms.
“So what’s the game plan, Devious?” Aiden asks.
“As soon as we get to the warehouse, we pretend that we’re going to swap them out, and I’m going to tell them he has to meet me halfway. We need at least thirty men there, including three snipers and Damien. Call a few capos to bring in soldiers. I’m going to get Damien to shoot all of his soldiers, since he was a sniper before he was a bodyguard. He won’t know they are there. I’m going to send Damien out there first so he can give me an idea of where each soldier is at. We have to do a clean sweep and make it quick. I’ll kidnapped Cashel, throw him in the dungeon, and torture him to death. If Cashel finds out I’m going back on my word, he will kill Roselyn. We can’t trigger him. We’re going to get my wife back.”