Mafia Assassin’s Alpha (Mated in the Mafia #8)

Chapter 1

DOMINIC

The Ferrini family living room was packed with mated alphas and their omegas looking stupidly happy.

I stood in the doorway and watched Jeremiah coo over his baby while Felik hovered behind him like a goddamn shadow.

Knox had his omega perched on his lap at the poker table, whispering something that made the kid blush.

Even Cord had Avery tucked against his side on the couch with their fingers laced together like they couldn't stand not to be touching.

I wanted to leave.

Needed to, actually.

The scent of happy omega pheromones was so thick in the air I could taste it, and it made my skin crawl. I didn’t resent anyone for finding their mates, but there was no denying that the happiness and love around me was just a bitter reminder of what I didn't have.

What I'd probably never have.

Andro looked up from his conversation with Cord and gestured for me to come over, so I pushed off the doorframe and crossed the room.

Despite the chaos and my personal invitation to join them, every alpha in the room tracked my movement.

Not because I was a threat, but it was instinctive for them to always be aware of unmated alphas when their families were present.

“Hey, man.” Andro stood up when I reached him and gripped my shoulder. "Got a job for you."

Finally. I straightened my back and nodded. "What do you need, boss?"

Cord kissed his mate on the temple and then got up and stood close to us. "There's a problem we need handled. Quietly."

I glanced between them with furrowed brows. “Okay.” They didn't usually tag-team me on assignments unless it was serious, so they had my curiosity piqued.

Andro jerked his head toward the hallway, so Cord and I followed him to his office. The door clicked shut behind us, and the noise from the living room faded to a dull murmur.

The head of the Ferrini family moved behind his desk and pulled out a folder. He flipped it open and turned it so I could see the photos inside. They were crime scene shots of bodies arranged in ways that made my stomach turn, and I'd seen a lot of shit in my line of work.

"Serial killer." Cord crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. "He's been working his way up the coast. Started in Florida, made his way through Georgia and South Carolina. Now he's here."

I picked up one of the victim photos and studied it. The young omega was in his early twenties with bruises circling his throat and rope marks on his wrists. It was the kind of thing that made bile rise in my throat. "How many?"

"Seven that we know of." Andro's jaw tightened, and he inhaled through his nose. "All omegas. All unmated. The last one was found three days ago in our territory."

That explained the urgency. When bodies started showing up in Ferrini territory, it brought heat. Cops, reporters, feds. The kind of attention that was bad for business. I put the photo down and met Andro's gaze. "You want me to find him?"

"We already found him." Cord pushed off the wall and tapped another photo in the folder. It was a different guy. He was in his forties with a receding hairline and glasses. He looked more like an accountant than a monster, but I’d learned a long time ago that looks could be deceiving.

"Derek Webb. Currently working at a bank downtown and lives alone in an apartment on the east side. "

I studied the photo and committed his face to memory. "When?"

"Tonight." Andro closed the folder and slid it across the desk to me. "He's got a routine. Leaves work at six, stops at the same bar for exactly two drinks, then heads home. Make it look like a robbery gone wrong. We need this done before the cops connect any more dots."

I nodded and tucked the folder under my arm.

This was the kind of job I liked the most. Quick, clean, and no questions asked.

The fact that I'd be taking out a piece of shit who preyed on omegas was icing on the cake. Really, I was doing the world a favor. I’d done the world a lot of favors. "Consider it done."

"Thanks, Dom. I know this isn't easy work." Cord clapped me on the shoulder as I turned to leave.

I scoffed and looked back at him. "It's easier than being in a room full of happy couples."

His expression softened, but I was out the door before he could say anything else. I didn't want his pity. What I wanted was to do my job and get the hell out of that house full of mated bliss.

I grabbed my coat from the rack by the front door and slipped out without saying goodbye to anyone. I had shit to do.

Derek Webb would be dead before midnight. And if nothing else, it was a distraction from thinking about how empty my apartment felt every time I went home alone.

But that was my job. My whole job was to make problems go away. I was a weapon that the most powerful crime families used when they needed some distance from the jobs they needed done. And I was okay with that. I'd made peace with my lot in life a long time ago. Loved it even.

What I hadn't made peace with was the loneliness that came with the job.

When I was younger, I spent most of my time with other alphas who were also single.

We’d go out every night and find someone to go home with for fun.

But as more and more of my friends found their mates, there were fewer people to party with.

Which didn’t even matter because I wasn’t looking for someone to party with for a night.

I was looking for a lifetime.

And finding a partner who could look past the blood on my hands and the daily risks I took was almost impossible. That was why Andro and Cord hired me to do what their omegas didn’t want them to do anymore.

Someone had to do the dirty work. And that someone was me.

Discreetly taking care of problems and making threats disappear was what I was good at. What I loved. Even if it was the very thing making me unlovable.

The bar Derek Webb frequented was a dive on the edge of town. I parked half a block away and settled in to wait. The folder was on my lap, so I flipped through the pages to review the background info, photos, and the timeline of his movements.

Andro's team was thorough, I'd give them that.

A few minutes after six, Webb emerged from the bank wearing the same glasses he had on in the photos. Honestly, he looked harmless, which was probably how he’d gotten away with murder for so long. The sick bastard preyed on omegas that didn’t perceive him as a threat until it was too late.

He walked straight into the bar across the street for his two drinks and then he'd head home. I had some time, so I reclined my seat and got comfortable.

That was the job.

Action and activity were a small portion of what I did. Most of the time I just watched and waited.

I pulled out my phone and scrolled through it with nothing in particular to do. My finger hovered over the group chat I had going with the other guards, but I didn't open it. Most of the messages were baby pics or plans for the couples to get together for playdates.

Seeing that was the last thing I needed in my already shitty mood.

As if he knew what I was thinking, Cord sent through a text. All good?

I responded with just enough to ease his mind without implicating either of us. Yep.

Forty minutes later, Webb stumbled out of the bar and headed left toward his apartment. He didn’t seem drunk, but his gait was more relaxed than it had been earlier. Good.

I waited until he was halfway down the block before I got out of the car and followed him. My footsteps were silent on the pavement, but I still kept my distance. No need to spook him yet.

With most of the shops closed for the night, it was quiet out. A few people were around, but they barely glanced my way. Still, I pulled my hood up and kept my head down as I walked.

Derek turned down an alley that cut between two buildings. It was likely a shortcut to his place, and the perfect opportunity for me. I picked up my pace, ready to capitalize on the moment and take him out.

But when I rounded the corner, the alley was empty.

I stopped mid-step and scanned the shadows, looking for his figure near the dumpsters, but there was no sign of Derek. My hand closed on the grip of my gun, and I took a slow step forward.

Then I heard a soft thud, followed by a wheeze.

Fuck! I moved toward the sound and found my target slumped against a dumpster with wide eyes and his mouth open in a silent gasp. Blood pooled beneath him as he bled out.

What the hell? Someone had beaten me to it.

The cut across his throat was clean, professional. Exactly what I planned to do. Whoever did this knew what they were doing.

I scanned the alley again because the killer couldn't have gone far. He was maybe thirty seconds ahead of me. I was about to check inside the dumpsters when I saw a flash of movement at the far end of the alley.

A small and fast person was disappearing around the corner.

Like a predator chasing prey, I took off after them without thinking. My boots pounded against the pavement, and I pushed myself harder. Whoever this was, they'd just killed my target. I needed to know who the hell they were and what they were doing in Ferrini territory.

The figure turned down another alley, and I followed. They were fast, but I was faster. Stronger. I closed the distance between us with my breath coming hard and fast.

And then I caught a scent. It was sweet and floral with an edge of something sharp. An omega. Definitely an omega.

What the hell?

The omega glanced back, and for a split second, our eyes met. He looked young, but there was nothing soft about him. He was no helpless omega. He was a predator. Like me.

And then he was gone.

He vaulted over a chain-link fence like it was nothing and disappeared into the night.

I stopped at the fence and gripped the cold metal as my heart hammered in my chest. I couldn't tell if it was from the chase or from the way that omega had looked at me. Maybe a bit of both.

Who the fuck was that?