13. Elio
Chapter thirteen
Elio
The five men cowering before me are on their knees, stripped to their underpants.
The motherfucking mole must either come from the men who were placed on guard that night, or someone who knew every single man who’d be on guard, and the only other person is Cortez. And he’d never do something like that.
I sent for all the men who were on guard that night to put them through an intensive interrogation under duress since nobody seems to know anything about the robbery or the whistleblower.
“There’s one of them left, Capo .” Cortez points out to me just when the last person walks in.
“What does that even mean? Who’d dare miss a meeting I summoned?” My voice thunders throughout my office, causing the men to huddle together in fright.
“He came in with the others but excused himself to use the restroom before you came in,” Cortez responds.
“Cortez, get me the register.”
My fingers flip through the document Cortez has just handed over to confirm that one of my men actually defied my direct order.
On the register there are really six men who were stationed at the warehouse on that particular night.
All of them are present except for one, Luis Dante.
“Get these men to the basement and meet me in the car. We’re going to pay our friend, Luis Dante, a visit. That bastard has a lot of explaining to do.”
Without wasting another second, I hurry to the garage to get my Maybach running. If the bastard suddenly disappeared a couple of minutes before I walked in, he must be scared as hell for his life, which only means he must be the traitor I’ve been looking for.
Immediately, Cortez slams the door shut, my hands push down on the gear, driving to his address as fast as I can, my tires screeching endlessly as I make sharp turns. My pulse pounds in my ears, my fingers twitching on the wheel.
The address on the register is a farm shed not too distant from the mansion where some of my workers are mandated to live while they actively work for me.
The old farm shed has been transformed into a cozy abode. A small wood-made front porch is lopsidedly attached to the actual building.
We get out of the car and close enough to see our guy, Luis, through the half-open front door, with his back to us in the middle of packing, and a duffel bag half-zipped on the bed. A phone is tucked between his shoulder and his ear.
“I did everything you asked. It’s time to keep your end of the deal. Get me and my girl out of this state safely…” he says, hurriedly grabbing whatever he can from the couch in the small room and cramming it into the duffel bag he’s trying to fill.
That’s enough for me. I don’t hesitate as I run up the few stairs of the porch, surging through his half open door, and drive my fist straight into his back. He lurches forward with a strangled gasp, the phone slipping from his ear. He barely has time to react before my fingers reach for his collar and throw him against the dresser. The wood cracks from the impact.
Cortez is on Luis’s phone in an instant, but the line is already dead. I figure the call was from a private number.
“Son of a bitch,” Cortez hisses.
Luis turns to me, coughing, stumbling. “ Capo …”
My fist meets his face with a sickening crunch. His head snaps back, blood spraying from his nose. He cries out, but I don’t stop. My knee rams into his gut, making him buckle. I grab a nearby lamp and bring it down on his shoulder. The ceramic shatters, sending shards everywhere as he howls in pain.
“After everything I did for you…” I growl, another punch landing on his face, his lip splits open, blood dripping onto the floor, “…this is how you repay me?”
He tries to crawl away, but I grab him by the back of the neck and slam his face into the wall. Blood smears across the white paint. His breath comes in ragged gasps, his body convulsing under my grip.
“ Capo , please,” he chokes out, spitting crimson. “Please, I had no choice…”
I yank him back and throw him onto the floor. He barely has the strength to lift his hands in defense. My hands reach for a metal candle holder and swing it like a bat, connecting with his ribs. His scream is hoarse, desperate. He tries to curl in on himself, but I’m not done. I straddle him, my fists hammering down over and over, my knuckles turning raw with each blow. Nobody, and I mean nobody, betrays me like this.
Cortez stands nearby, arms crossed, watching silently. He knows better than to interfere.
“Why?” My itchy fingers seize his shirt and lift him just enough to make him look at me, his swollen eyes barely open. “Why would you betray me?”
“They…they took her, Capo ,” he sobs, tears and mucus running down his face. “They took my girlfriend and said they’d kill her if I didn’t do what they asked.”
His words barely register sensibly in my head. My chest heaves, my body shaking with rage.
A part of me doesn’t care.
“How dare you endanger this empire for fucking pussy?” I grab his hair and yank his head back, making sure he’s looking at me. “Who are you working for?”
His breath shudders. “I don’t know. I swear, I don’t know who they are.”
My eyes narrow to slits. “Then tell me what you do know.”
His gaze flickers to Cortez, then back to me. “Th? there was a guy, Mendez. He was the one assigned to drug all the men on watch that night, including me, and alert the cops once the robbers left.”
Mendez. Whoever that son of a bitch is, I’ll find him. I swear to God. I release my grip on his hair and turn to Cortez. “Get this bastard to the mansion and keep him in the dungeon.”
Cortez doesn’t hesitate. He reaches for Luis by the collar of his shirt, but something happens within the blink of an eye.
Luis suddenly grabs Cortez’s gun from his waistband and points it to his head.
“Luis, don’t…” Cortez begins, but the room resounds with a soft swish from the silencer as a bullet sinks into his brain. His body jerks once, then goes still, eyes glassy and empty.
“ Sarebbe morto comunque (He’d have died anyway),” Cortez says, reaching over to cover Luis’s wide eyes.
I spit on his corpse and step back, letting out a slow breath.
Cortez picks up the phone while I start ransacking the place. Drawers fly open, clothes scatter, and furniture topples. We tear through every inch of the house, looking for documents, other phones, any evidence that can give us a lead.
After almost an hour, we come up empty.
“What’s the update on the Donatos?” I turn sharply to Cortez. Someone must have sent this bastard, and if it’s them, I’d happily be their end.
“I found some stuff about them, Capo , but I didn’t bug you with it because none of it is related to our mafia business. Besides, their second-in-command is not in the continent at the moment.”
I shove a chair aside, my patience wearing thin. “I’m getting the fuck out of here, take care of this mess.”
Cortez nods, slipping the phone into his pocket. I leave the house, stepping over the body without a second glance.
The morning air is cool against my heated skin, but it does nothing to calm the rage boiling inside me.
That Mendez fucker is next.
***
She walks in with her head held high.
I know that she has important news from the way she swings her hips in that black dress. Her eyes sweep across the room as if looking to see if there’s someone else there before finally settling on me.
She doesn’t say a word, just sets a folder down on the mahogany table between us and lowers into the seat opposite mine.
“I have something you would like to see,” she says, holding the folder up, a mischievous smile dancing on her lips.
My brow crooks up with curiosity. “What’s there?” I ask, nudging my head towards the folder.
“Reports from six different mafia families, including the Ahmed family, which was reportedly charred to pieces only six days ago, and the mafia family who is suspected to have been led by Ezra...”
I yank the folder from her hand, toss it into the drawer of my table, and go over to where she is seated.
All the while her eyes are on me, tracking my every move.
“Before you continue, I would like to make sure you’re clean.”
“Clean?” She raises her head up at me. “What does that even mean?”
“You’ll see,” I grab her arm and pull her out of the chair, leaving barely a hair’s breadth between us.
“W…what are you doing?” she asks, blinking rapidly.
I slide my fingers into her well-arranged hair, massaging her scalp gently, then move from there to the back of her ears, trailing my fingers to her neck, sliding them down to the neckline of her dress.
She sucks in her breath sharply as my fingers linger on her neckline, stopping just above her breasts.
I resist the urge to cup them in my palms. From where I stand, they seem to be a perfect fit for me.
I swallow hard and move over the sleeves of her dress, then part her hands slightly with mine and move to her ribs. She flinches when my hand caresses her sides, still taking in those sharp breaths as if they could somehow help her bear the effects of my touch.
When my hands slide down to her hips, her brown eyes raise to catch mine.
My hands still when I see her soft, pink lips part slightly; I don’t know what shade of lipstick she has on her lips, but it sure is sexy as hell.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I’m certain she wants to yell at me, but it comes out as a whisper.
“You’re clean,” I announce, clenching my hands into fists and sliding them into my pocket.
“Wait, you thought I was a rat?”
I raise a brow at her and head back to my chair.
“Fuck you!”
“Don’t make a big deal out of it, Princess. It’s protocol.”
She purses her lips, too flustered to retort back at me, then goes back to slump into the other leather chair.
“You’re welcome, by the way,” she spits, running her lashes up and down in a disgusted look.
I shake my head and pick up my phone. If Deputy Chief Abruzzi has a lead on my family, it wouldn’t be long before he discovers that I’m the leader and not Ezra.
“Besides,” she interjects, “who’s this Ezra guy?”
“Ezra...” A fond smile touches my lips. “Ezra is the kind of man who could silence a room just by walking into it. But it isn’t just his height, though standing at six feet, he towers a little over me and most men. It is the way he carries himself. There is something effortless about the way he moves, like every step is calculated.”
Her large eyes are staring at me, clearly entranced with my description of Ezra.
“His green eyes have a way of pinning you in place, sharp enough to slice through your defenses yet warm enough to make you forget he is the most dangerous man in the room. He doesn’t need to raise his voice to command respect; his power is in the way people want to follow him.”
“He seems like an intriguing man,” she says with this dreamy look on her face.
“He’s way beyond intriguing.”
I lift my phone to my ear. “Cortez, contact the Guardiano (Guardian), set up a meeting. We have another problem.”
It’s high time the Guardian repaid his debt to me for saving his life.
“What was that about?” she asks, darting her eyes from the phone to me and back.
“It’s just business. By the way, thank you for holding up your end of the bargain.”
“I already told you before,” she says, holding her chin up with pride, “…don’t you ever question my commitment to our deal.”
I run my eyes over her face, the way her eyes sparkle fiercely, the way her nose flares as she tries to make her point, the way her plump lips purse, every single thing about her gives me the shivers.
I quickly dart my eyes, pulling the document out of the cabinet to scan through.
Names, locations, and vital information about the top six mafia families in New York are documented there. Her father has been sick, but he has gotten awfully busy after his recovery.
“This is good,” I say, closing the folder. “You’ve saved me from a whole lot of trouble, Princess.”
“I guess you owe me one now,” she replies, a subtle smile lifting her cheeks.
I look up at her, and for a moment, there’s silence between us. Her sharp tongue and stubborn attitude are infuriating, but damn if they don’t get under my skin and make me want to have her all for myself.
“You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that.”
She tilts her head, her lips curving into a sly smile. “Coming from you, I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“It is,” I admit. “I respect you for keeping your own end of the bargain. It builds trust, you know.”
She rises from her seat and walks to bend over my side of the table, her eyes locked on mine. “Are you saying you trust me now?”
The air between us shifts. She’s teasing me, like she always does, pushing to see how far she can go.
I don’t answer her question. Instead, I reach out and brush a strand of hair off her face. She doesn’t pull away, but her breath hitches just slightly.
“You’re trouble,” I say, my voice rumbling in my throat as my eyes latch onto hers.
“And you think you’re not?” she fires back, her voice steady but her eyes breaking from the gaze, giving her away.
For a moment, I consider stepping back, breaking the tension. But I don’t. Instead, I let my hand trail down to her jaw, my thumb brushing against her cheek.
“Careful, Princess,” I say softly. “You’re playing with fire.”
Her lips part, and I can see the defiance in her eyes, but there’s something else there, too. Something vulnerable. Something like… desire.
“Maybe I like the heat,” she whispers.
I don’t know who moves first, but suddenly, we’re too close, and the rest of the world fades away.
Finally, the only woman who has ever denied me ?and twice? is giving into me, and I’ll be damned if I don’t savagely ravish every inch of her luscious body like the monster in me has been craving since the moment I laid eyes on those killer curves of hers.
Her lips are like velvet. Her tongue is warm as I slide mine in between her lips, parting them. Her hands suddenly find their way in between the flaps of my shirt. I never thought she fancied my chest hair, but her fingers are plucking lightly at them now.
I find her mouth again, snatching up her lips with mine. This time, the kiss is gentler, but my cock is already rock solid.
I am half surprised that she is holding on to my collar as if she doesn’t ever want to let go, the other hand still dormant inside my shirt.
When I lean down to pick her up by her waist, she doesn’t protest. I drop her on the table and cup those breasts I’ve been eyeing since that first night.
Her lips leave mine, and she gasps, her cheeks filled with color.
“You like that?” I whisper hoarsely. She doesn’t even have the time to nod because I squeeze those two soft breasts again, pushing my hardened cock into her thighs at the same time.
My patience runs out as she grabs my hair and crushes her lips back into mine. I ease her out of her sleeves, unbuckle the straps of her brassiere, and finally, lower my lips onto one of her nipples.
The feeling is hot and tingly at the same time, and my dick revolts against the zip of my pants. I cannot help but guide her legs away from the edge of the table, balancing them so I can have easy access to her pussy.
I slide two fingers in first, she exclaims in shock, grabbing at the edge of the table with her two hands.
Her folds are hot and moist. I can tell that she is as hungry for me as I am for her.
I quickly undo the buckle on my belt, shoving my hot, hard cock out of my briefs and caressing it in between her thighs. She opens her mouth in a silent gasp, clenching her thighs together in hesitation.
Fuck. She’s a virgin. I got carried away.
“ Va bene (It’s okay), Princess, va bene . Just trust me. I will not hurt you.”
“It’s just…I’ve never done this...”
She bites her lips and, for a split second, looks like she’s deciding when she slowly releases her thighs, opening herself wide for me to penetrate her.
Excitement pulses my dick, and I want nothing more than to ram into her. Because I don’t do slow, I don’t do kind. But I try to calm down and remind myself that this is her first time. And the next time… the next time, I’ll be sure to show her how a real man claims a woman’s body. For now, though, I take it slowly, focusing back on her breasts.
I trace my hands lightly around her nipples, running slowly at first, then increasing my pace until her moans are loud.
“Do you like it, Princess?” I coo at her. She arches her back, and her eyes flutter shut. “What is it? Do you want me to stop?” I tease.
She shakes her head, and I groan, lightly pinching at her nipples. “Use your words.”
“N? no, don’t stop,” she says, and releases a breathy moan.
“That’s my woman!” My cock hardens impossibly more over the fact that this woman is finally about to be mine in every sense of the word. Her heavenly, wet pussy will only ever see my cock buried in it and no other fucking man’s. I’ll make sure of that personally.
“Fuck, Aria.”
I rub my fingers on her clit, bringing my lips to trail kisses from her nipples to her neck. She wraps her arms around my torso, and I waste no time before sliding the tip of my cock into her gradually. “This is going to hurt a little,” I mutter heavily into her neck.
Her nails dig into my back as she lets out a loud cry. I hold myself and don’t move as I grunt in pain above her…except my own pain is having to hold myself back from ramming into her dripping, wet pussy.
I move to kiss her when I see a tear fall from the corner of her eyes. Shit .
“Fuck, baby. Don’t cry.” I kiss her tear away and trail light kisses on the curve of her jaw. “I won’t move until you’re ready. Just tell me.”
I lift a thumb out of reflex and brush it against her cheek, stopping another tear from slipping further down her beautiful face.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” I groan, taking her lips in mine. She kisses me back with painful intensity, then she pulls back to gently nod at me.
“Are you ready for me, Bellissima (Beautiful)?”
“Yes, take me,” she moans.
My heart begins to thud in my chest as if there’s a volcanic eruption going on there. That’s all I need to hear as I grab her waist closer to myself, sliding another inch of my cock into her. She’s so fucking tight.
She jerks sharply as I make my way into her tightness. I trail kisses from her earlobes to her jaw.
“Relax, Princess. Oh, you’re so fucking wet…and so damn tight…”
When I feel her stiffened body relax, I let her adjust to my size and then slowly begin to slide all of my length into her. I can see the shock on her face at the sheer length of me. I gradually start to thrust into her. Her moans slowly morph into ones of pleasure, and I take that as a cue to increase my pace. A grunt falls from my lips as I pull out and ram into her, thrusting as if my entire life depends on it.
Ahhh…fuck! Finally!
“Fuck…” she cries.
“You like that? Don’t you?” I groan, angling her thighs to thrust deeper.
“Fuck!” she screams again, digging her nails even deeper into my back.
“Say my name, baby.” I catch her hooded eyes, filled with immense pleasure and smirk at how her mouth curls like she’s in heaven.
“Elio…” she moans, tightening her legs around my hips.
I can feel her heart thumping wildly against her chest as she arches her back, pressing her breasts into my chest, practically begging me to continue my thrusts.
She is moaning and writhing, completely clouding my senses as I rock back and forth madly. The pitch of her cries climbs higher, maddening my senses, and in no time, I feel her pussy tightening against my cock.
“I think I’m going?”
“Cum for me, baby,” I growl as she comes down her high with a loud cry. I can feel mine coming, so I quickly remove my dick and spill my release on her thighs, breathing heavily.
The orgasm seizes the entirety of my being. For the first time, I’m whimpering after making my release.
“Now you know what it feels like to reach an orgasm with me inside your slick pussy,” I groan in her ear. She flushes and quickly hides her face in the crook of my neck.