Giovanni
GIOVANNI
I pace the room like a caged animal, my mind a swirling storm of anger, fear and a thirst for blood that I can barely contain. The walls feel like they’re closing in on me, the air too thick, too heavy.
Every time I close my eyes, I see her—Chiara, tied to that bed, her eyes wide with terror, Leo’s sick fucking grin as he hovered over her. The image is seared into my brain, and it’s all I can do not to tear this fucking place apart.
I want to rip Leo Volkov’s throat out with my bare hands. I want to make him suffer for every second of fear he put her through, for every ounce of pain he caused. But I can’t. Not yet.
The door opens, and I whirl around, my fists clenched, ready to lash out at anyone who dares to get in my way. But it’s Nikolai, Mihai, and Connor. They enter the room cautiously, like they know they’re walking into a fucking minefield.
“Gio,” Nikolai starts, his voice measured, trying to keep things calm, “you need to take a breath.”
“Fuck that,” I snap, my voice a low growl. “I’m going to tear that family apart, piece by fucking piece. ”
Nikolai sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. “I know, man. Believe me, I know how much you want to kill the Volkovs. But you need to keep your head on straight. Right now, we need information more than we need blood.”
“Information?” I spit the word out like it’s poison. “What fucking information? I don’t need to know shit to put a bullet in Leo’s head.”
“And then what?” Mihai cuts in, his tone sharp. “You kill Leo, you get your revenge, and then what, G? You think that’ll solve everything? You think that’ll bring her peace?”
I glare at him, the rage boiling just beneath the surface. “It’ll bring me peace.”
“Bullshit,” Connor interjects, stepping forward. “You know damn well that’s a lie. Killin' him won’t change what happened. It won’t make her feel safe again.”
I stop pacing, turning to face them, my chest heaving with barely contained fury. “Then what the fuck do you suggest I do? Just sit here and wait while that piece of shit family plots their next move? While they try to take her again?”
Nikolai walks up to me, his voice low and deadly serious. “We’re not just going to sit here. But we need to be smart about this. I kept Leo alive for this one reason—so we can get information out of him. If we’d let you at him first, he’d be dead, and we’d be in the dark.”
“I don’t need information to know what needs to be done,” I hiss.
“But you need information to know how to do it,” Nikolai counters, his eyes locking onto mine. “You want to destroy the Volkov family? Fine. But you do it with precision, with strategy. You don’t just run in guns blazing and hope for the best. That’s how you get yourself, and her, killed.”
I stare at him, my fists still clenched, the anger burning in my veins like fire. He’s right, and I fucking hate that he’s right.
“So what’s the plan?” I finally ask, my voice still rough, still seething with anger.
Nikolai glances at Mihai and Connor before speaking.
“Our fathers have Leo in the basement. We’ll get everything out of him—who sent him, why they want her, and what their next move is. Once we have that information, we can plan our response.”
“And then I get to kill him,” I say, my tone flat, leaving no room for negotiation.
Nikolai’s lips press into a thin line, but he nods. “Once we’ve gotten what we need, he’s yours.”
The tension in the room is thick, the air heavy with the promise of violence. I know they’re all watching me, waiting to see if I’ll explode again, but I force myself to take a deep breath, to keep my focus. Chiara needs me to be calm, to be smart, and as much as I want to let the rage consume me, I can’t afford to lose control.
The door opens again, and Dmitri walks in, his knuckles still bloody, his face a mask of cold, calculated anger. There’s something in his eyes, and I know immediately that whatever he’s about to say, it’s not good.
“We got him to talk,” Dmitri says, his voice low, the words clipped and precise. “Leo was sent by the Giannini family to keep an eye on Chiara and take her when the time was right.”
“Giannini?” I repeat, confusion threading through my anger. “Why the fuck would they want her? Is this about the fucking feud?”
Dmitri’s gaze shifts to me, and I see the hesitation there, the weight of whatever he’s about to say. “There’s more, . More than you realize.”
I don’t like the sound of that. Not one fucking bit. “What do you mean? ”
Dmitri takes a deep breath, his eyes never leaving mine. “Alberto Giannini … is Chiara’s father.”
I blanch. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Her mother,” Dmitri continues, his voice steady but grim, “was involved with Alberto Giannini years ago. Chiara is the result of that relationship. Her mother ran from him while she was still pregnant, and she’s been hiding ever since.”
“No,” I say, shaking my head, refusing to believe it. “That’s not possible. Chiara would have told me if she knew.”
“She doesn’t know,” Dmitri confirms. “Her mother kept it from her, but now it’s come back to haunt her. Giannini wants to force Chiara into marrying Leo, to legitimize the Volkov family’s operations while strengthening ties with the Italian Mafia.”
I feel like the ground is shifting beneath my feet; the world spinning out of control. “So this was all a setup? From the beginning?”
Dmitri nods. “That’s why she was targeted, why Leo was sent to take her. This was all part of a plan to bring her back under Giannini’s control. They knew she would be at Willow Bridge.”
The rage I’ve been holding back roars to life, burning hotter than ever. “That bastard … He set her up. He fucking set her up!”
“We’ll take care of the Gianninis,” Dmitri says, his voice cold and deadly. “But, , you need to take Chiara’s safety seriously. This isn’t just about you and her anymore. There are forces at play here that are bigger than both of you.”
I stare at him, my mind racing, my heart pounding in my chest. “You think I don’t know that? You think I don’t fucking understand what’s at stake?”
“I think,” Dmitri says slowly, his gaze hard, unyielding, “that you need to stop acting like this is just about revenge. Chiara’s life is on the line, . And it’s a pity that she had to learn about this world in the worst possible way. But now that she knows, you need to protect her. You need to make sure she understands what she’s up against.”
“I will,” I say, my voice a low growl. “I’ll protect her, no matter what. But I’m not letting this go, Dmitri. I’m going to make sure the Giannini’s pay for this. For every second of fear they put her through, for every fucking moment they made her suffer, they’re going to pay.”
“And they will,” Dmitri says, his voice steady, unwavering. “But we do this right, . We don’t rush in. We plan, we strategize, and then we strike. We’re going to dismantle the Giannini family piece by piece, and when we’re done, there won’t be anything left of them.”
The room falls silent, and I can feel the fury burning inside me, the desire for vengeance boiling over. But I force myself to nod. He’s right.
As much as I want to go out there and start tearing the Gianninis apart with my bare hands, I know that’s not the way to do it. Not if I want to keep Chiara safe.
“I’ll take care of her,” I say, my voice rough, full of barely restrained anger. “But when the time comes … I want to be the one to end this.”
Dmitri meets my gaze, and after a moment, he nods. “You will be.”
Mihai, who’s been silent this whole time, speaks up, his expression dark. “And you’re not doing this alone, Gio. We’re in this together. The Gianninis fucked with the wrong people.”
“Damn right,” Connor adds, his voice full of grim determination. “We’ll make sure they never forget it.”
Nikolai places a hand on my shoulder, his grip firm. “We’ll take care of Leo, get every last bit of information out of him. But after that … it’s up to you.”
I nod, the rage still boiling beneath the surface, but I force myself to take a deep breath, to focus on what needs to be done .
“First, I need to take care of Chiara. She needs to know the truth.”
“Tell her everything,” Dmitri says. “But be careful. This isn’t going to be easy for her to hear. She’s already been through hell.”
“I know,” I say, my voice softening as I think about her, about everything she’s been through. “I’ll be there for her. I won’t fail her again.”
“You’d better not,” Dmitri says, his tone sharp. “Because if anything happens to her?—”
“Nothing will happen to her,” I cut him off, my voice firm. “I’ll protect her. No matter what.”
“Good,” Dmitri says, his expression finally softening. “Now go to her. She needs you.”
I nod, my resolve solidifying as I turn and leave the room, my mind already racing with everything that needs to be done. The Gianninis think they can come after Chiara, that they can take what’s mine? They’re about to learn just how wrong they are.
But first, I need to see her. I need to hold her, to make sure she’s okay. And then … then we’ll deal with the rest.
One way or another, this war is going to end. And when it does, there won’t be anything left of the Giannini family. I’ll make sure of that.