Chapter 9
Nora
Guilt and worry ate at me, hollowing out my insides.
Dante had been gone for hours, and he’d promised he wouldn’t return until he had Giana under his protection.
One of Luca’s men had managed to contact Antonio, and he’d turned on my father to help Giana.
Right now, Dante’s men were preparing to raid Giuseppe’s hideout.
But only after Giana was safely out of the line of fire.
Dante had promised that she wouldn’t be harmed, and I believed him.
Still, there were so many things that could go wrong. The violence might break out too soon, and my sister could be caught in a firefight.
And Dante…
He would risk his life to save her for me. I knew it deep in my heart. He’d sworn that he would atone for his sins against me, and this was how he would prove his devotion as my husband.
I bit my lip and snuggled closer to Luca, guilt turning my stomach.
What about my sin against him? Yesterday, I’d kissed his worst enemy, his tormentor.
I’d allowed Dante to touch me, to make me come in ways that Luca hadn’t dared since I’d been rescued from the Russians.
Luca held me and comforted me, but he’d been so gentle with me.
Dante had known that I needed to be handled more roughly, to be forced to orgasm in order to break through the barriers of fear that’d been instilled by my trauma.
“It’s okay, kitten,” Luca rumbled, tracing the line of my lip where it was trapped between my teeth.
“Giana will be fine. She’ll be here soon.
” His jaw firmed. “Although I’d prefer to have her almost anywhere else.
Having her here will only give Dante more leverage against us, another person to threaten in order to control us. ”
I shuddered, but I knew Dante would never harm my sister or use her against me. The repulsed reaction was borne from fear that the men would resume their feud as soon as all the threats against me were handled. Dante might torture Luca again, and Luca would try to kill Dante.
I couldn’t bear the thought of either of them in pain, or worse, dead. I couldn’t lose either of them.
And that traitorous feeling ate at my soul. I belonged to Luca, and my loyalty should lie with him and him alone.
My husband stroked my hair back from my cheek, soothing me. He’d misread the reasoning behind my distress.
“Don’t worry, Nora. I’m going to get us out of here. And when I do, we’ll take Giana with us. Dante will be dead, and we’ll all be free.”
“He saved my life,” I said hesitantly. “And he spared yours.”
Luca grimaced and pulled me closer to his chest. “You don’t owe that sick bastard anything. I’ll handle it, Nora. I swear. I’ll rip out his heart and give it to you, so you’ll know he can never hurt you again.”
I recoiled before I could think better of it. “I don’t want that.”
Luca’s fierce expression softened, and he resumed stroking me. “I’m sorry, kitten. I won’t make you watch if you don’t want to see the blood. I’ll take care of everything. I’ll take care of you.”
“That’s not what I mean. I…”
I trailed off, and his brow furrowed.
“Talk to me,” he urged. “You can tell me anything. Just tell me what you want, and I’ll do it for you.”
“I don’t want you to kill Dante,” I whispered, hardly daring to say the words aloud.
I knew what I was asking was impossible, just as Dante claimed it was impossible for him to ever release Luca. He would have his revenge, and nothing I said would change that.
Luca’s stony features hardened to granite. “Don’t ask that of me. After everything he’s done to you. I’ll make him scream before he dies.”
The corners of my eyes stung, but I tipped my chin back in challenge. “He’s different now. You’ve seen how he’s been since…” I stumbled over the memories of what I’d suffered. “He cares about me, Luca.”
My husband gnashed his teeth, and his corded arms flexed around me. “He just wants you for himself. It’s another sick game, another manipulation. That’s not kindness, Nora. It’s not love. I love you. You’re mine.”
My heart skipped a beat, then squeezed tightly to the point of pain. Dante had promised that I was his, not Luca’s. He’d sworn that all he wanted was my happiness and safety.
And I believed him.
“He apologized,” I said quietly. “He wants to atone for what he put me through.”
“There are no words that could ever erase what he did!” Luca barked, his handsome face darkening with rage even as he held me with tenderness.
No. Words would never be enough. But Dante was a man of action. He proved himself through deeds, not flowery promises. He’d vowed that he would make things right, and I knew he’d do everything in his power to follow through.
“And even if that sadistic sociopath somehow feels something like guilt for what he did to you, he will never let you go,” Luca seethed. “We’ll always be his prisoners unless I kill him. That’s the only way this nightmare ends.”
Luca would never stop trying to murder Dante as long as he was a captive, and Dante would never release Luca because of his vendetta.
But if there was some way for them to make peace…
“He says that you killed his brother,” I pressed despite Luca’s volatility. He would never lash out at me, no matter how righteously enraged he became. “He hates you for that.”
Luca’s entire body tensed. “That’s not how it happened. Yes, I’m responsible for Francesco’s death, but I—”
The bedroom door banged open, and I yelped in alarm.
My burst of fear immediately morphed into a sob of relief when I saw my sister standing in the open doorway, Dante hovering protectively behind her.
“Giana!”
We both ran toward each other, meeting in a fierce embrace.
She murmured my name over and over again, holding me tight. Her delicate body trembled with emotion and a ghost of the fear that must’ve haunted her ever since Father had given me to the Bratva.
I pulled back so that I could study her, my eyes raking over her to search for any signs of injury. Her jaw was marred by a bruise that’d turned a sick green hue, an older mark of abuse that she’d tried to conceal with makeup. And her right wrist was in a splint, sprained.
“What did Father do to you?” I demanded, rage making the question little more than a growl.
Her hazel eyes roved over me, checking me in turn.
I was grateful that Dante had given me yoga pants and a soft cotton, long sleeved shirt before he’d left this morning; the clothes covered most of my bruises.
He must’ve known that an exchange like this would happen and that I wouldn’t want to upset my sister by allowing her to see the marks of abuse.
He understood me so deeply that it should’ve been disturbing, but I was too grateful to him to be upset.
“Tell me, Giana,” I pressed.
Murderous impulses curled my fingers to fists. My father would die for harming her. I wouldn’t allow him to hurt her ever again. For too long, we’d ensured his merciless punishments. My sister would be safe from now on. I would guarantee it.
“I tried to stop them,” she said, grasping my fists in her shaking hands. “I wasn’t going to let them take you from me. But the Russians…” She trailed off, shuddering at the awful memory of the day they’d taken me.
I ignored the sick laughter that echoed in my head, shadows of the trauma I’d endured. My sister was more important.
“Who did this to you? Was it Antonio?”
“No!” she exclaimed, eyes going wide enough that her thick lashes brushed her brows.
“Antonio would never hurt me. He protected me from the worst of it, but I couldn’t stop them from taking you away.
I’m so sorry, Nora. I thought I was saving you from Dante, but I led you straight into a trap.
I didn’t know. I swear, I had no idea what Father had planned. ”
I hugged her tightly. “I know,” I promised. “I’m safe now. I survived.”
Her delicate features drew sharp with fury. “The Russians will pay for it,” she seethed, eyes shining with unshed tears. Her gaze slid past me, finding Dante’s. “Kill them all.”
My dark protector offered her a short, savage nod.
“I intend to. I’ll avenge my wife, and I’ll slaughter everyone who hurt her.
Starting with that traitorous fuck, Antonio.
He disappeared during the firefight when we raided Giuseppe’s hideout.
Do you know where he might have gone? I’ll kill him for throwing Nora to the wolves. ”
Giana swallowed hard and shrank closer to me, her fingers threading through mine for support. Despite her evident fear of the deadly predator in the room, she held her head high when she defied him.
“Antonio didn’t know about Father’s deal with the Bratva,” she asserted, voice barely wavering.
“He thought he was helping me save Nora. From you.” Her eyes narrowed at Dante.
“I’m grateful to you for getting me away from Giuseppe and for saving Nora from the Russians, but I still don’t trust you.
I know you’ll avenge her because you think she’s your wife, and I’ll stand with anyone who fights for my sister.
But I was there on the day you took her from our father’s house.
You drugged her and dragged her away from me. She didn’t want to go with you.”
“Giana,” I scolded in an undertone, squeezing her hand in warning. “Dante will protect me. You don’t know…” I suddenly became acutely aware of Luca’s eyes on me. “I’ll explain later. It’s more complicated than that. What matters now is that you’re safely here with me. What happened to Father?”
“The old bastard slipped through my fingers,” Dante rumbled. “Antonio got Giana out before we raided Giuseppe’s hideout, and in that time, he must’ve been tipped off that we were coming for him. When we breached the house, he was already gone.”
He leaned against the doorjamb, his face paler than usual despite his murderous expression. Crimson stained his white shirt, soaking the fabric at his shoulder.
“You’re hurt!” I exclaimed.
Panic punched me, and I wrenched my hand free from Giana’s tight grip so that I could go to him. My fingers flew to his buttons, tearing at them in order to take off this shirt. I had to inspect then extent of his injury.
His long fingers encircled my wrists, slowly directing my grasping hands back to my sides. His eyes glinted with a hungry light as he drank in my concerned expression.
“I’m fine, darling. My stitches tore when I was firing the assault rifle. I killed as many of the traitorous bastards as I could. They won’t be able to threaten you ever again.”
“But you’re bleeding,” I insisted, jerking against his hold.
“I’ve already called my physician. He’ll take a look at the wound.” He released one of my wrists so that he could trace the lines of strain around my mouth, as though he couldn’t quite believe they were etched there. “I’m okay, Nora. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you.”
“Neither will I.” Luca’s fierce growl rumbled over me as his chest pressed against my back. His hands settled on my waist in a possessive hold, but he didn’t tear me away from Dante; he wouldn’t risk accidentally hurting me.
I looked up to find his ochre eyes boring into Dante’s. “You should’ve died today. Soon enough, I’ll take care of that too.”
Dante sneered at him. “Try it, and see what happens to your friends.”
“Stop!” I demanded. “Neither of you is going to die, and Luca’s friends won’t be harmed. I won’t allow it to happen.”
I lifted my chin and met Dante’s disapproving glower head-on. “We’re going to have a talk. All three of us. This ends today.”
Luca’s fingers flexed into my hips. “There’s no use trying to reason with a madman. And nothing he can say will make up for what he’s done to you. To us.”
I spun, rounding on my husband. “He’s risked his life to save mine more than once.”
Luca scowled. “I’ve already told you that you won’t be responsible for his death. I will.”
“I won’t let you kill him,” I said bluntly.
His brows drew together, expression thunderous. “He’s been a dead man since the day he stole you away from me. It’s done, Nora.”
“And you’ve been damned since the day you killed my brother,” Dante hissed. “There’s no stopping this, little bird.”
I shook my head. “I’m going to make sure Giana feels safe and comfortable here,” I announced, skewering Dante with a hard stare. “You are going to see the doctor.” I turned my gaze on Luca. “And you’re not going to try to kill anyone. Not until we talk.”
My husband’s jaw was so tight that he spoke through gritted teeth. “You can’t ask that of me, Nora.”
I placed my hand on his cheek to soften my demand, but I remained firm in my resolve. “I’m not asking. I love you, Luca, and I’m going to find a way to free you. I’m going to end this nightmare. For all of us.”
“Not possible,” Dante bit out. “You can beg me as prettily as you like, pet, but I’ll never forgive him.”
“Well, I’m going to try,” I insisted, looking from Luca to Dante and back again. “I can’t keep living like this. I know you’ll both protect me, but I’m trying to protect us all. You’ve both promised to do anything for me. Are you going to deny me a simple conversation?”
“All right, Nora,” Dante ground out. “We’ll talk. I always keep my promises, and I meant it when I offered you anything you desire.”
Luca couldn’t seem to manage more than a wordless growl of frustration.
I caressed his hard jaw and softened my tone. “Please, Luca. I need this. I need you.”
He turned his face into my tender touch and kissed my palm before managing a stiff nod. He couldn’t seem to find the words to reply, but he agreed to my demand.
I didn’t know what dark secrets would be revealed when I asked for the truth about the night Dante’s brother died, but there was more to it than coldblooded murder at Luca’s hand.
My husband seemed to carry guilt over Francesco’s death, and even though he’d claimed responsibility, he’d suggested that the situation was more complex.
Dante would never listen to Luca if he denied any culpability. But my dark protector would listen to me. It might be within my power to end this feud, and I wouldn’t give up until I’d saved them both, just as they’d saved me.