Chapter 33
33
CELIA
I t was the first time I entered the Obsidian Club for business, rather than as a bargaining chip.
The meeting room felt airless despite its high ceilings and massive windows that looked out over the city. Vita Kournikov ’s cigarette smoke curled through shafts of afternoon light, while Richard Dempsey drummed his thick fingers against the mahogany table. William Harrow just watched me, his eyes giving nothing away.
I wondered where their daughters were right now. Natalie. Kara. Moriah. I needed my friends—and I would do anything to make sure they rose to replace these bastards.
But for now, I was patient. Respectful. Even submissive. I was always good at faking those things.
No one deserved to know who I really was except for my men.
I stood before them in a perfectly tailored black suit, my hair swept up to show the bruises on my neck. Let them see the evidence of what I’d survived. Let them wonder what I was capable of.
“The Carmichael family is finished,” Vita said, his faint Russian accent heavy with disdain. “Your father and brother are dead. There is no heir.”
“I am the heir.” My voice rang clear in the stillness. “I am the last Carmichael.”
Richard’s laugh was ugly. “A woman? Leading one of the families? Don’t be absurd, girl.”
“I killed my father.” I met his gaze steadily. “I killed my brother. I orchestrated the fall of the Carmichael empire from within. Does that sound absurd to you?”
“You had help,” William said quietly. Always the most dangerous of the three, he saw too much. “Gabriel Caruso. You would be nothing without him.”
“Yes.” I lifted my chin. “I’m married to Gabriel Caruso. Our families are united now. Our strength’s combined.”
I could feel the force of Gabriel’s presence behind me, waiting against the wall. He’d listened as these men had heard my story. At least, parts of it. I’d left out the part where we had manipulated my father into the firefight that had killed some of Harrow’s men and some of mine.
No one ever needed to know. Everyone who had been in that room with us when my father figured out our plan was dead now. Luca had strangled Vincent to death with his hands still cuffed. He might not despise me when I cried now, but he certainly still despised anyone who made me cry.
“Ah.” Vita’s lips curved. “So, it’s Gabriel who will truly lead. Come up here, Gabriel.”
Gabriel’s footsteps were measured as he crossed to stand beside me. His hand settled at the small of my back, a gesture that could be read as either possessive or supportive.
For a moment, fear flickered in my chest. Would he claim control now, in front of the council? Had I miscalculated by trusting him?
“My wife,” Gabriel said, his voice carrying to every corner of the room, “is the head of her family. And our families will be aligned…closely. Anyone who refuses to accept that—in either the Caruso or Carmichael organizations—will be dealt with. Swiftly.”
I kept my expression neutral, though relief flooded through me.
“You expect us to believe you’ll be content to stand in her shadow?” Richard demanded.
“I expect you to understand that our family will be stronger with her leading it.” Gabriel’s tone was steel wrapped in silk. “We’ll be valuable allies to those who accept her authority. And formidable enemies to those who don’t.”
The three council members exchanged looks. Vita crushed out his cigarette. William’s fingers steepled under his chin.
“Leave us to deliberate,” he ordered.
I inclined my head slightly. Gabriel’s hand stayed at my back as we walked out.
In the hallway, we waited. Minutes stretched like hours. Gabriel and I sat in silence, aware we were probably being eavesdropped on. I had to maintain the ice queen facade they expected.
When we were called back in, I knew by the looks on their faces that we’d won. But I also saw the patronizing amusement in their eyes.
They thought Gabriel would be the real power, that I was just a pretty figurehead. Neither my family nor the Caruso family was as strong now as either of their families. Even united, we would pose little threat to them, and Gabriel had already proven his loyalty when he brought his men to fight alongside the Harrow men against mine.
Let them underestimate me. They’d learn the truth soon enough.
“The families recognize Celia Carmichael-Caruso as head of the Carmichael family,” William announced formally.
I didn’t smile. Didn’t thank them. Simply gave another precise nod of acknowledgment.
Then I turned and walked out, my hand finding Gabriel’s. His fingers interlaced with mine, strong and steady.
We had more battles ahead.
But I was ready to get started.
The rest would come.
Keeping my hands off Gabriel, Luca, and Dante over the next few days was hard for me. There was nothing sexier than a dangerous man doing my bidding.
And I longed for them. I did.
But I’d meant what I said. How could I ever trust Gabriel if I didn’t approach them from a position of equality? Of strength?
Each day, they helped me solidify the leadership of my family. They helped me purge the elements loyal to my father—not that there were many people truly loyal to him, given his personality—and to take control of those whose loyalty was for purchase.
They rode with me, watching out for me, as I visited my father’s holdings.
I transferred all the gun running businesses over to Gabriel. He deserved it.
I could tell he was bothered to get exactly what he had been promised.
“We can handle this together, Celia,” he told me quietly.
“No, we can’t,” I told him. “And you know why.”
His jaw set as I walked away. I stopped to look back at him. “I’m going home to pack and take care of a few last things.”
He frowned. “Why are you packing?”
“I’m not going to live in your house like nothing ever happened. I should be at the Carmichael house for a while.”
“How long?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“That’s unacceptable.”
“And yet you’re going to have to accept it.”
“Your home will always be with me, Celia.”
“We’ll see if you still want to say that when you get home.”
“Celia.” His voice was curt as he called after me. “What exactly are you planning?”
I turned my face over my shoulder to give him a grin. He was so good at predicting and controlling me. Surely he could manage this now.
He was stuck dealing with work, so I was able to reach our home first and get ready for his arrival.
Sure enough, when Gabriel pulled into the driveway of our house, there were flames rising into the air.
The gilt wood of the cage made a very pretty bonfire.
“Are you toasting a fucking marshmallow?” Gabriel demanded as he took a few long furious strides to my side.
I offered him the toasted, melting marshmallow, which was dripping down the stick. He didn’t take it.
“That house is not your home,” he told me. “ This is your home. Stay here. Believe me, Celia. Things will be different.”
“Well.” I smiled at him. The cage had been moved out of our bedroom before I returned, but he had his men store it in the basement. “You weren’t the one to burn it, were you, Gabriel?”
His jaw was tight.
He knew exactly what I was saying.
“Take Dante and Luca,” he growled. “I’ll sleep better knowing you have two bodyguards under your roof.”
I took a step toward him, letting the marshmallow and stick drop to the ground.
“I hope you’ll come back to me,” Gabriel said.
“I hope you’ll be ready for me if I do,” I told him softly.
I couldn’t resist reaching up and touching that face I’d come to love. I ran my hand through his thick, dark hair.
He bent his head and, illuminated by the flames that leapt and crackled behind us, the two of us shared a long, deep kiss.
A kiss goodbye.