Chapter 18 #2
Gemma would forgive me. She plays hard, but she's warm, soft, pliant. She will understand. She'll take her licks, and then, we will be able to move on. Both of us.
"She made her bed."
Marcello looks at me for a long moment before shaking his head. "Not my business. But don't pretend this is just about protecting the family. Part of you wants to punish her. And that part might get you both killed."
He leaves before I can respond.
I stand there, hand on the doorknob, Marcello's words echoing.
Part of you wants to punish her.
No. That's not—
This is strategy. Cold calculation. The hard choice that has to be made.
Right?
I think about Gemma in our bedroom. The way she looked after the false positive. Broken. Shattered. Barely holding on.
I think about what this will do to her.
Then I think about the seven captains who voted against me. About Alexei's knowing smile. About the marriage contract that could destroy everything Antonio built.
Family first. Always family first.
Even if it means sacrificing her.
I walk out of the study, down the hall. Past our bedroom. I don't go in. Can't look at her. If I see her face, I might not be able to do this.
Emmanuel is waiting with the car.
"The Nero mansion," I tell him.
He doesn't question it. Just drives.
I stare out the window, watching the city pass. It's late. Past midnight. But Adrian will see me. This kind of conversation doesn't wait for morning.
My phone buzzes. Gemma.
Are you coming to bed?
I don't respond. What would I say?
Not tonight. I'm betraying you to your brother. Sleep well.
I pocket the phone.
The Nero mansion appears. Bigger than ours. More ostentatious. Adrian's ego made manifest in marble and gold.
Luc meets me at the door. "Saint. This is late for a visit."
"I need to see Adrian. Now."
Something in my voice makes him step aside. "He's in his study."
I know the way. I've been here before. For the wedding planning. For the negotiations. For all the political theater that led to me marrying Gemma.
I should have run then. Should have told Antonio to find another alliance. Should have—
Too late for should haves.
Adrian's study door is open. He's at his desk, working. Always working. Like me. Like all of us who carry this weight.
"Saint." He looks up, surprised. "It's late."
"I need to talk to you. About Gemma."
His expression shifts. Hardens. "What about her? Is she sick?"
I close the door. Sit without being invited. This is going to be a long conversation.
"I've discovered something. About what she's been doing." I keep my voice level. Professional. "And you need to know before it blows up in both our faces."
"I'm listening."
Here it is. The point of no return.
I tell him everything.
About the partnership. The intel. The hits on his operations. Her anger when I ended it. Her going to Alexei. I spin it, of course, but I mostly tell the truth.
Adrian's face goes through several expressions. Surprise. Disbelief. Rage. By the time I finish, he's white-knuckled, gripping his desk.
"Let me make sure I understand." His voice is deadly quiet. "My sister has been feeding you information about my family's operations. You've been using it to undermine me. And when you stopped, she went to the fucking Russians?"
"Yes."
"For how long has this been going on?"
"Three months of working with me. A few weeks with Alexei before I found out and stopped her."
He stands. Starts pacing. I can see him processing. Calculating damage. Identifying which operations were compromised.
He's barely keeping it together. But Adrian is cold, like I told Marcello, and he's not going to break down in front of me.
"The gallery hit. The warehouse fire. The union issue at the docks." He's ticking them off. "All of that was you."
"Yes."
"Using information my sister gave you."
"Yes."
He slams his fist on the desk. A picture frame falls. Shatters. "That little bitch."
I feel my hackles raise. I prepared for this, but Gemma is my fucking wife.
His eyes are black with rage. "She betrayed her family. Betrayed her blood. For what? To play games with you?"
"She was angry. At both of us. Yes, it was fucking reckless, but it excited her. Made her more pliable. It's why I went along with it. I wanted an heir, and this is how I convinced her to be pliant." The words taste like shit in my mouth, but I say them anyway.
Adrian is primed to believe his sister was a silly little airhead, and I hate that I am playing into this.
"You are telling me you nearly started a war, so my sister would be easier to fuck."
"Watch it," I say, voice low in warning. "She is still my wife."
He laughs. "Yeah, fuck off, Saint. You should be glad I don't put a bullet in your head."
"You aren't going to do shit, Adrian. Not to me."
"Oh yeah?" he moves closer to his desk, and I suspect he's trying not to grab the gun he's got stored there. "What makes you so confident?"
I lean in my chair, trying to appear nonchalant. "Because those last attacks…they weren't me. Alexei is gunning for you, and you can't afford to get rid of allies and create new enemies."
I see the way my words affect him.
"Why come to me now?"
"Because Alexei knows. And he's using it as leverage. I can't have that threat hanging over both our families. I need to handle my own shit. I don't want him involved." I lean forward. "I'm giving you a boon and letting you handle this as you see fit."
"Handle it." He laughs, sharp and bitter. "You mean punish Gemma?"
"If that's what you think is best," I keep my face neutral. "I'm not going to interfere with how you choose to handle it."
He studies me for what feels like an eternity. "You'd let me punish your wife?"
"I'd let you handle your sister's betrayal." I hold his gaze. "That's the alliance working. That's mutual respect. That's me putting the partnership first."
He snickers, but it lacks mirth. "Fuck." He shakes his head. "I'm understanding why she didn't want to marry you. You are a shit husband." He sits back down. "A good Don, but a shit husband. I'd burn you to the ground before I'd allow you to discipline my wife."
I swallow heavily, trying to keep my cool. "Gemma and I weren't a love match," I remind him. "And I'm doing you a favor."
"A favor?" he chuckles. "You are saving your own skin. If Alexei didn't know what the fuck Gemma was doing, you never would have told me."
"No," I admit. "I wouldn't have, and I'll confess, I had fun fucking with you.
" His fingers flex, eyes narrowed. He's trying to control himself.
Good, that means he doesn't want this to go south.
My suspicions were correct. He needs this alliance.
"But I'm head of the family now," I stand.
"The time for childishness is over. I'm making the hard choice. The one a leader has to make."
Adrian is quiet for a long moment. Neither of us blink. And then, he speaks. "I want her brought here. Tonight."
My stomach drops. I didn't expect him to want to do things this soon. "Adrian—"
"You said I could handle this. I'm handling it. Bring me my sister. Now."
"It's late. She's asleep. This can wait—" I can't help it; I want to protect Gemma.
"Now, Saint." His voice is ice. I bristle at the order. No one fucking orders me around. Then, he says the magic words. The ones that make me fold. "Do it, or I invoke the contract and take everything. Bring her, allow me to handle it, and we are square."
I close my eyes. This is it. The moment.
Choose Gemma or choose the family.
Choose love or choose duty.
Choose who I want to be or who I have to be.
"I'll bring her," I hear myself say.
"Good." Adrian stands. "And Saint? When she gets here, you leave. This is between me and her. Family business."
"No," I snap. "She is still my wife, and there's a line."
His silver eyes, same as his sister's, are lifeless, and for a moment, I do consider that he might kill Gemma. "My sister threatened my wife and children—"
"She did not," I remind him. "There was no threat."
He laughs, but it's cold. "Alexei is a threat to us all. He's the reason I haven't put a bullet in your head."
It pains me to take Adrian's bullshit, but I do. For the good of the family.
"I want your word that she won't be seriously injured."
"You want my word?" He laughs. "You're giving me your wife to punish for betraying me, and you want my word I'll be gentle?"
"I want your word she'll be alive when this is over," I chuckle, trying to appear blasé. "I still need an heir."
He stares at me. "Fine. She'll be alive. But that's all I'm promising."
It should be enough. Code says wives aren't killed. Adrian's word that she'll survive should be enough.
But something in his eyes makes me uneasy. And yet, I capitulate.
"I'll be back in an hour," I say.
I leave before he can respond. Before I can change my mind. Before I can see the truth in his face.
In the car, I text Marcello: He wants her tonight. I'm going to get her now.
His response is immediate: This is a mistake. Don't do this.
Too late. Already done.
I pocket my phone and stare out at the city.
I'm protecting the family. Making the hard choice. Doing what Antonio would do.
So why does it feel like I just destroyed the only thing that mattered?
Emmanuel pulls up to the compound. I sit there in the dark. Engine off. Just sitting.
This is it. The point where I cross a line I can't uncross.
Gemma trusted me. Loved me. And I'm about to...
My phone is still in my hand. Her text: Are you coming to bed?
I could go in there. Climb into bed beside her. Tell her we'll figure this out together.
Antonio's voice: "Family first. Always family first."
But which family? The one I was born into? Or the one I made with her?
I already know the answer. Already made the choice when I walked into Adrian's study.
I could still walk away. Could call Adrian back. Could tell him I changed my mind.
But I don't.
I get out and go to wake my wife.
To bring her to her brother.
To betray her in the worst way possible.
For the family.
Always for the family.
Even if it kills us both.