Chapter 18
Enzo
Unable to sit still, I pace up and down in front of the desk while staring at Christiano as he dials the number Rodian gave me.
Adriano, Georgi, Augusto, Dad, and Uncle Dario are with us in the office, every single man ready to go to war.
“Rodian. It’s Christiano. I believe you have one of my capos.” My brother’s tone is biting as he clenches his jaw.
Because he’s on speakerphone, we all hear as the Russian replies, “Like I told Enzo, I will give you the location if you agree to back me in removing Yegor so I can claim his seat as the new Pakhan.”
“If you’re turning on your own, how the fuck do you expect me to trust a word that comes out of your mouth?” Christiano growls.
Rodian lets out a dark chuckle. “You don’t have to trust me. You only have to understand that our interests are the same for now.”
“And what interest is that?” Christiano asks.
“You want Rosie. I want Yegor’s seat. You back my move, and I give you the route into the prison, access points, and the men on the inside who answer to me.”
Georgi leans forward. “How many?”
“Not enough to go up against Yegor as long as he’s in a seat of power. He needs to be brought down so the soldiers will fall in line behind me.”
Christiano’s eyes harden. “Don’t mistake this for us doing you a favor.”
“I know. But once Yegor has been dethroned and you have your capo back, perhaps then the Bratva and Cosa Nostra can lay down their weapons and move forward into a new way of doing things.”
Christiano looks at each of us. “That’s something we’ll discuss once we have Rosie back in one piece. Not raped. Not tortured. Not missing any fucking body parts. I want her in one fucking piece. Do you understand?”
“Understood.” A short silence follows before Rodian says, “I’ll send the coordinates after we have an agreement.”
I step closer to the desk. “Send them now.”
“No.” His reply is so fucking calm, it makes anger bubble in my chest.
Christiano lifts a hand, stopping me before I can speak.
“Are we in agreement, Christiano?” Rodian asks.
My brother glances around the room, and only after each of the capos has nodded does he say, “We have an agreement, Rodian. But Rosie comes first.”
“And I want Yegor. He’s mine to kill.” I make my own demand.
“I’ll do you one better, Enzo.” Rodian chuckles. “Actually, two. I’ll give you Yegor, Danil, and Kirill, the three men responsible for the hell Rosie has been put through.”
“That works for me,” I mutter, memorizing the other two names.
“Good.” Christiano’s jaw clenches. “Then we have an agreement.”
“We do. Who do I deal with going forward?” Rodian asks.
“Enzo. You have his woman, so it’s only fair my underboss takes charge,” Christiano says, to which all the other capos nod their approval.
Dad grips my shoulder, giving it a hard shake while a rare smile tugs at the corner of his mouth.
“I’ll be in touch, Enzo.” Right after that, Rodian ends the call.
For a moment, no one speaks, then Christiano looks at us. “You all better go call your contacts. We’re going to war.”
Christiano is the first to dial a number.
“Constantin,” the head of the Romanian mafia answers.
“We’ve found Rosie. She’s alive. Will you join us in a war against the Bratva to get her back?”
“Fuck, that’s good news!” he exclaims. “Yes, just say when and where, and I’ll be there with my men.”
I hear Georgi behind me. “Hey, Atanas, feel like fucking up the Russians?” Then Augusto. “Ryo, I need you and the Yakuza. The Bratva has Rosie.”
I glance over my shoulder at the capos reaching out to their contacts worldwide.
Adriano grins as he speaks into his phone. “I think it’s time we met in person, Devran. I’m going to need your help smuggling an army into Russia.”
Uncle Dario comes to stand beside me and places his arm around my shoulders. “Bring her home, son.”
“I will.” I jerk my head to the door, indicating that I want to talk privately with him.
We step out into the hallway, and he follows me to my office. I wait until he’s inside before I shut the door and lock eyes with him.
“I want to ask your blessing to marry Rosie.”
For a moment, he just stares at me, then a slow breath leaves him. “You should’ve asked me years ago.”
The words hit me square in the chest. “I know. For that I will always be sorry, Uncle Dario.”
His eyes hold mine, and his voice grows rough from emotion. “Bring my daughter home, and you’ll have my blessing.”
I nod, and he opens his arms and engulfs me in a fatherly hug, then he whispers, “Promise me the only tears Rosie will cry will be from happiness.”
“I swear on my life.” My arms tighten around him. “She will always come first.”
There’s a knock at the door, and while we’re still holding each other, it opens, and Georgi glances between us. “The two of you need a moment longer to make out, or are we getting to work?”
“Little fucking shit,” Uncle Dario snaps, pulling away to go after Georgi.
It’s fucking good to see some color in Uncle Dario’s face and the life returning to his eyes.
I walk back to Christiano’s office, and as I step inside, my phone vibrates.
Pulling the device out of my pocket, I see a message and open it. There are coordinates and three photos with a name beneath each face.
Yegor Fedorov. Danil Lebedev. Kirill Dragun.
Suddenly, a call comes through, and I answer quickly. “Just got the text.”
“Good. Get your asses to Russia. As soon as you’re here, I’ll organize for Yegor to come to the prison. He won’t stay for long, so you’ll have to move the moment he’s at the prison.”
“Got it. Give us a day to get everything ready.”
“And two more to smuggle everyone into Russia,” Adriano says.
“Did you get that?” I ask Rodian.
“Yes. You do what you have to, and I’ll make sure no one touches Rosie.”
“Are you with her right now?” I ask.
“No, but I have a trusted man watching her. All these fuckers want is money.” He clears his throat. “I pretended to claim her just to stop anyone from getting any ideas.”
My eyebrow flies up as anger surges through my chest just hearing another man mentioning the word ‘claim’ in regard to Rosie.
“Just keep your hands off her,” I growl.
“Don’t insult me, Enzo. I’m doing you a fucking favor.”
I suck in a deep breath, then say, “I apologize. Thank you for watching over my woman.”
“Tensions are running high. Once everyone has what they want, maybe we can sit down for a meal.”
“Okay.”
He pauses, then adds, “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry for what my organization has done. It’s because of shit like this I have to take over, or the Bratva will become a cesspool of scum.”
There it is. The real reason.
I can hear the hatred in his voice.
Giving him an inch, I say, “Let’s make history together, Rodian.”
“I like the sound of that.”
We end the call, and as I glance around the room, everyone is staring at me.
“Looks like you just formed yourself an alliance with the future head of the Bratva,” Dad says, pride soaked into every word. He glances between Christiano and me. “I’m proud of both of you.”
Rosie
With the rest breaks Rodian is giving me under the guise of using me for sex, I’m getting more sleep, and the food he gives me when I’m with him is much better than the slop they feed us.
Never in my life did I think I’d be so excited to eat vegetables.
I’ve regained some of the strength I lost, and knowing the end of this nightmare is in sight gives me the will to push through every hellish day.
My eyes are getting worse, though. I need to take a long break from looking at screens.
“I’ll take over,” Rodian says from behind me.
I glance at him and see how Kirill’s lips tighten with a displeased look. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with her.”
Rodian raises an eyebrow at my old guard, who’s finally been showing emotion the past five days. He doesn’t like it one bit that Mikhail has been ordered to keep watch over me, so he stubbornly hangs around like a damn fly.
Letting out a discontented sigh, Kirill walks away, and Mikhail goes to stand by the door to keep watch.
Rodian’s gaze sweeps over my face. “Your eyes look worse. Did you put in the drops?”
“Yes.”
He comes closer and leans back against the desk, crossing his arms over his chest, then he murmurs in a low tone, “They’re here. I’ve lured Yegor to the prison under the pretense that I have more ideas for the place.”
“Like?”
“Get rid of the other hackers who are taking up space and replace them with sex slaves. I told him you’ll still do the job to keep them alive, and with a bit of revamping we can get it up and running in two months.”
“Jesus,” I hiss. “It’s sickening just thinking about it.”
“And that is why things have to change. There are better ways to make money.”
“I can help.” I close my eyes, letting them rest for a minute. “If everything goes according to plan, I can hack for you and set up systems so you’re in complete control of your men.”
“I’ve heard you work with the Bulgarians, Romanians, Turkish, and Yakuza.” He lets out a chuckle. “Looks like you’re not just the heart of the Cosa Nostra but also the heart of crime.”
The corner of my mouth lifts. “It has a nice ring to it.”
Rodian’s phone buzzes, and opening my eyes, I watch as he pulls it out of his pocket. He reads the message, then slightly turns the screen so I can see.
Enzo: Ready when you are.
My heartbeat speeds up, knowing my family is nearby.
“Before I forget,” I say, my gaze lifting to Rodian’s. “There’s a teenage boy next door. Tim. I want him to come with me when shit goes down.”
He lets out a sigh. “Let me think for a moment.” He stares at the doorway for a little while, then says, “I’ll grab the boy and pretend to threaten you by holding a gun to his head. Anything else will make the others suspicious.”
“Poor kid, but if that’s what it takes to keep him alive, I’m on board.”
Mikhail steps to the side while clearing his throat, an indication that someone is coming.
I get back to work, typing my butt off, while Rodian takes hold of a lock of my hair, twirling it around his finger to keep up the act that I belong to him.
“Danil’s calling,” Kirill mutters. “Yegor is en route.”
Rodian lets go of my hair and straightens before stepping right up to Kirill and looking him dead in the eye to intimidate him.
The stare-off lasts all but ten seconds before Kirill reluctantly lowers his head and moves to the side.
I press my lips together so I don’t smile and focus as I enter an illegal adoption chat room where babies and children who’ve been kidnapped are sold.
My stomach churns as Rodian leaves, and I feel Kirill’s eyes burning into the back of my head.
Just a little longer, Rosie.
I take turns closing my eyes while I work, and after what feels like hours, I hear Tim begging, “No. Please. Don’t shoot me.”
“Shut up!” Rodian snaps, and as I glance at the door, I see him shoving Tim so hard the poor boy sprawls over the floor.
“I’ve brought in more than a hundred million,” I shout, figuring I have to put up an act as well. “You don’t need to hurt him! He’s just a kid.”
“Yeah?” Rodian hauls Tim up by his arm. “Do you think a hundred mil is going to keep him alive when I know you can bring in more?”
He shoves Tim at me, and the boy falls half across me and partially over the desk. I grab hold of him, and getting up, I move him behind me. Leveling Rodian with a glare, I hiss, “If you touch a hair on his body, I won’t bring in another cent for the Bratva.”
Rodian pulls his gun out and stalks toward us, and for a moment it doesn’t feel like an act.
Stopping right in front of me, he leans down until his forehead almost touches mine and growls, “How fast will you bring in five hundred mil if I start taking body parts off the kid?”
I change tactics and beg, “Don’t hurt him, and I’ll do whatever you want.”
“That’s what I thought.” Rodian turns to look at Kirill. “The boy stays here as a reminder so she doesn’t get any ideas.”
“Got it.”
When Rodian leaves, I turn around and place my hand on Tim’s shoulder. “Are you okay?”
With fear in his eyes and a quivering chin, he nods. “Thanks for helping.”
“Of course.” He’s finally talking to me, so I ask, “How old are you?”
“Seventeen.”
“Jesus.”
His lips pull down, and as he struggles not to cry, I pull him into a hug and whisper, “I won’t let anything happen to you. Okay?”
He nods, looking down while he fights his emotions.
“Do you have family?” I ask.
He nods again.
I promise I’ll return you to them.
“That’s enough!” Kirill barks. “Get back to work, Miss La Rosa.”
Wow, look who’s showing cracks.
As I sit down and type, Tim stands right beside me, his hands folded in front of him.
He watches how I work for a while, then whispers, “No wonder it was so difficult to keep you busy. How did you do that?”
“Shut up!” Kirill silences the boy, and I shoot the bastard a glare.
Rodian comes back in. “What the fuck is all the shouting about?”
“Nothing,” Kirill replies.
“You look tense. Take a break and calm the fuck down, soldier.”
Kirill glances from Tim, to me, to Rodian, then he stalks to the door.
“Stay with them,” Rodian orders Mikhail before he also leaves.
I can feel the tension building, telling me my family will attack any minute now.
I look up at Tim. “Just stay by my side.”
He nods, then looks at the screen as I continue working, while my heart beats in my throat.