SIX
I close the door behind Hanna before turning and heading into the living room, my lip curled back in a snarl. "You have something to fucking say to me?!" I snap at Damien, who's lounged on our sofa.
My brother's eyes meet mine as he glares at me. "I wouldn't fucking put it past you. Since Emily died, you're worse than all fucking three of us when it comes to women," Damien barks back. Sam shoves some popcorn into his mouth, continuing to play COD with Ace. I feel everything inside me snap as I take steps toward my brother, rage filling me.
My lips curl and my fists twitch with the need to stab him. "I wouldn't do anything a girl didn't ask for!" I snarl, shoving him off the sofa.
Damien glares at me before pulling himself up off the floor. My phone goes off and silence fills the entire house. Damien stares at my phone, his face turning a red shade of anger when he sees the name flashing across my screen. "Damien, we have to go," I reply, practically sprinting toward the front door.
The TV goes quiet, and I turn back to my friends. "We won't be long, just continue playing your game," I mutter as Damien and I make our way out the door.
"What could he possibly want from us now?" Damien asks as he slides into the passenger seat of my Camaro. Shrugging, I put the car in reverse and speed out of the driveway. I know what he wants, and that's my gun to his temple and a bullet in his brain.
"Send Soren a text to be ready to get in the car," I snap, slamming into first gear and speeding down the icy winter roads. Damien scrambles his phone from his pocket and starts typing just as I slam into second and speed down the road toward our brother's apartment. I slow gently, stopping next to the building where our blonde little brother lives.
I watch Soren race down the steps of his apartment building before he slides into the back seat of my car. "Who's the call from, Damon?" he asks with a dead voice. Damien keeps his mouth shut and watches the road in front of us. I slam gears so fast, I'm surprised my vehicle hasn't spun out yet.
I slow down as I reach the meeting spot I've constantly visited since I turned fourteen. "Soren, stay in that car," Damien demands as he climbs out of the car. I follow Damien's lead and exit the car, walking toward the ragged old vehicles in front of us, stopping halfway to them.
"Boys, Daddy still owes me that money." I hear his voice before his face comes into view, his goons close behind him. My fingers itch to pull the gun from the back of my pants, but I keep my hand steady and don't rush for it.
"Daddy isn't here to pay that debt," Damien barks. Spooner and his goons stop inches from us and snarl on their faces. Not the one you'd see on my lips, though it is when it comes to violence and torture.
These boys are evil and shady as fuck, and I wouldn't pay anyone to get in contact with them. Spooner chuckles, watching Damien with a smirk on his face before he lights a joint. "I want the damn money, Saint, or maybe I'll pay a visit to the cute little brunette Damon seems to be so interested in."
I feel my muscles tense as I watch him. "Leave her out of this," I snap. I watch his goons take a step toward us, their snarls unleashed like wild dogs. Again, my fingers itch to retrieve my gun.
Spooner shoves his hand in the air, stopping his rabid animals from attacking. "You heard me, Saint. I want that money. If I don't collect, I'll collect something else instead," he growls at us. "Maybe two things…" Spooner puffs his joint as he eyes the car behind us.
"We don't have the money," I growl. Not the dirty drug money he wants, but money, nonetheless. Since my mother is the head of the famiglia.
"I know your mother does." He grins at us. I eye Damien before I look back at Spooner. "Send them the message, boys," he replies, waving his hand before he puffs his joint again. Two large angry goons grab hold of me and Damien, slamming us into the cold, hard ice on the ground.
I regret not grabbing my gun. I should have splashed his brains all over the snowy ground. "You'll find a way. If you don't, I'll collect my prizes and your teeth." Spooner grins, leaning over us. I feel hard metal connect with my jaw and a sharp snap as Spooner stands back up and walks toward his car. "I don't like disappointment," he yells into the wind just as his dogs drop us back onto the ice and retreat, following their alpha like the two bitches they are.
I pull myself to my feet and yank Damien up with my good arm, wiping the blood from my chin. "We're going to Chicago," I mutter, walking back to the car and climbing into the passenger seat. My brother climbs into the driver's seat, starting the engine. I pull my gun from the back of my pants and rest it on my thigh with a grumble.
"What's gonna happen?" Soren asks from the back. His own gun held between his fingers like he's ready to create havoc.
"We'll take care of it," Damien growls, slamming into reverse before heading in the direction we came.
I close my eyes briefly before the words spill from my lips. "I need you to pick up Hanna. She can't be alone if we don't get back with that money in time," I mutter to Damien. Though bringing her into this life is the last thing I wanted to do to any girl.
My brother nods and continues driving. Damien tosses his phone to Soren before he speaks. "Send a text to the hockey group-chat in my messages and let the boys know me and Damon will be gone for a couple of days."
"What's her address?" Damien then asks me.
I groan and press the dial on my phone. "Hello?" a weakened voice replies on the other end.
"I need your address, I need to pick you up. This is a matter of life and death," I ramble into the phone. Hanna responds reasonably, quickly rambling off her address before she hangs up.
Damien puts the car into park outside of the brown house. "Why do we need her?" Soren asks, his lips thinned into a line. Damien silences him with a wave as I climb out of the car. I pick up my pace, taking the stairs two at a time before knocking on the door with my good hand. A man about two years older than me with blonde hair answers the door and a glare reaches his eyes the moment he sees me.
"Damon…" A small voice comes from the background. I snarl at the man as he blocks the entrance. "He won't let me leave," she croaks. I feel rage as I slam my body into him, grabbing Hanna and racing back to the car. She slides into the back seat with me as Soren slides into the front seat beside Damien, and we drive away.
"Chicago, here we come," Damien says as he slams into third gear and spins onto the highway. I keep my gun hidden under my thigh. Not that I need a reason to, but I don't think someone as mundane as this girl needs to see it.
I glance over at Hanna and remember seeing the fear in her eyes when that guy wouldn't let her leave. "Did he touch you?" I ask Hanna, turning my full attention to her.
Hanna's eyes fill with fear as she shakes her head. "No… my gramz would never let him."
Soren's head turns to face us as he eyes Hanna. "You're really beautiful," he whispers as he watches her, and Hanna smiles as her eyes meet his. My eyes crinkle at his comment. The only thing he finds beautiful is the colour of blood when it's painted at his feet.
"Now, Soren, don't try to steal Damon's girl." Damien chuckles. I feel Hanna shift uncomfortably as the words leave my brother's mouth.
"So why are we going to Chicago?" she asks, turning to face me from a sideways angle.
"Business, and we are stopping to see our mother," Soren replies, lighting up a cigarette.
Hanna leans back, her eyes flickering with tiredness. "You can lay your head on my lap if you need to sleep," I whisper to her. Hanna smiles at me before she switches seatbelts and curls up with her head on my lap, drifting to sleep.
Damien turns the music on low as Hanna's soft breathing fills the car as she sleeps peacefully. I quickly light up a cigarette, inhaling slowly as I examine my hand. "That fucker screwed up my hand. It's not broken, but…" I wince as I lay my other hand over it.
Soren turns his head, a deep snarl on his lips. "He'll pay for fucking with the Saint family." That he will, with his blood coating my clothes and the pavement.
I gaze out the window once I ask Damien to put on "Face Down" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. My arm rests around Hanna as she sleeps peacefully on my lap. I want her to be mine. She's gorgeous, she has the cutest freckles, and Hanna makes my heart beat again after so long.
She's broken though, and I'm afraid if I get too close, I'll crumble her, and then she won't just be broken, she'll be pieces of glass shattered into nothing. I can't have her, though; it'll only put her in danger.
Sighing, I gaze down at her, my heart beating as I watch the beautiful brunette curled up on my lap. As my eyes avert from Hanna and gaze forward, I catch Damien watching me.
"If you want to be with her that badly, Damon, just make it worth her while," he says as he shifts another gear.
I nod, looking back at Hanna, then look up at my brother. "Damien, I'm afraid I'm going to shatter her." He knows that our life isn't for everyone. It gets people killed.
He watches me carefully before his words slip. "I haven't seen a smile on your face since Emily, so if she makes you feel something after all these years, I say go for it."
Soren glances at me through the mirror, and I can't help but frown a little. Emily was the first girl I felt anything for, but she was also the first person who died at my hands. I didn’t want to kill her, but she knew too much and couldn't keep her mouth shut.
About four hours into the drive, I make Soren switch spots with me, even though in reality he hates the idea of being stuck around people when he doesn't know how to show real feelings. My lips curl the farther we drive into the night.
Soren must have passed out in the back because I haven't heard him shift or utter a word in twenty or more minutes. Damien drives with a sour expression, but I don't blame him. Drug dealers trying to get money out of the mafia? Spooner must be dense.
The blaring of a cell phone brings me out of my head, and I glance at Damien's phone just as he swipes to answer. Valeria. "What is it? I don't really have time for this at the moment."
I hear crying from her end of the call and gasped breaths. "I should have told you… shouldn't have just broken things off without telling you. I-I'm pregnant with your child, and I'm in labour. The baby is coming—" Her voice breaks at the end as she cries again.
Pregnant with Damien's kid? My lips twitch but I say nothing. Just another thing to add to our protection list, another person to die for. "I'm already on my way to Chicago, but I’ll be there as soon as I can. But don't think we won’t be talking about this or the secret you kept for nine damn months."
My brother's voice snaps as he clicks the end on the call. My eyes fly to him, narrowing slightly as he glances at me. "Don't even start, okay. I know. Another person shoved into our lives and on the radar to get killed because of what our life is," he grumbles.
I say nothing, but I agree with him because this baby is going to be our downfall as much as his. We'll bleed and die for it just to keep his kid safe.
A kid with the last name of a mafia family that bleeds danger into Chicago. Licking my lips, I keep my finger on the top of my gun with narrowed eyes.
This just changed everything. Not just for Damien, but for our entire family.
I must have drifted off, because the next thing I'm conscious of is Soren shaking me gently. My eyes flutter open and I take in the surroundings. We made it to Chicago. It's pr'bably about four in the morning. My eyes drift to a still sleeping Hanna on my lap. I switched with Soren eight hours from Chicago, and I don't ev'n remember falling asleep.
"Shou"d we go to our mother's fi'st?" Sor"n asks me, exhaustion filling his eyes as he stares into the city. I shake my head slowly, rubbing my eyes, only to wince when I remember my broken hand. My good hand rests back on Hanna's ba'k as we drive toward the hospital that Valeria texted to Damien's ph'ne.
When the car comes to a stop, my brother flees and waves off Soren's questions as I climb into the driver's seat. My youngest brother has no idea what's going on, and I won’t be the one to tell him. Definitely not tonight, anyway.
Pulling out of the emergency area, I speed toward my childhood home. The mansion I spent most of my life in. The home that grew me into the made man I am today.
Once the car comes to a stop, my brother scrambles out, grabbing the bags we picked up on the drive with clothing filled in them. I turn and face Hanna, unbuckling both of us before I lift her out of the car and carry her to the front steps of my mother's house.
Soren uses the spare key to unlock the door as we all quietly make our way into our childhood home. "Let's sleep and then we'll get down to business," he whispers as he carries all the luggage into the house.
Soren yawns as he shoves the spare key back under the mat and closes the door gently. "Hanna can sleep in my room with me. I don't trust anyone," I reply, walking down the hall to my old bedroom.
Laying Hanna on the bed, I cover her up with blankets before my eyes find the doorway. Soren's standing there with two bags in his hands, waiting patiently for me. "Thanks," I whisper, taking them and laying them on the floor. I say goodnight to my brother, then shoot Damien a good luck text before I crawl into bed next to Hanna on the queen-sized bed and drift off to sleep.