Chapter 23 #2
I stand, checking myself in the mirror. I’m frazzled from the tension, sex, and being with Sylvie all day. I quickly brush my hair, then pull on some shorts and a hoodie. I feel like a fugitive as I creep through the house.
Ettore is waiting in shadow, leaning against the wall. He looks just like he did in that picture Sylvie drew, Ettore Bellandi, cloaked in shadows.
He pushes away, stepping into the garden’s lights. His face is etched with tension, his mouth tight. He’s wearing a T-shirt and shorts, his muscles tight and tense.
“Tell me,” I say, rushing to him.
He grips my bare leg. “Those shorts are…”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Walk with me,” he says, walking onto the grass.
I loop my arm through his. It feels so natural, even if it’s dangerous. A sane woman would leave. But I believe there’s more good in this man than bad, so perhaps that means I’m not sane.
“I had some serious digging done,” Ettore says. “I used my cop contacts. I’m no fool. I know many of them play both sides. So I framed it as part of a wider thing, loan sharks generally, not your specific case. I think I’ve covered myself. I hope I have.”
I squeeze his arm. It’s odd hearing him sound so emotionally raw in person. He’s been like a statue since the recital. “Thank you for putting yourself out there.”
“The shark turned confidential informant. When the Calvis learned, they handled him, predictably. But not until he gave this interview.” Ettore stops, turning to me in the semidarkness. He takes my hand with surprising gentleness. “I’m here, okay?”
With his other hand, he takes out his phone and clicks play on an audio file.
“So, how many clients have you got?” an official-sounding man asks.
“Clients?” a rougher voice answers. “Marks, we call them. But brand them whatever you want. I’ve got all kinds, officer, all kinds in all places. You’d be wise to remember that.”
“And the Calvis are willing to turn unpaid debts into blood debts? They’ll go that far?”
“I like the way you put that, officer,” the man says, sounding cruel. “Yeah, they’re willing. It’s their name at stake. I had this couple recently, not sure how much detail you can stomach.”
“I’m a homicide detective, Ralph.”
Ralph laughs coldly. I seize up, feeling like I can’t breathe. My whole life, knowing nothing, and now I might finally get some concrete answers.
“There were these folks, the keen Keenes, I called them.”
My mind goes to the pun Sylvie made when I first arrived. To think she shared that with a scumbag like this…
“Anyway, they were do-gooder types, you know, wanting to help some silly bitch who’d gotten entangled with some sillier asshole.
Came to me for cash, so I helped them out.
Now, they got all these stories about the father losing his job and they can’t get a bank loan to pay us back which, yeah, no shit.
Their credit was screwed, which was why they had to come to us to begin with.
Anyway, they’ve recently been in an unfortunate car accident. Brakes failed on a rainy road.”
“Are you alleging Ruggero Calvi cut their brakes?”
“Oh, yeah,” Ralph says sarcastically. “He rocked up with his own little toolbox.”
“You’re saying he ordered it, then.”
“Of course,” Ralph says casually. “One of them’s got a sister, can’t remember which, but she’s got the debt now. You know what Bastian said to me—you know Bastian?”
“The nephew. He’s only a kid, right?”
“A kid,” Ralph says, laughing menacingly. “A born psycho, that one. He asked me to make the girl pay, their daughter. Their baby. You should’ve seen the twinkle in this little freak’s eye, man. And that’s just one case.”
“So, tell us about more.”
“Well, there’s this fella…”
Ettore turns off the recording. “He goes on for two hours, different families, different stories.”
“They killed my parents,” I whisper.
“I’m so sorry.”
I stumble away from him, feeling like I’m sleepwalking, then almost trip. He quickly rushes to me, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me against him. I lean on him, feeling numb.
“Oh, Mara,” he whispers, kissing the top of my head.
“I thought my aunt hated me,” I say, voice cracking.
“She worked to pay off that house and keep you away from this world,” he says. “And then, years later, you walked straight into this world, anyway. Worse—with your eyes closed.”
I turn to him. “Walking into this world is the best thing I ever did, Ettore. Because I met Sylvie. I learned the truth. And we get to be together.”
“Mara,” he moans. “My perfect Mara…”
He kisses me softly, full of passion, but with a gentleness and care I never could’ve imagined in him before. I wrap my arms around him and hold on tightly, savoring the connection. He pulls back, but keeps his face close, kissing me on the cheek lightly.
“I should’ve told you sooner,” he says.
“Yes, you should have,” I reply firmly. “And part of me wants to storm out of here, hold onto that, fuel the fire, hate you, hate this whole twisted world. But I can’t abandon that precious little girl. And no, Ettore, I can’t abandon you either.”
He smiles. “This is going to get complicated.”
I press myself against him. “You don’t think it’s been complicated this entire time?” I initiate the kiss this time, and there’s nothing gentle about it. “You mentioned a conflict earlier today. At your office. Is this war with the Calvis?”
His expression changes. He looks savagely interested. “The way you sounded then, it’s like you want the answer to be yes.”
“You’re a dangerous man,” I say.
He slides his hands down to my hips. I love the way he squeezes there, like they’re his personal handholds, like he can’t get enough. “I am,” he groans.
“If you go to war with these people, with…” I think hard.
“Ruggero and Bastian, it will be more than a dispute over business or territory or whatever these idiots are doing. It will be for my family, and all the innocent families these monsters have killed. How can you claim to walk the line, Ettore, if you’re going to tolerate these devils? ”
“Fuck,” he murmurs, turning away, letting out a long breath. He laughs and shakes his head. It’s a laugh of disbelief, like he’s impressed. “You sounded like a mafia queen then.”
“I’m just a nanny.”
“You sounded like a skilled operator, like a woman every mafioso would kill to have on his arm. You sounded like my woman.”
His tone is savage and husky. My body responds as fiercely as does my heart, the rapid beating, the little voice saying this is still wrong even if he commits crimes for justifiable reasons… and the fire in me not giving a damn.
“We can’t commit to anything,” I murmur sensibly. “We have to deal with this issue first.”
“I’m already committed,” he says fiercely.
He grabs me again, pulls me against him. I feel his commitment pressing against my stomach through his pants, his rod with adrenaline and desire.
“You’re right,” Ettore growls. “It’s time these bastards paid the ultimate price.
But I’m warning you now. This will bring out a side of me you don’t want to see.
If I’m going to do this, I need to be a wolf.
I need to be a man covered in shadows. I need to be the version of me that scares my little girl. ”
We’re on the precipice now, teetering on darkness.
“And that means I’ll need you,” he goes on, pulling me tighter against him. “I’ll need you to be there for my girl. I’ll need you to handle the darkness.”
“I won’t just handle it. I’m part of it. They stole my family. They made it impossible for my aunt to care. They took my identity.”
“Good,” he says, leaning down for another kiss.
We stumble further into the darkness. We’re inside the hedge maze now, out of sight of the house. The kiss deepens, and my body lights up with a new kind of passion, hot and electric, with an added hint of danger.
“Are you still sore?” he growls.
“Sex doesn’t always have to be this drawn-out thing,” I whimper. “And I’m sure you’ll pay me back…”
“Then I’m taking you like a fucking brute,” he snarls.
He spins me around and pulls down my shorts. I bend over, gasping, heart thundering through my whole body. My pussy is aching and dripping, even as there’s a tingle inside telling me it’s too soon, he’s too big. But our physical passion is unstoppable. We can’t stop.
He hooks one hand between my stomach and my hip, then uses the other to guide his thick cock to my entrance. I’m shuddering, shocked at how fast we can be ready. Weeks of waiting, watching, weeks of almost and now we’re insatiable.
“Fast, Ettore,” I pant.
“Be careful with that. I can’t go all the way.”
I look at him over my shoulder. “What do you mean, all the way?”
“I have to hold something back, or I’ll break you.”
I bite my lip, wondering if he’s right. And also thinking, Fuck that. I’m up to the challenge. My core pulses at his words.
“Don’t tell me what I’m capable of,” I hiss. “Do what you’re told, and fuck me, fuck me hard and fast.”
He thrust inside me, fucking me so hard I almost fall to the ground.
But then he catches me and pulls me against him again.
The night air fills with the slap-slap-slap of his hips thundering against my ass.
His balls slap my clit exquisitely, and my pussy suddenly doesn’t feel anywhere near as sore as it should.
We both bite down, stopping ourselves from howling into the night. He makes hungry grunting noises through gritted teeth. I gasp and swallow my screams as a hot ball of fire starts expanding inside. The tip of his cock hits my sweet spot with ruthless repetition.
I know I won’t be walking right tomorrow, but I don’t care. Not now. We’re fused in the darkness. A team, finally.
“Fucking—take—it,” he groans.
“Yes, yes,” I whisper, bouncing with him.
He squeezes my hips harder, probably leaving handprints. He’s right. As he thrusts faster, I think this madman might break me. But the furious fucking makes me so hot too. Makes me feel powerful. I thrust back against him, and he gasps.
“The way that ass jiggles.”
“Jiggles?” I moan.