ALESSIO #3
Another voice.
"Ma'am, you can't—"
"You have exactly three seconds to remove your hand before I remove it for you!"
Rossi sighs. That's Beccs."
I pinch the bridge of my nose. Of course it is. Another thud. Someone yelps.
Massimo glances toward the door. "Greg."
His second is already moving. He opens it. The sight on the other side almost makes me laugh. Beccs is halfway down the hallway; one guard clutches his shin while another is desperately trying—not very successfully—to keep hold of her elbow.
"I said let go!" She jerks free.
The guard immediately steps back. Probably the safest decision he's made all day. Greg raises an eyebrow. "Problem?"
The guard clears his throat. "Sir..." He looks at Massimo. "She insists she needs to see you."
"Beccs," I rise.
But she barely spares me a glance. "Not you." She points straight past everyone, her finger landing squarely on Massimo. "Him. I need five minutes."
Massimo looks amused, and I groan, because… yeah, this will come back and bite me in the ass. His smile isn't big, just enough to tell me he's enjoying every second of this. "Let her through."
The guards step aside. Beccs marches into the room like she owns it. Her eyes briefly find mine. I know that look. This isn't going to end well for me. The door clicks shut behind her.
Massimo gestures toward one of the empty chairs. "What can I do for you, Beccs?"
She doesn't sit. She plants both hands on the conference table instead. "I need to come with you."
I knew it. "No."
She doesn't even look at me. "I'm not talking to you."
Several coughs suddenly sound suspiciously like suppressed laughter. She points her thumb in my direction. "He won't let me."
Massimo looks at me. "Is that true?"
"Very."
"And why not?"
"Because she's not getting anywhere near a firefight."
Beccs throws both hands into the air. "See?" She looks back at Massimo. "He's doing it again."
"What exactly?"
"The caveman thing."
Gabe coughs into his fist. Enzo suddenly finds the ceiling fascinating. Even Rossi's shoulders twitch.
Massimo folds his hands. "I'm listening."
She points toward the ranch on the screen. "There are over forty women there."
Massimo confirms it with a short nod. "Correct."
"They've been beaten."
Another nod.
"Trafficked."
"Yes."
"Sold."
"Yes."
She spreads both hands. "And your brilliant plan is to have a bunch of giant men with assault rifles rescue them."
Nobody answers. She waits. Still nobody answers. She looks around the room. "Have any of you actually met a traumatized woman?"
Massimo doesn't answer immediately. Instead... he thinks. Long enough that the room notices. When he looks up, he looks like he's seen a ghost. "I have."
Everyone looks at him. "Not trafficking." His expression darkens. "But trauma..." his gaze drifts somewhere far beyond the conference room, "wears many faces."
"They're going to be terrified." Beccs doubles down, and I almost have to admire her, at least for her tenacity. "They won't know who to trust. If all they see are guns... they'll think they're being moved to another buyer."
The words hit the room like a punch. Nobody argues. Because she's right. Massimo studies her for another long moment. Then he looks at Enzo.
"I want the medical teams moved closer."
Enzo is making notes. "Done."
Massimo studies Beccs for a long moment before he turns his attention to me. "Alessio? Thoughts?"
I lean back in my chair, studying Beccs.
She stands there with her chin lifted, refusing to back down.
God, she's stubborn. And damn it... She's right.
I don't like it. Not one fucking bit. The truth?
If it were up to me, she'd be locked in our penthouse with Rossi standing outside the door. Safe. Untouchable.
I don't lose sleep over forty-three strangers. I lose sleep over one fucking Grease Monkey.
But I also know this woman. If I tell her no...
she'll come anyway. Or worse... she'll stay behind because I ordered her to, and every woman we carry out of that ranch will become another weight on her conscience.
She'll spend the rest of her life wondering if she could've made one terrified girl feel safe.
And somewhere along the way... I stopped wanting to change her.
Stopped wanting to sand off the rough edges that make her...
her. If I cage her... I lose the very thing I fell in love with. I let out a slow breath.
"I won't have her anywhere near the shooting."
Massimo agrees. "You won't."
"I won't have her inside the compound."
"You won't."
"But..." I look at Beccs. "She’s right. The women are going to need another woman. She stays with the extraction team. And her fucking helicopter doesn't land until we've secured the ranch."
"The landing zone is swept before she gets within a hundred yards of it." Massimo agrees.
I look at Rossi. "If so much as one shot is fired within range of that landing zone... you put her back in the helicopter and get her the hell out of there."
"Understood."
I meet Beccs' eyes. "I won't cage you." The words are quieter now. "But I'm damn sure going to keep you alive."
She gives me the smallest smile. "I can live with that."
I look at Rossi. "She doesn't leave your sight. Not for one second."
Rossi gives me the thumbs up. "Understood."
"If you think the situation changes..." I don't even finish the sentence. "You move her. I don't care if she threatens to kick you in the balls."
That earns a few chuckles. Rossi doesn't smile. "I'll throw her over my shoulder if I have to."
Beccs glares at him. "I hate all of you."
"No," I correct. "You hate that we're right."