THE MAFIA DEVIL'S OBSESSION

Aiden

Dom hit the floor after I put a bullet through his mouth.

If you ask me, it was mercy letting him off easy after he dared touch what was mine.

Turning to Leah, I found her with a gun in her hand.

"Stay right there, Aiden," she said, voice shaking as she tightened her grip.

I stopped, my eyes lifting to hers. "Leah."

She bit her bottom lip. "Did I ever tell you how much I hate the way you say my name?"

"There are many things you hate about me," I replied quietly. "That isn't one of them."

"Do you think I wouldn't shoot you? Is that why you kicked the gun to me?"

"If you wanted me dead, you would've used the knife you still keep under your pillow."

Her eyes widened briefly, followed by a sad smile curving her lips.

I knew the nights she watched me sleep with a knife hovering over my throat. The nights her fingers curled around my neck while she cried.

I never stopped her because some part of me wanted to know if she'd do it, but she never did.

She laughed bitterly, tears welling in her eyes now, and it broke something in me, watching her hurting.

"I tried to forgive you," she said, voice breaking. "God, I tried. But you..." she shook her head, "you just keep taking and taking."

"Let's talk at home."

"Home?" She chuckled. "Are you fucking with me right now, Aiden? There is no 'home' between us. That place is a fucking prison!"

"Call it whatever you want," I said, closing the distance between us. "Prison, hell. It doesn't matter, doll. If you're inside it, it's home to me and one day you'll accept it willingly."

"Stay where you are, Aiden! I swear I'll fucking shoot you!" She screamed, tears trailing down her cheeks as she backed away.

I kept moving towards her.

Bang.

Three months earlier...

Smoke curled from my lips as I sat in the back seat, watching two men stumble out of an abandoned building across the street, swinging at each other like amateurs.

"What time is it?"

"Half past four," the driver replied.

I exhaled slowly.

There was a meeting scheduled for nine, and ruining my suit wasn't on the agenda. If it had been any other day, I'd handle this myself.

On the other hand, if they keep this up, the police will come sniffing around again, and I'm sick of having to find something to keep them quiet every damn time.

The driver sensing my irritation, offered, "want me to handle it, boss?"

But I was already opening the door, having made a decision I might regret later.

Stepping out with my gun already in hand, I kicked one bastard off the other, then fired two shots into his chest. He dropped dead without a fight.

The second man scrambled back. "Boss! I am one of your boys!"

I narrowed my eyes, my gun still pointed at him. His hands shook as he quickly lifted his shirt, revealing the Kingston insignia tattooed across his skin.

I glanced at his stab wounds. "Think you're going to survive this?"

"This won't kill me, boss," he breathed with a weak smile.

Yeah, right.

I took a long drag from my cigar, then held it out to him. He looked confused but took it anyway.

"Rest in peace," a low chuckle escaped me as I turned and headed toward the building.

The clang of metal on metal and grunts grew louder as I entered the building. Turning a corner, my eyes landed on a chaotic mess of men swinging steel pipes, wooden planks, and hammers with the intent to kill each other. 

I fired once, and silence fell instantly, every head snapping toward me

"Time to wrap this up."

"Shit. Isn't that Aiden Kingston?" Someone said.

Murmurs spread through the rival men as they stepped back, eyes wide, while my men bowed slightly.

"Behave and I'll make your death painless."

The room fell silent again.

Tapping the gun against my temple, I said, "Now. Who's the leader of this shit crew?"

They stayed quiet, stealing glances at each other.

"Aiden Kingston!" A man suddenly screamed.

A huge bald man with an eyepatch and a face only a mother would love, twisted in anger stepped out from the crowd.

 "Remember me?" he growled.

I raised an eyebrow. "I don't usually remember insignificant people."

He clenched his jaw and jabbed at his eyepatch. "You took my eye three years ago! How dare you forget me!" He yelled, spit flying as he marched toward me.

I chuckled. "You were lucky I left you breathing."

"I'll gouge your eyes out!"

I shot his both legs, and he crumpled to the ground, screaming. Stepping forward, I pressed the barrel to his forehead.

He glared up at me. "You bastard," he croaked. "The Kingston family will fall soon. The other families—"

I pulled the trigger, blood splattering across my pants as his body dropped.

My jaw tightened as I stared at it then fired again.

Exhaling slowly, I pushed my hair out of my face.

One of my men immediately came forward, kneeling to wipe my pants.

I didn't look at him. "Round them up."

"Yes, boss!" They chroused, moving instantly.

Without a leader, they folded quickly. They always did. It was amusing how quickly a gun made things easier.

Stepping outside into the early morning air away from the tainted smell of gunpowder and blood, I placed a cigar between my lips, my fingers searching my pocket for my lighter.

"Here." Storm handed me a lighter.

"You look like shit," I said, noticing the deep cut on his stomach.

"I'll live."

Chucklinb, my eyes flickered to the lifeless body of the man who said the same thing earlier.

"It seems the other families are planning something," he said.

It's not the first time. And like always, they'd fail.

Exhaling the smoke, I smirked. "Good. I am looking forward to it."

The city had been too quiet for a long time.

8:55 a.m.

When we pulled into the parking lot of Carter Holdings, I stepped out, adjusting my cufflinks.

That was when I saw her. Blonde hair caught in the wind, phone pressed to her ear as she laughed at whatever nonsense was said on the other end.

It was a soft, careless sound, completely out of place in my world.

But it wasn't just her laugh that brought the strange sensation I felt.

It was her eyes.

Those damn emerald green eyes that locked with mine. They were sharp and fearless, eyes that looked like they could glare while fighting back tears.

My heart skipped.

It fucking skipped.

I knew she felt that shift in the air too, because I caught the discomfort that flickered across her face before she looked away quickly.

I should've left it at that. I didn't.

She continued talking into her phone, unaware of the creep following behind her, until she stumbled over a crack in the pavement.

My hand caught her before she fell.

"Careful," I murmured against her ear, pulling her back into my chest. "Another moment and you'd have been kissing the ground, doll."

"Oh my God," she gasped, her phone slipping from her hand as her body went still in my arms.

For a moment, I forgot the violence I had stepped away from hours ago. All I could think of was her in my arms, her warmth and her fucking scent.

I knew with absolute certainty. I wanted her. And it didn't matter how.