LUCA“I… was wrong.”“Louder!” His hand slammed into my cheek, sending another spray of blood from my lip.“I was wrong! Alvez I was fucking wrong. I'm sorry.” I snarled into his face. Marco was grinning like a cat in cream. He shook his hands out, as though he wanted to be the one drawing blood from my face.Alvez’s fist loosened, and his hand steadied my head for a split second. Stepping back, he whipped his gun from his holster so fast I had barely grinned before the first gunshot went off.The sound was deafening in the concrete room, bouncing off the walls like a thunderstorm Marco screamed as his leg gave out under him. He collapsed onto one knee, scrambling to stop the blood pumping from his thigh Before he was done screaming, the second shit tore through and dislocated his other knee. Marco’s body crashed to the floor. He writhed there, shrieking, blood pooling around him in thick, dark streams.I was dazed, blood dripping from my mouth, but for the first time since the
LUCAMarco lifted his chin, trying to bluff his way through it. “What does it matter? You were always expendable. Matteo wanted you gone. I just made sure he knew he had an excuse to aim at the right place.” You would think this slime ball couldn't go any lower and he would say shit like that. Suddenly, all the rage wasn't even mine anymore. It all belonged to Alvez. His jaw was clenched, and his taut muscles told me he was seconds away from ripping Marco to shreds. I watched, strapped to the fucking chair, my skull still bleeding. My heart was a mix of rage, grief, betrayal, every emotion so thick I could barely think straight. But one truth wouldn't stay hidden. My father had used the three of us. He'd known what would fucking hurt the most, absolutely he's twisted us against each other. He probably worried we'd band together and push him out. “You can call me blind, Alvez, and maybe I was, but so were you. Marco has been pulling strings his whole life. He’s been setting fire
LUCA “You’re a little bitch, Luca. You can't threaten me. You became a little bitch for Alina,” he spat. “That’s your great sin, Luca. You traded your fire for her goddamn doe eyes. You let her soften and destroy you.” His lips curled, his eyes flashing with hate. “And the best part? You didn’t even know the truth about her.”My pulse was sky high, but I didn’t look away.“You really thought you were the tragic hero in her story?” Marco sneered. “Poor Luca, trying to save the girl from all the monsters in her life? Pathetic. You didn’t even know that your father killed her father.” I closed my eyes. So many truths coming out tonight that I had never asked for. I had never wanted this. Killing Alvez was my goal, and he wasn’t even here while Marco ripped to shreds the version of reality I'd known all my life. “Marco? Tell me, which hurt most? Knowing my father was never going to want you the way you wanted him, or knowing you would never own the Marino Mafia?” I mocked him. That’s
LUCAThe moment my fingers tightened on the trigger and I lifted my gun, something cracked against the back of my skull. It wasn't a little smack either, the pain exploded through my whole body and the ground became a black hole rushing up to meet my face. I heard myself curse, felt the gun slip from my hand, then the sound of Vector going down, too. Shit.Then there was nothing except a black void. When I woke, the world around was concrete. Concrete walls, concrete floor, the stench of damp cement heavy in my nose. My head throbbed like someone had wedged a blade between my bone and brain and kept twisting it. My arms burned, my shoulders screaming, my wrists cut raw by the iron restraints locking me into the chair.Oh. I was tied to a chair. Not just any chair. I knew this kind of high-backed, heavy, chair bolted to the ground. I owned one too. Every fucker with a torture chamber owned one. I was fucking chained to a torture chair. And in front of me, smiling like he’d be
LUCAThe phone barely rang once before Alina picked up, her voice groggy, soft, like she was somewhere between dream and waking.“Luca?” she murmured.For a second, I just listened to her breathe. My chest tightened. I had no right dragging her into my chaos, but I couldn’t leave without hearing her voice.“I just… wanted to say I love you,” I said. My throat felt raw, like the words scraped coming out. “And I miss you.”There was a pause, her sleep-heavy whisper drifting through the line. “I miss you too. Come back to me.”“I will.” A lie, maybe. Or a prayer. “Go back to sleep.”I hung up before she could ask questions, before she could hear the weight in my voice and press for answers.Vector was watching me from the hood of the car, cigarette glowing between his fingers. He didn’t say anything, but I knew that look. He wanted to know if I’d told her about Riot, about the bounty hanging over my head like a guillotine. I hadn’t, and I wasn’t going to. No point in burdening her wit
CHAPTER 200LUCAMarco leaned back into his seat. How could he lean back and look so comfortable, as though he hadn't just dropped a live grenade into my lap. Riot and Daniel made sense, they were brothers. What didn't make sense was the fact that they hadn't ripped each other into shreds. After finding out that Daniel wasn't his brother, I'd expected Riot to fight for his place at the head of the Alvarado Cartel. Now, in hindsight, that was probably too much to hope for from the dumb ass. “So this is your big revelation? Daniel and Riot teaming up? Do you expect me to take your word for it?” I wanted to laugh it up, but nothing in me found it funny. My fingers were flat on the desk, and I couldn't decide if I wanted to choke him or thank him. “I wouldn't risk sharing it with you if I wasn't absolutely certain, Luca. What the fuck do you think I am? A fool?” “Maybe you came because you're bored. Maybe you…” “Fucking stop, Luca. Didn't you just say you're sorry for doubting m