Chapter 3

THE DEVIL POV

An eye for an eye.

Blood for blood.

Family for family.

Sin for sin, until the scales are even.

Until every debt is paid in crimson.

I don’t make the rules. La Cosa Nostra does.

Adrian Petrov betrayed me. He ran away with one of my shipment worth millions three months ago. And rumor has it that I’m not the only one he screwed over. 

Not that I care about the shipment or the money. But here, reputation is all that matters, and I can’t let a mere soldier of mine outsmart me without consequence.

So, I’m here for retribution.

Easy right?

Wrong.

The plan blew apart the moment I saw her. Long midnight hair spills over a heart-shaped face, and sage-green eyes that burns like embers. Not with fear, but with something that ricocheted through me anyway

Cazzo.

Instead of the blood I expected on my hands, I found myself taking her. The girl who was supposed to be collateral became my prisoner.

A nerve ticks in my temple, annoyance clenching around my fists.

Isn’t she supposed to be a man, following the information Marco gave me?

At least it would have been easier to pull the trigger.

The heavy breathing of the girl fills the cramped space of the car as we pull out onto the street. It’s all I can hear, sharp, and uneven gasps cutting through the low hum of the engine.

Her eyes are burning holes into the side of my face. It’s a miracle my skin hasn’t melted off.

Frankly, with the kind of wild energy she unleashed back there, I half-expected her to pounce the second the doors shut. But she hasn’t moved. Not a word. Just that furious breathing.

“Spiegati,” I let out through the tight grit of my teeth.

Understanding dawns on Marco, his face going paler.

“There must’ve been some mistake,” he stammers, fear bleeding into every syllable. “I—I thought Petrov was the first name.”

An ache starts at the middle of my head and roll down my back.

I blame myself for taking Marco’s words for it. Not when he’s known for silly mistakes like this. If he wasn’t my step-brother, he would be six feet under the ground along with those who I had buried for less.

From the corner of my eye, I watch her fingers fumble at the door lock.

I let the words fall like a blade. "Open it, and your head will spill open before you even taste relief."

Her hand freezes instantly.

What was she expecting? To jump out of a fast-moving car unscathed?

Maybe she should jump out. Save me the trouble of my own oversight. Christ, what am I even going to do with her?

Fingers claw at me out of nowhere, and I click my tongue. Of course she’d try this. I wasn’t exactly expecting her to sit pretty and behave.

My hand shoots out, catching both her wrists in one grip.

“Be less predictable next time,” I mutter.

“You can’t just do this to me. I won’t let you.” She spits the words right in my face.

Bold. Even my underboss won’t dare.

And yet, I’m more thrilled than angry.

“Already did,” I say smoothly, yanking her closer until her chest hits mine. One arm snake around her waist, locking her in place. “What now?”

Fuck me. Her soft body fits so well against mine. I let go as soon as the thought crosses my mind, feeling nauseous.

“Fuck you.” The words come out low and poisonous, dripping with all the fury her small frame can muster.

I almost laugh. I shouldn’t enjoy this, but I am.

“I would,” I murmur, “but I’m not much of an exhibitionist.”

The words sound like a tease, but the thought of anyone seeing her naked before me sparks something darker. Fury coils in my chest, twisting tight like a vice laced with poison.

Her chest rises and falls, quick and uneven, and my gaze dips, sliding to the curve of her cleavage, to the sheen of sweat slipping down the flawless line between pale, smooth skin of her—

No.

I curse under my breath and drag my eyes back up, meeting green irises blazing murder at me.

She struggles in my hold for a while longer until the fight starts to bleed out of her. When she finally stills, I speak again and relish the way a tremor slides down her body at my voice.

“Are you done?”

“I haven’t even started yet.” She kicks her legs at me, and I catch them with my knees before pinning them to the car floor.

“There goes your free rein.” I unbuckle my belt in one smooth pull, the hiss of leather slicing through the charged air.

Her eyes narrow at the sight. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Tying you up like I do naughty girls.”

I seize Petrov’s daughter by the wrists, loop the belt around them, and draw it tight. The leather slides through my fingers as I fasten it to the grab handle above her. She jerks, twisting and spitting curses while the restraint bites down.

I should’ve tied her to the other side, but I couldn’t risk her trying for door again. I’m not about to watch her skull split on the highway. Quite frankly, that’d be a hassle.

Regret hits me like a hammer seconds later when her soft body now comes close enough that I catch her scent. Jasmine with a bright hit of coconut. My nose flares in annoyance. Of course she smells good too.

She’s restless, shifting side to side, trying to find a position. At five-foot-nothing her knees barely reach the seat. Putting her out of her misery, I lift her and press her knees to my thigh. Not because I care, but because the little noises she makes grind on me.

Luca’s eyes flick to mine in the rearview, and I deepen my scowl, daring him to say anything. His jaw only clenches before he looks away.

That fucker. He knows how to say a lot of words without so much as opening his mouth.

He probably thinks I’ve gone mad for bringing Petrov’s daughter home with me.

I mean I think I have. I couldn’t be sane when I made this decision.

She snarls, her breath grazing the side of my face like a searing heat. “I swear to God when I get out of this, I’m reporting you to the cops. I’ll make sure you rot behind the bars.”

A breathy chuckle slips out of me. I have most of the New York cops on my payroll so I couldn’t be bothered with her threats.

I clear my throat when I realize I’m laughing. “Good luck with that,” I say flatly

A ragged breath of relief rumbles my throat when the sight of mansion comes into view. Finally, I can escape this ball of fire beside me, and lock her up in one of my rooms until I decide what to do with her.

The daughter of Adrian seems enthralled by the fortress of the house spreading before her. She goes still, eyes darting around in a daze. Using the opportunity, I work the belt loose from the grab handle but leave it looped around her wrist, not expecting her to stay put.

She proves me right by swinging a desperate knee toward my groin as I haul her out. Of course. I jerk back before it connects, lips thinning into a flat line.

“The fight should’ve drained out of you by now.” My voice is a low rumble as I drag her up the steps and into the foyer.

Her eyes dart everywhere, drinking in the house like it’s a map she’s memorizing. When we push into the living room, Diana, one of the househelps, darts out from behind the wall. Her mouth tightens the moment she sees who’s beside me.

Even Diana can tell this is a mistake.

“Make my guest comfortable,” I say with a sneer, letting go of the girl that has been scorching my skin.

Minutes later, I’m back behind my desk, leaned into the chair as my eyes flick over Adrian Petrov’s file

Elara Petrov, eldest daughter. Chloe Petrov, youngest daughter. One is twenty-three, the other is barely nine. 

“You look like you have something to say, Luca.”

I close the file and slide it across the desk, fixing my gaze on him.

He straightens, but his eyes drop instantly. “No, sir.”

“And you, Marco?”

Marco’s glance flickers toward Luca before dropping to the floor. “I would say it’s… weird to bring her—”

A single look from me cuts him off. My glare could slice bone.

“You made the right call bringing her,” he corrects quickly, voice thin with nerves.

I nod, rolling my ring on my thumb.

Truth is, I know dragging her here was a stupid move. My cock made the decision, not my brain. But I’ll be damned if any of them point it out.

Besides maybe having her under my roof will make Adrian crawl out of his hiding place.

Though I doubt he cares about his daughters, knowing I’ll be unto to them after his betrayal.

Suddenly, a frantic Diana bursts the room, a blood trickling down the side of her face.

“Pardon my manners, but the girl has escaped.”

Of fucking course.