All Chapters of PROTECTED BY THE DEVIL: Chapter 111 - Chapter 114

ROCCOThe hammer went up and down about fifty times before I finally got the fucking shingle in place. Sweat was dripping down my forehead, the back of my neck, my spine. My shirt was soaked, glued to my skin. The Hawaiian sun didn't give a damn about giving me a break."Rocco, be careful!" Diana's voice floated up from below, mixed with the sound of the crib rocking."I know what I'm doing.""You're going to fall!""I'm not gonna fall."Said that and almost slipped on the wet shingle. Grabbed the rafter hard, muttering to myself. Fuck. Ever since I'd taken over that house, the roof had been nothing but problems. A leak here, another one there. Diana had already threatened to call a professional, but I said no.Getting that last nail in was a relief. I settled myself on the roof, tossed the hammer aside, and lay down on my back. The sky was blue. That unreal kind of blue, like someone had Photoshopped it. The clouds drifted slow. The wind swayed the palm trees. Down below, Diana was h

DIANAAlessandro's room smelled like antiseptic and blood. He lay in the bed, paler than I'd ever seen him, a bandage on his left shoulder, the rest of his body as still as a statue. His eyes, when they found mine, were the same: hard, cold, assessing."Diana.""Alessandro."I stopped in the doorway. He didn't smile. Of course not."You look like hell," he said."Why did you take that bullet? Why did you get in the middle of it?""It was stupid."He coughed. Grimaced."That bastard husband of yours still hasn't come to thank me.""He's taking care of your niece."Silence. Alessandro looked at the ceiling for a second. Then back at me."I'm not going to apologize.""I didn't ask you to.""I'm not going to sit here feeling regret. I am what I am.""I know what you are, Alessandro."He stared at me.Another silence. The heavy kind."You could have died," I said, my voice breaking at the end."But I didn't."He almost smiled. Almost. For Alessandro, an almost-smile was worth more than any