Duty & Death (Foster Family Book 3)

by Zavi James

  As we rolled up to the house, I saw it straight away — the missing car. “I told him to stay with her,” I said, slamming on the brakes and killing the engine. I didn’t hear what Dante said as I got out of the car. For the first time since we’d moved, I reached for my gun before walking into my home. “Mia!” Link’s cries sounded clearly down the stairs.

  “Go,” Dante said, coming in behind me. “I’ll check down here.”

  I didn’t need to be told twice. I took off up the stairs, eyes scanning the halls as I walked into the bedroom to see my son, red in the face from screaming. And I knew. I knew Mia wasn’t home because she wouldn’t have left him like this. Mia wouldn’t leave Link in any kind of distress. The smallest whine and she shot to his side because that was the type of mother she was. Self-soothing was an option she turned her nose up at. Momma bear protective of her cub.

  I swapped the gun for my son, pulling him out of the basket and into my arms. From a quick inspection I was relieved to see he wasn’t injured. Whatever had happened, Link had been left out of it. Pressing him to my chest, I left the room to go back downstairs. A mixture of anger and dread was clawing its way up my throat, tempered only by Link’s presence.

  “Luc!” Dante’s voice boomed from downstairs.

  In a desperate attempt, I called Mia’s number as I made my way down the stairs, trying to calm Link down. It rang through to her voicemail and I gripped the phone so tight that my knuckles lost their blood supply.

  “What do you mean?” Dante had snapped out of whatever funk Angelo had put him in and was sharp as I walked into the kitchen where he was.

  My insides twisted at the sight before me. The kitchen was a crime scene. Glass glittered on the table, and floor and wine stained the tiles. Mia’s phone was on the floor, screen cracked from the landing. For a fraction of a second, holding Link to me, I saw the grim prospect of my future. Just the two of us. Forever incomplete. I gritted my teeth and shook the thoughts from my head.

  “Send me it! Send me the information now,” Dante yelled down the phone before he hung up. “She’s not here,” he confirmed. “Tori.” Dante shook his phone. “She heard Gabe on the phone to Xavier. They’re going to meet him. She’s sending the information.”

  “We need to go.”

  God had tossed the chips and closed His eyes, too scared to watch them land and left His devout sinners to play for the win. There were so many variables, so much that could go wrong but I remained steady in the fact that Mia would be back with us if we moved quickly enough. The ego I’d fostered throughout my life refused to believe that I’d be without her. And when we got out of this together and alive, Mia was getting baptised because the devil had taken a liking to her and nothing else had deterred him. I was tired of the relentless tango they found themselves in.

  “We can’t take Link,” Dante pointed out and I clutched my son a little closer. “We’ll stop at Lydia’s.” He looked down as his phone lit up. “Tori just sent an address. We need to get moving if we’re going to meet them there.”

  We didn’t say another word, leaving the house and getting back into the car, roles reversed as Dante took the driving seat. Link had inherited the love for speed, finally calming down as Dante whipped through the streets towards Lydia’s home. An irrational part of me didn’t want me to let go of my son, worried about being separated from him but Lydia had raised me and doted on Link. She took him without question, and we hit the road once more.

  Dante drove recklessly as I made calls with the address given to every single man under my orders. I wouldn’t be caught off guard, outnumbered and outwitted by Xavier. When I searched the address, it returned an old house with a vast expanse of land and stables that had been put up for sale a few weeks ago. Far away enough that Xavier would be away from the family, close enough that he could get the job done quickly. Franco had been a puppet waiting for the opportune moment. It all started to slot into place, and I kicked myself for not realising it sooner. We were cocooned in a false sense of security, tentatively placing trust in people because that was what they wanted. How fucking stupid had I been?

  Xavier had taken Mia at the first opportunity. He wouldn’t let Franco do the job, not when we were all twisted enough to take a sick sense of joy in watching the kill. It was confirmation that we were at top of the food chain. Untouchable. And a reminder to the ones we disposed of that they should never have toed the line where we were concerned.

  There was no doubt in my mind that Xavier would want to make me pay, but Mia was the top of his list. A woman with no grounding in our world, who found a secret that was never hers, had turned the tables, and reached for power. Not only reached for it, but she had a firm grasp on it and was ready to dethrone him. Xavier wouldn’t be able to let that go easily. She would be the first target before he came for the rest of us.

  “We’ll find her,” Dante said firmly. Not ‘she’ll be okay’. Not ‘we’ll find her alive’. He couldn’t guarantee any of those.

  Without Link as a driving force to stay calm, every vein in my body pulsed with burning hot rage. People stepped over the threshold of my wife’s home on her good nature, more than my own, and betrayed her. I would go to my grave knowing that every fucker I knew would happily try to cross me if they thought they had even half a chance of getting away with it, but I would never be okay with someone taking aim at Mia.

  Two pin pricks of light came up ahead and as they grew larger, the model and registration rang familiar. Gabe’s car rattled ahead of us, leading the way. “Looks like we caught up with them,” I said darkly.

  Gabe fell right beneath Xavier on my list. The moment I had confirmation that he was involved in all of this, I’d put him into the ground beside father dearest and let them both rot. Whatever sliver of conscience Tori had stumbled on to saved her from the same fate. It just needed to be enough to save Mia.

  He must have realised that we were following him and sharply took the next exit. Dante prepared to follow him, but my hand straightened the wheel. “I’m not playing games,” I barked. “We’re not wasting time chasing him. I’ll find him later.” Dante understood and continued on our route; the quickest way to get to Mia.

  As we approached the address, my heart sank. Looming in the distance, a building glowed orange and plumes of smoke rose as we gained on it. It was obvious to see the flames that were taking over every surface.

  “No.” The word didn’t come out forcefully but in disbelief.

  Clean, quick kills. That was what we specialised at. The less mess to clean up, the better, but Xavier wanted to draw this out and make her suffer. Everything inside of me shattered at the thought of Mia, cornered because of him.

  Dante steered the car onto the grassy terrain as thunder rumbled overhead, signalling an oncoming storm that would roll in at some point tonight. I sprang out of the car, and Dante was quick to follow after me.

  “Luc! Luc, you need to think!” He ran in front of me, hands on my shoulders as he tried to stop me.

  “Let me go!” I roared.

  “You need to think about Link! You can’t just run into that building!”

  “She’s in there!”

  “You don’t know that!” he screamed, spittle flying. The house lay a little bit away to the left of the burning stables but it was obvious to see where Xavier would have led Mia. “We don’t know if he’s there with her.”

  “I’m not risking her,” I spat back. I didn’t give a shit about Xavier. We’d come face to face eventually, but watching the fire raging behind Dante, the only thing I was concerned about was finding Mia safe and alive. “I’m not losing her.” I shoved him aside forcefully and took off for the doors of the stables.

  As I reached them, with the crackle and warmth of the blaze hitting my skin, I heard Vittoria scream, “Dante! Don’t you dare!”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Mia

  The fire spread rapidly, and I had no idea how long the stables would stay standing. Xavier had plotted s
o meticulously, unlike us who hadn’t seen this coming. We were caught unaware and played perfectly into his hands. I wished I could turn back time and undo so many things but replaying all of my mistakes wouldn’t be the way to get out of this situation and return to my family.

  The fear ate at my insides at the inferno that had started to burn around me but the thought of Link being left in Xavier’s clutches urged me forward. My boy would need me. From the moment I’d discovered I was pregnant, I’d been unsure and terrified about becoming a mother. I’d worried about doing it alone and when Luc and I reconciled, I worried about being good enough. Then the doctor placed Link in my arms, and I knew that I’d do anything I could to prove to myself, to Link, to the world, that I deserved this perfect little bundle I’d been gifted with.

  The heat of the flames made me jerk my hands away at first. It was unbearable and my body was doing everything it could to protect itself. The automatic reflex was one I wanted to give into, but I had a choice. Either I force myself through the pain or it would swallow me anyway. It wasn’t a winning situation but if it came down to it, if I was going to die, then I wanted to go on my terms. I wanted to leave the world fighting.

  Steeling myself, I bit the insides of my cheeks and tasted blood as it filled my mouth while I put my hands back towards the fire. I continued to pull at my hands, praying that the rope would loosen its grip against the fire. Pulling my hands back to find some reprieve from the pain, I gave myself a moment before thrusting them back to the flames. My jaw ached and my throat felt raw and dry as I tried to suppress the screams. Finally, I felt the rope start to go slack until it pulled apart entirely. When I pull my hands around to the front, the skin of my palms was blistering from where the flames had licked them, and I heaved out of pain and disgust.

  The entire place was burning around me, and I pushed myself onto my feet. So many emotions scrambled to try and dominate. The excruciating pain wanted to win out, but the adrenaline pushed past it. The heat in the barn was oppressive and the smoke had started to cloud in around me, making my eyes burn and difficult to see. I turned around, coughing as I breathed in the smoke, trying to decide which exit to break for. Xavier had started the fire at the doors closest to me and so I set off towards the doors of the stables where Xavier had disappeared through, hoping the flames wouldn’t be as bad. The heat pressed in from all around me and my teeth were clenched tight as fire attacked my clothing, burning through to my skin.

  As I made it out of the fire-ravaged stables, the cold night air hit me and I took in large, gasping breaths, choking on the cool breeze. I hit the floor, rolling to put myself out. It felt refreshing on my skin after being surrounded by intense heat. Through stinging tears, I saw Xavier walking towards the car with his phone in hand, back towards me. His car was alone and that placed me at the opposite end of the stables from where Franco had arrived. I planted my palms onto the ground to push myself up again but the blistered skin split and I released a strangled scream through my teeth.

  I was unarmed because I never expected to be attacked in my own home. I had one shot. I needed a way to get home. A way to find Luc. As I got to my feet, my entire body screamed in agony at the effort it took but I started to run towards him. My path was haphazard, but I let the momentum carry me forward towards my target.

  He must have heard my scream because Xavier rounded on me as I barrelled into him. The phone flew from his hand and he stumbled back, tripping over his feet and crashing to the ground.

  “You just won’t fucking die!” he roared, scrambling back as he reached for his gun, but it was no longer securely on his person. The knock had sent it not far from where his phone laid.

  I lurched towards it, landing hard on my hands and knees, needing to keep the weapon away from him for my own sake. Xavier was quick. His body loomed over mine and he drove the heel of his palm into my injured part of my back, making me buckle and smacking my face against the ground. The sound of thunder was loud and masked the scream that ripped from my lips.

  His hand covered mine, trying to get control of the situation. “This time I’m going to make sure you die,” he hissed in my ear, breath uncomfortably warm.

  I couldn’t let it happen. Despite all the pain, despite the tears that streamed down my face and just how badly I wanted to roll over and let it all consume me, I couldn’t because I couldn’t shake Link’s face from my mind. More than relief from the pain, more than anything in the world, I wanted to see my son grow into a man and live his life. I wanted to be there for every bump and scrape and parent-teacher conference. I wanted to cry on his wedding day and become a grandmother one day. I wanted to live.

  Xavier had ripped the gun from my hand but with whatever strength I could muster, I drove an elbow backwards, praying that I hit him. A choking and spluttering sound came from behind me, and Xavier’s body moved away from mine. Quickly turning around, I saw Xavier had once again dropped the gun as I’d managed to hit him directly in the throat. I didn’t think twice. I grabbed the weapon, wrapping a bloodied finger around the trigger and squeezed. Nothing happened and the panic rose in me. Xavier’s red face loomed over me as he began to recover, spittle flying as he yelled but none of the words hit home because of the blood pounding in my ears. I looked at the gun to see the safety still in place and knocked it off as Xavier dived at me, arms outstretched for the weapon.

  The shot was deafening and I felt the warmth of the fallout against my face and soaking my clothes as Xavier dropped against me, body heavy. My instant reaction was to push him away from me but the weight of his body was too much for my injuries and waning adrenaline. Instead, I pushed myself away, scrambling backwards until he laid face down and I was covered in blood, bone fragments and soot.

  I dropped the gun again and my body shook uncontrollably. The bile burned as it travelled thick and fast up my throat and I vomited promptly over the grass.

  The rain started to fall in fat, ice-cold droplets, and I cried hard as I got up to my feet again. My brain was short circuiting as I tried to figure out what to do next. Stooping down and almost losing my balance, I picked up Xavier’s phone. It was locked and no amount of my jabbing at it would do a thing. As I stumbled away from Xavier’s body, not daring to glance back out of fear of completely losing it, I took off down the side of the burning building to get to the house. I could call emergency services, the police, the fire department, an ambulance. I’d need them all. Even if it wasn’t the usual course of action, it was the only number I could access.

  Just as I hit call, I heard a voice. “Luc! Luc, wait!” Dante yelled loudly, and my heart thrummed erratically in my chest. They’d found me. If Dante was here, then so was Luc, and I was ready to throw myself into his arms and promise him that I’d never pry into people’s business again. I’d spend the rest of my life being a quiet soul who steered clear of trouble. I’d sit in church and actually pay attention and hope that God took some kind of pity on me.

  As I reached the other end of the stables, I saw two cars sitting on the gravel beside Franco’s. Nearby them, Gabriel was yelling at Vittoria, and Dante was running toward the stables. “D?” I was almost delirious from the agony of my injuries and the happiness of seeing my brother. “D!”

  “Mia?” His head whipped around towards me. “MIA! Are you okay?” He came towards me and as I tripped over my feet, Dante caught me in his arms, and I let myself collapse against him. “Let me look at you.”

  “I’m fine,” I told him although it couldn’t be further from the truth. “Luc? Where’s Luc?” I asked, noting he was missing from the line-up. I needed my husband. I needed him to tell me everything would be okay. That we could fix all of this mess and that I’d survive because I felt unbelievably broken.

  “He went in to look for you,” Tori said, taking steps towards us.

  My heart dropped to my feet so quickly that the world became tipsy. “No! No!” I ripped myself away from Dante’s arms and the second burst of adrenaline ran through me for the nig
ht. Luc would be searching blindly for me when I’d made my way out. If they’d just arrived at the other side, I’d have run straight into Luc’s arms.

  I only made it a few steps before Dante’s arms were wrapped around me, pressing down on my broken and bruised skin, making me want to scream. “Let me go!”

  “I’ll go, Mia!” Dante yelled back. “I’ll go! You need to stay—”

  The last of his words were swallowed by a thunderous cracking sound. Before our eyes, the roof of the stables caved, losing its structure and collapsing in on itself. The flames leapt high and were bright against the inky night as they continued to hungrily devour the building.

  “LUCAS!”

  I screamed his name as if it would have made a difference. As if my desperation for this nightmare to end would somehow have Luc materialise in front of me when the truth was, Luc had run into a burning building to save my life and in turn ended his.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Dante

  “Dante! Don’t you dare!” Vittoria had grabbed a hold of my wrist in a vice-like grip and momentarily stopped me. “You are not going in there!” she screamed when I faced her. “You are not going in after him!”

  “He needs me!”

  “I need you! Please! Please, don’t do this!”

  “This is my family, Vittoria!” I screamed at her, pulling my hand out of her grasp. Any other words were lost when the sound of a gunshot rang clearly through the night. “What the fuck?” Fuck. That was not a good sign. Even Luc had stalled in his tracks as we looked around.

  Gabe had gotten out of the car at a calmer pace and made a move towards Tori with his phone in hand. No doubt trying to get a hold of his psycho dad. There was no one else out here apart from the four of us, which meant that shot had to be something to do with Xavier, Franco and Mia.