Beauty & The Crime Boss (Foster Family Book 1)

by Zavi James

  I grunted in response. "I'm going to get her."

  "Lucas," Lydia called and I turned back to look at her. "You apologize for whatever happened last night."

  I gritted my teeth and made my way back up the stairs. I knew I needed to apologize for my outburst last night. I needed to explain to Mia that I would tell her things but that it wouldn't happen all in one go. She needed to give me time. This was new territory for me.

  Knocking on the door, I waited for her to answer. When she didn’t say anything, I rolled my eyes at how stubborn she was being. Without permission, I pushed open the door to see that she wasn’t in her bed.

  "Mia?"

  The bathroom door was open, but the room was empty. I felt sick. Last night, I had told her to go and share a bed with Stefan. My legs moved before my brain could process the thought properly. I didn’t give Stefan the courtesy of knocking before I barged into his room.

  "Mia?!"

  Stefan lifted his head and opened an eye to look at me from his bed. "What the hell are you doing?"

  "Where is she?" I demanded.

  "Who?"

  "Mia!"

  "How am I meant to know?" Stefan asked, still half asleep.

  The panic started to fill me slowly. "You haven't seen her at all?"

  "Not since last night when you sent her upstairs," Stefan said, pushing himself up. "What's wrong?" He was suddenly more alert, but I barely heard when he said.

  Running back down the stairs, I heard Dante’s laughter and rushed back into the kitchen. He sensed the issue instantly and got up from his seat, chair scraping across the tiles. “Luc?”

  "She's not here," I blurted out.

  "What?"

  "She's not in her room, Dante! She's not in the house!"

  "She can't have gotten far. Come on."

  Dante moved past me, ready to leave the house and start a search. My phone vibrated in my pocket. If it was the hospital or anything to do with work, I would lose it. My priority right now was Mia. When I took it from my pocket there was one message and when I opened it my heart jumped to my throat. There on the screen was a picture of Mia looking terrified. Sent from Marco.

  Such a pretty face. I wonder how much she would go for.

  "FUCK!" I punched the wall next to me and Dante looked back, alarmed.

  "What?" he asked me.

  "We need to go."

  "Luc, what happened?"

  I attempted to push past Dante, but he grabbed my shoulder.

  "Marco's got her," I said, shoving my phone at him.

  "You can't go there without thinking this through," Dante said once he’d read the message.

  "SHE'S WITH HIM!" I pushed Dante hard and Stefan appeared, coming down the stairs to join us.

  "I know!" Dante yelled back. "But if you just go in, he's going to have the advantage. We need to think first."

  "Where are you going?" Stefan asked.

  "To look for her! He already has a fucking advantage!" I told him shortly.

  "She's with Bianchi," Dante filled Stefan in.

  "Marco?"

  I nodded at my brother. I needed to get out of the house and find her but if we rushed into this I would be outnumbered and wouldn't be able to help Mia.

  "We need to grab the guys from the casino," I said. Stefan followed as we walked towards the door. "What are you doing?" I asked, rounding on him.

  "I'm coming with you," he said.

  "Like hell you are. You caused this!"

  "Me?"

  "Stefan! Do as you're fucking told! Stay here!"

  He didn't argue, seeing that I was not joking.

  "Give me that," I said, and Dante handed the phone back. I tapped out a message quickly.

  What do you want?

  A few seconds later a reply came through.

  Financial backing.

  I pushed past Dante and walked out of the house, my friend following behind. Mia would be back home with me no matter the cost.

  Chapter Thirty Three

  Mia

  My muscles ached from being tied to the chair. Marco had been in and out all night and I had barely spoken to him. I didn't have a whole lot to say while I tried to figure out how to escape.

  He walked in and snapped a photograph. "About time we see what Lucas thinks of all this," Marco said.

  My stomach twisted thinking of Luc. Our fight last night seemed so insignificant now. I should have just listened to him.

  "I think he needs a bit of encouragement," Marco commented. From the pocket of his pants, he drew out the knife again and I shrunk back against the chair.

  "What are you going to do?" I asked him, watching him carefully.

  "Don't worry, sweetheart," Marco said. "I won't cause too much damage. I have customers that would pay a high price for you."

  I felt the bile rise in my throat. What had I gotten myself into? Marco advanced on me and trailed a finger along the smooth skin of my cheek. "Such a pretty face."

  Marco lifted the knife and I tried to push myself back, but his free hand grabbed the back of my neck. Dragging the tip of the blade across my bottom lip, I held my breath, scared to move and winced when the skin split. Warm blood fell from the wound and down my chin.

  "Let's see if that helps him make the decision a little quicker," Marco smiled. When he pulled the phone from his pocket to take another picture, I turned my head away, but Marco grabbed my chin roughly and held me in place before he sent the photo. "See if your boyfriend truly cares that much about you."

  "What do you want from him?" I asked.

  "I need some financial backing from your other half," Marco explained to me. "Wanting to expand my horizons but Lucas doesn't share the same visions as I do."

  "Why do you even need his money?"

  "Big dreams, little girl," Marco said with a smirk. "That and he's the only one that'll listen. He's still relatively fresh blood."

  When Marco's phone pinged, he looked at it and laughed, "Looks like we're expecting company."

  Chapter Thirty Four

  Lucas

  Seeing the cut on Mia's face had sent me over the edge. Bianchi wouldn't get his money and he wasn't getting out of this alive, as far as I was concerned. Marco had told me to come alone but I wasn't that stupid. My men were as loyal to me as they had been to my father, so a simple order was met with no resistance.

  When we walked into the club, a hostile atmosphere hung thick in the air.

  "Where is he?" I asked.

  One of the men disappeared into the back and I stood there, jaw clenched, with Dante beside me and the rest of mine behind. Marco strode out into the club, dragging Mia by the wrist behind him.

  "Lucas," Marco tutted. "I said on your own."

  "Do I look stupid?" I asked him.

  Marco popped a knife in his hand and pulled Mia roughly towards him, holding the blade to her throat. My instinct took over and I stepped forward. I couldn’t let anything happen to her. Every man in the room reached for a weapon and Marco pushed the blade a little harder into Mia's skin, forcing me to stop in my tracks.

  "I wouldn't say you're the brightest bulb," Marco remarked.

  "This doesn't have anything to do with her so let her go," I told him.

  "You want something, and I want something so I figure we can do a trade."

  "What part of no don't you understand, Bianchi? Human trafficking isn't a business I want to deal in."

  A twisted smile came to Marco's face. "What do you call taking her from her home and exchanging sexual favors for money?"

  I took another step forward but a squeak from Mia made me stop.

  "I don't blame you, Lucas," Marco continued. "It would be hard to stay away from someone like her."

  "Let her go."

  "If we come to an arrangement. And if not..." Marco pulled Mia tighter against him and his hand started to wander down her body.

  "STOP!"

  All eyes fell on me but that changed the moment Dante took a shot at Marco's feet. The fl
oodgates were opened, and Marco lost his grip on Mia.

  "Go, Mia!" I ordered. She needed to be clear of the building now that chaos had been unleashed. The sound of gunfire and glass shattering took over the room as I reached for my gun.

  Mia took off, running towards the exit and a body slammed into mine, sending me sprawling and knocking the air out of me. I used the butt of my gun to knock it against the man's temple hard and shoved the body off me.

  When I got back up, I scanned the room for Marco. It was pure pandemonium in the club, and I moved as swiftly as possible before feeling a bullet graze my arm. That's when I saw Marco picking himself up off the floor and took aim without even thinking. All I was certain of was that Marco deserved every shot as three bullets were sent his way in quick succession. There was no room for forgiveness after he had laid his hands on Mia. The red bloomed across Marco's white shirt and I watched as he dropped to his knees.

  The anarchy continued, shots flying and bodies falling until Marco's lifeless corpse had been seen. The remaining men began to flee, and a quick scan of the room alerted me to Dante on the floor, pressing a hand to his thigh whilst he writhed in pain.

  "Mia," Dante rasped, jerking his head.

  I nodded at him and started towards the exit until I heard a small voice call out to me.

  "Luc..."

  Mia was slumped against the bar in the room, surrounded by shattered glass and liquid from broken bottles. She pressed a hand to her side and looked pale as a ghost.

  "Mia," I said, dropping beside her. She moved her hands away from her side and a sticky, red liquid covered her palms and seeped from a large gash down the side of her stomach.

  Mia looked at me, panic etched into her features. "Help me."

  ∞∞∞

  "I just need to know that she's okay!"

  "Mr Foster, as I said, there were some complications, but the surgeons seemed to have overcome them," the nurse repeated. "They shouldn't be much longer."

  She left and I sank back into the chair. Lydia and Stefan had arrived at some point after Mia was taken into surgery. Dante had also been admitted to remove the bullet from his leg but was already out and in recovery.

  I couldn't sit still. I ran my hands through my dark hair and pulled at it. When I brought my hands back down, I could see flecks of blood on my palms. Why had Mia left? Why had she gotten into a car with Marco? Why had I brought her into my life?

  I had tried everything to keep her safe, but she had left and walked straight into danger the moment she’d had enough of me and this life.

  "Luc, she'll be okay." Lydia placed a hand on my shoulder, startling me out of my thoughts. When I turned to look at her, I felt all the emotions rush to the surface and tears burned my eyes. Lydia pulled me into her and kissed my head. "She's a fighter, Luc."

  Before long, the nurse informed us that Mia was out of surgery. We piled into her room, but she hadn't come around from the anaesthetic. Stefan stood in the corner of the room talking to a consultant, but I couldn't take anything in. I couldn't focus on anything but Mia.

  Mia was petite but she looked tiny in the bed. I wanted to reach out and touch her, but I couldn't move my feet to get closer to her, frozen with the overwhelming sense of how badly I had let her down. I had a sudden wave of panic that told me I shouldn't even be here, given that I was the reason she had been admitted. Without another word, I left the room.

  "Lucas!" Lydia had followed after me. "Lucas James Foster!" The use of my full name made him stop in my tracks. Lydia caught up to me and placed a hand on my arm. "You're scared to see her," she said.

  "It's my fault she's in here," I said, dropping my head.

  Lydia considered the statement before she spoke. "Mia may not feel that way."

  I felt like Lydia was clutching at straws. Shaking my head, Lydia led me into another room where Dante laid in bed, speaking rapidly down the phone.

  "No, Mama. I promise you I'm fine. I'm alive. Yes. He's fine. I need to go, Mama. I love you too." Dante put the phone down and looked at the two of us. "She's out?" he asked hopefully.

  Lydia walked in and kissed his forehead. "Yes, she is, love."

  "She's okay?"

  "I believe so."

  "Why aren't you there?!" Dante asked, looking at me.

  "I think I'll leave you both to it," Lydia said. "Lucas, I'm going to head home and bring Mia some of her things. I think she'll appreciate her belongings." She gave Dante's hand a squeeze. "Do you need anything?"

  "No, that's alright, Lyds," he replied. "Thanks."

  As Lydia left, Dante pushed himself up in bed and filled me in on everything. "Everything's taken care of. Michael and Theo cleaned up. You don't need to be anywhere but here."

  There was a reason that I considered Dante as more of a brother to me than Stefan. He knew me. He could anticipate my next move without hesitation. He knew that right now I would want to be a million miles from here. Bury myself in work and run from the guilt.

  "I could have lost her," I told him, choking on the words.

  "You didn't though," Dante reminded me. "And instead of being with her, you're in here with me."

  "I don't know if she'll want me there."

  "You won't know unless you actually see her," Dante said with a heavy sigh and winced.

  "All good?" I asked as he settled back down.

  "Yeah, just sore as fuck. You know the drill."

  "Your Mom..."

  "Mama worries. It's her job," he said, rolling his eyes. Dante's mother was a formidable woman that I had met when I was just 10 years old. There was no doubt I would be hearing from her soon.

  "Thanks," I said, nodding towards Dante's injured leg.

  "What are brothers for? Now do us both a favor and go and check on her.”

  Chapter Thirty Five

  Stefan

  "Ugh," Mia groaned as the anaesthetic began to wear off.

  I got up from the chair I was sitting in and moved closer to Mia. "Mia?"

  "L... Luc?" she called. "Luc?" Mia sounded more panicked as she blinked her eyes open properly.

  "It's Stef," I told me as I tried to understand why she would want Luc right now. For a few moments, Mia lay there and took in her surroundings before she tried to move and yelped in pain. "Mia! You need to be careful. Don't move. Do you remember what happened?"

  She looked away from me and to her lap before slowly bringing her gaze back up. I sat on the edge of her bed. Less than 24 hours ago we had been at dinner and Mia had seemed carefree and now she laid in a bed looking broken. As I looked at her, Mia began to cry.

  "Oh, Mia," I said and pulled her into a hug. I could feel her hands fist my shirt, keeping me close. "It's okay. You're okay. I promise you. You're okay."

  I placed a kiss on top of her head, my heart breaking to see her in this state. Mia moved back, hands still balled in my clothing and face glistening with tears. "Where's Luc? Is he okay?"

  "He's fine. He's with Lydia," I told her. "I assume they went to see Dante."

  Mia paled. "Where's D?"

  Taking in a deep breath, I braced myself. This should have been Luc's job, but my brother's priorities seemed to be muddled. "Dante was shot."

  Mia took in a sharp breath and a new wave of tears started to fall.

  "He's fine," I told her gently. "Surgery went well and he's in recovery."

  "I need to see him," Mia said and pulled the covers off herself.

  I placed a hand on top of hers and said, "He's in a better state than you. I'll get him to come and see you as soon and he's up and about, but you need to stay in bed and rest. Those stitches are going to come out if you shoot off everywhere."

  Mia winced at the phrase and I cursed myself for using 'shoot'. "I'm sorry, that was an awful choice of words."

  "It's fine," Mia said. It evidently was not as the tears spilt onto her cheeks.

  I reached out and brushed them away before I asked, "What can I do?"

  Mia bit her bottom lip and flinched as the
scab popped and the wound started to bleed. "Ow." She took the tissues I offered her and dabbed at the cut. "I want to see Luc. Stef, will you get him for me?"

  I wanted to say no. I wanted to ask her what she saw in Luc after everything she had just been through but instead, I nodded my head and smiled. "I won't be long. If you need anything just press the button and the nurse will be here."

  Mia nodded and leaned back against the pillows, looking exhausted as I left the room. I found Luc in the waiting room, muttering to himself. When he caught sight of me, he got to his feet and walked towards me.

  "Is she awake?" Luc asked.

  "Yeah."

  "I need to speak to her."

  "Don't you think you've caused enough damage?" I spat out.

  "It's got nothing to do with you, Stefan."

  "No, it doesn't but it has everything to do with you. She was stabbed, Luc. She could have died. We could have had yet another funeral to attend," I pointed out to him.

  Luc blanched at the words. He was the reason this happened and now he wanted to speak to her and what? Beg for forgiveness? Mia was so compassionate that she would grant it. I had seen it in her eyes when she asked for Luc. If Mia forgave him, he would continue to drag her down until she ended up like Isa. Nothing but a memory.

  "She doesn't want to see you," I said.

  "What?"

  "Mia," I continued, running with the lie. "She doesn't want to see you. She sent me to ask you to leave her alone."

  He tensed and I held my breath. It was a completely plausible reaction and I hoped he would believe me. Luc gave a curt nod. "You're staying?"

  "I think that would be best. I'm not sure she should be on her own right now.”

  "Fine. Good," Luc said and ran a hand down his face. There were only five years between us but under the fluorescent lights of the hospital hallway, he looked much older. "I'm heading home. I'll check in tomorrow. If she needs anything, let me know, please."

  "I'll let you know," I confirmed. "I should get back to her."

  I turned away and walked back into Mia's hospital room. She had been hooked up to an IV that administered painkillers and looked like she had only just stopped crying.