by LP Lovell
"You are his prize toy, and if he thinks he can’t have you, no one will.”
I sigh and put the nearly empty bottle down on the counter. Standing up, I round the bar and hand him Dante. He takes him, throwing a dish cloth over his shoulder before pressing his palm to Dante’s back and hugging him close. Never did a man look so out of place and yet completely at home with something so fragile in his arms. My son in the arms of my monster. There’s nowhere else I’d rather him be. “Please trust me, Nero.” I push up on tiptoes, kissing him quickly and then the back of Dante’s head. “I am his weakness. I blind him.”
“If anything happens to you, I will slaughter the bratva piece by piece until there is nothing left.” That violence I love so much swirls in his eyes, threatening to spill over.
“I have a plan. I need your help.”
He smirks. “Ah, Morte, tell me what you need and it will be done." Of course it will, because he’s Nero Verdi. Nicholai thinks himself invincible because no one can stand against him, but I haven’t unveiled my secret weapon yet. I haven’t unleashed my monster. Nicholai has no idea what we are capable of.
The entire drive from the airport to base, I think through the plan in my head. This will work. This has to work. Part of me wants to turn around and go back to Nero, to let him face this fight with me, but I can’t. I’ve come too far to turn back now. I have risked everything to take Nicholai down, and I will succeed, or die trying. This will be my legacy, that which I leave my son.
I pull up to the compound gates and they allow me straight through. When I pull the SUV into the vehicle bay, Nicholai is there, waiting. I get out of the car and walk over to him. His hands are clasped behind his back, his suit as immaculate as ever.
“Little dove. I see you are disappointingly empty handed,” he says, sweeping a hand though his graying hair in agitation.
I have to force myself back into that cold unfeeling place as far away from Nero as possible. “The child was not there.”
“Oh? And is Nero Verdi dead?” Those ice-cold eyes fix with mine, looking for any minute trace of deception.
“Verdi has sent the child away for protection.” The lie slips easily from my lips as I stare unblinkingly at him. “I gained his trust to ascertain information. He is not dead. I may yet need to use him.”
His eyes narrow. “He is in love with you.”
“Yes.”
“And he believes you in love with him?”
“Yes.”
He sighs. “And where is the child?”
“With Rafael D’Cruze.”
“He sent the child to your sister.” He laughs, clapping his hands together. “And what did you tell him, little dove?”
“I told him that he needs to forget me. I said I would ensure the child’s safety but that this is my place,” I say robotically.
He nods. “Good. This is good.” There’s an edge to his voice, and I know he doesn’t trust me.
“Do you know the exact location of the child?”
“Yes. He is being kept in Rafael’s compound near the border,” I relay the location Nero and I picked. “But we must move quickly. I do not think he trusts me.”
“You and Sasha will assemble a team. You will go to Mexico and retrieve the child. Kill Rafael D’Cruze. And kill your sister,” he says, lifting one eyebrow to drive the point home.
“Yes.” I start to turn away.
“And little dove?” I pause. “I will come with you to Mexico. I do not trust you to do what must be done.” If he weren’t so blinded by his obsession with me, he wouldn’t trust me at all. Perhaps in his own twisted way he loves me. After all, they say love is blind. He wants so badly to believe that I am once again his loyal, favorite daughter that he ignores what is right in front of him. How could my loyalty possibly be to him when my child is out there? If he had children, if he knew what that love feels like, Nicholai would not trust me. But his obsessive, sick version of love leads him to his own destruction. It will be me, his precious daughter who slices out his heart.
I’m so close I can almost smell his blood tinging the air. The game is so nearly over.
32
Una
I step off the plane and walk beside Sasha to the Range Rover parked a few feet away. The humid heat clings to my skin, wrapping around me like a blanket. Sasha gets in the driver’s side and I hop in beside him. Three Elite climb in the back, all clutching rifles to their chests, their expressions serious and focused. The sun is just starting to drop below the ragged skyline of Juarez in the distance. The address we’re going to is Rafael’s mansion, a few miles outside of the city.
Nicholai insisted that we land and go straight in before anyone could get word of our presence to the cartel. I glance at Sasha, but he keeps his eyes firmly on the road. The city is a mess of graffiti-covered buildings, pothole filled roads, and general disarray. This is cartel country, where the daily number of murders is higher than some countries have in a year. These streets may look like a city of people going about their business, but it’s a war zone with the cartels continuously fighting for ground.
Our convoy of cars winds through the streets that lead out of the city, dropping into a valley that runs between the ragged dusty hills of the Mexican countryside. We come to a stop on a dirt road about a mile from Rafael’s main gate. We get out and go to the back of the car, arming ourselves with weapons. Sasha’s gaze meets mine and he gives me the tiniest nod.
Altogether we have twenty Elite, which is more than I hoped he would bring, but you roll with the punches. Nicholai gets out of the car behind ours, his suit no less suited to the dusty desert of Mexico than it is to the icy expanse of Russia. He glances around his assembled soldiers, all clad in black and armed to the teeth. “Your mission is to go into the compound and retrieve the child. Kill everyone.” His eyes meet mine, and I know he’s making a point, because everyone includes Anna. “Do not fail me,” he says without looking away from me.
We turn and start jogging towards the compound. Sasha and I are running point. The rest of the soldiers follow us. The sun beats down on us and sweat trickles down my back as we make our way up to the compound. As soon as we near the perimeter fence, we take cover behind a small rise of earth.
“Guards,” Sasha says to me.
One of the others hands me a made-up rifle and I pull the stand down, resting it on the top of the ridge. Staring down the sights, I line up both guards, focusing the crosshair just to the left of the first guy’s shoulder. I have to be accurate here. Deep breath in, hold, squeeze—squeeze. Two shots fire off in quick succession and both guards go down. The shots have more cartel soldiers rushing towards the gates, and I fire at them too, watching them drop one by one.
“Move,” I shout. Sasha leads the band of Elite to the front gate, breaching the compound. This is where it gets complicated. “You two,” I signal to two of the Elite. “With me.” Sasha nods as he continues on with the rest of the group. I take the two and split off, moving through the house until I find the stairway that leads upstairs. I ascend the stairs, gripping my pistol. Reaching in my front pocket, I quickly screw a silencer onto my gun. I tune my senses to the two men walking behind me, hearing every muted footfall, every drawn breath. We reach the top of the stairs and walk down the hall, passing a couch scattered with cushions. I whirl around, yanking the knife from my thigh holster and throwing it at the same time as I grab one of the cushions, shoving it against the face of the guy on the left. I knock him off balance just enough that he staggers to the wall. I spot the flash of steel and bow my body away from him just as I press the gun against the cushion and pull the trigger. A muted pop sounds. The tip of the knife nicks across the skin of my stomach before his body falls to the floor. I glance down at the blood seeping through my tank top and sigh before retrieving my knife from the other guy’s skull.
Following Rafael’s instructions, I find the last door at the end of the hall. Rafael’s office. He’s not here, but the windows have a full view
all around the compound. My mission right now is simple: remove the Elite and clear the compound. I tried to persuade Sasha to turn them, bring them to our side, but it was too risky. We couldn’t let anyone know that we weren’t with Nicholai. Elite loyalties run deep where he’s concerned.
I glance out each of the windows until I spot the group of four Elite crossing the courtyard, guns raised. I rest my rifle on the windowsill and line up the shot. All four of them are down within two seconds. All that training, all those years of fighting, and they didn’t even have the dignity of a decent death. They died as they lived, as cannon fodder for a mad man. Six down. Fourteen more to go.
33
Nero
I drum my fingers over the steering wheel anxiously, glancing at the clock on the dashboard. Gio sighs and slumps down in his seat as he fiddles with the buttons for the air conditioning. The sun glares off the hood of the car and I squint into the rear-view mirror at the car parked behind me. On cue, I watch as a cloud of dust kicks up from the road that cuts through the valley below us. I pick up the binoculars and watch the convoy of black Range Rovers wind along the empty desert road, their tinted windows hiding their occupants. They pull over to the shoulder and all the doors open, soldiers clad in black climbing out and arming themselves. I spot Sasha and Una standing at the head of what must be twenty Elite.
“Fuck, that’s a lot of Elite,” I murmur, a feeling of unease creeping through me. It’s too many. Una and Sasha are good, and they have the help of Rafael’s men, but Twenty highly trained Elite? They’re not invincible.
“How many?” Gio asks.
“Maybe twenty.”
“I’ll go and tell Rafael.” The door opens and hot, dusty air fills the cabin before the door slams again.
I smile when the back door of the second Range Rover opens and Nicholai Ivanov steps out in his suit. Una said he would come, but I didn’t believe it. He’s known for his sharp intellect and his strategic skill, but this—coming here—surely he’s not that arrogant? He’s completely exposed, ripe for the picking. Even with his Elite…this is cartel country. And, of course, he couldn’t possibly predict what Sasha and Una are about to do to his precious Elite, or maybe he could have, if he weren’t so obsessed with Una and the idea of having her child. It’s exactly as she said; he’s blinded by her. He’ll never even see her coming.
The band of Elite disperse, heading up the hillside and leaving Nicholai alone with only two Elite to protect him. Stupid. So very stupid. The door opens and Gio gets back in.
“He’s here. Only two guards with him,” I say.
His eyes narrow and his lips press into a line. “This seems too easy.”
I nod. “I’m not sure whether it’s a trap, or he really is that sure of his force.”
Gio sighs heavily. “It seems to go against his nature, but then he did come deep into Rafael’s territory once before to get Anna.”
I tap my finger over the wheel. This is too good of an opportunity. Sasha would have warned us if they had brought more force. Una might be kept in the dark, but not Sasha.
“Lets go.” I glance in the rear-view mirror again, meeting Rafael’s hard gaze as he sits behind the wheel of the other car. Anna sits beside him in the passenger seat despite me telling him that Una wouldn’t like it. Apparently, he thinks she’s safest where he can keep an eye on her. If only Una were so easy to control. I start the engine and pull away, sending the Hummer down the steep hillside, kicking up dust and rubble in its wake.
I give it to Rafael, he has all the fucking kit. Armor plated Hummers with mounted .50 Cal gun’s attached to the roof. One of his men is hanging out the sunroof, ready to open fire on the Russian and his beloved soldiers. He has instructions not to kill Nicholai though. Una deserves that honor.
As soon as we’re on flat ground, we’re flooring it towards the parked Range Rovers. The two soldiers move in front of Nicholai, firing bullets at the car. Shots ping off the hood and I slam my foot over the accelerator. When they realize that their bullets aren’t doing shit, they run for the car, ushering Nicholai inside.
Gio reaches back and taps the knee of the guy with the big fucking gun. He opens fire, the bullets leaving golf-ball-sized holes in the body work of one of the parked Ranger Rovers.
“Damn, I need one of these cars,” I say on a grin.
“Might be a bit conspicuous in New York,” Gio shouts over the deafening bang, bang, bang of gunfire. The Range Rover screeches away, heading into the desert, and I follow. Rafael pulls up beside me. Bullets spray the back of the Range Rover, shattering the glass and tearing holes through the body work until one tire explodes. The car veers violently to the side, fishtailing before skidding sideways and tipping. It rolls over several times before coming to a stop on its wheels again. I palm my .40 Cal and throw my door open. Gio and Rafael fall in beside me. I lift my gun, shooting the Elite who is slumped against the steering wheel clutching his head. The other one looks dead. Rafael goes to the back door, bracing his hand over the door handle as he watches me. I line up, lifting my gun before I nod at him. He wrenches the door open and Nicholai falls out of the car. For a moment, I’m sure he’s dead, but then he groans and attempts to crawl across the floor.
I have no sympathy for this piece of shit. If it were up to me, I’d tie him to the tow bar and fucking drag him back to that compound for Una to slaughter, but he might die on the way and she needs to be the one to end him. He has taken more from her than anyone. I kick him in the gut hard enough that he lands on his back, gasping for air. He holds his hand up, shielding his eyes from the sun as he tries to look at me. His suit is covered in dust and blood trickles from his nose, pouring down his chin.
“Nicholai Ivanov,” I say with a twisted grin, leaning down and yanking him to his feet. He sways and Gio grabs his arm, holding him up. “How the mighty have fallen.”
“Nero Verdi,” he says and then laughs. “You reach too far. You will not make it out of the country alive.”
“Who’s going to stop me?” I raise my eyebrows and then cup my ear, tilting my head. “I don’t hear anything.” I smirk. “Oh, wait. That’s because no one is coming. You are all out of allies, Nicholai.”
His teeth clench. “I need no allies. I have an army. My Elite will end you, and your child will be mine.”
My fingers flinch, wanting to grab my gun. Instead I punch him in the gut hard enough that a breath wheezes past his lips. Gio holds him up and I step close to him, cupping the back of his neck and bringing my lips to his ear. “Your Elite are dying as we speak. Killed by your own…your best,” I say quietly. “You did make Una quite formidable.” I step back and his cold, blue eyes flash angrily.
He audibly grinds his teeth. “I made her strong. I made her the best…”
“You fucking broke her!” I shout, my temper spiking. I grab the front of his jacket, lifting him onto his tiptoes. “But you’re right, Nicholai. You made her strong.” I search that soulless gaze. “Strong enough to put an end to you.”
He huffs a laugh. “Una is mine. She will always be what I made her.” A sick grin spreads across his lips.
“That’s where you’re wrong. Una is mine. Her baby is mine.” I shove him away from me, and he staggers back. “You’re about to see what happens when you try and take what’s fucking mine.” I nod at Gio and he drags him towards the car before I break my word and fucking kill him. Gio shoves him inside next to our gunman who is now sitting on the back seat, pointing a pistol at him.
Rafael comes to stand beside me. “I can’t wait to see this,” he says on a smile.
My vicious little queen will finally get her revenge.
34
Una
I wait in Rafael’s office, the distant sound of gunfire filling the house, but I don’t know who’s winning. The simple fact is, a band of Elite are not easily taken down. The office door flies open and I swing my gun in that direction. Sasha frowns at me, impatience written all over his features. Blood is spattered across
his neck and arms, and his black t-shirt is wet with it. “Come on,” he huffs.
I roll my eyes and push to my feet, swinging the rifle over my shoulder. We descend the stairs and I follow him out into the courtyard. Rafael’s men that I ‘shot’ come to stand with us as the main gate is opened, allowing two Hummers to cruise into the courtyard. The windows are completely blacked out. Two heavy duty guns are mounted on their roofs. Sasha stands rigid beside me. I know this is hard for him. His loyalties aren’t as black and white as mine.
The passenger side door to one of the hummers opens, and I watch as a familiar frame climbs from it. Nero flashes me a cocky smile as he closes the door. He’s wearing gray suit pants and a black shirt, open at the collar. With his Ray Bans and his perfect face, he looks like he should be in the pages of a magazine rather than here, in a cartel compound, participating in a mafia war. Gio gets out of the driver’s side and Rafael climbs out of the other car, followed by Anna. Her long, blonde hair catches in the wind, and she folds her arms over her body, staying close to Rafael’s side. I lock eyes with my sister and she offers me a small smile. Apparently, I’m forgiven for cutting off her finger.
“Now that everyone’s here…” Nero says, opening the back door of the car and dragging out Nicholai. His suit is rumpled and dirty as though he’s been rolling around in the dirt. His nose is bloody. We put this plan into play, but I always thought that he would somehow see it coming, that he would outmaneuver us the way he has done to so many others. But he was blinded by his own desperation, his own demented obsession, and in the end, it was his obsession with Dante that brought him to this point. He broke his own rules, and instead of going after a vulnerable, helpless child from an orphanage he chose the child of two of the most feared people in the world. Stupid.