“How do you want us to enter, Dante? His gate is guarded, and I fear it’s too heavy to take the car through,” Carlo offers as he pulls on his black leather gloves.
“I’ve got the guard. I’ll handle the door, boss,” Antonio says coolly, checking his gun.
“Then we’re ready. Whatever happens, she gets pulled from that fucking house. I don’t care if I’m lying dead on the ground. You get her out of that house and take care of her like she’s my fucking widow. Am I understood?”
“Understood” is answered back to me from around the room.
Antonio, Vincenzo, and Nico walk past me, each giving my shoulder a pat as they do. I take a deep breath and follow them, heading outside to the cars. Antonio jumps into the lead car, pulling out first. The rest of us check our guns again before climbing into our cars to roll out in darkness.
It’s a ten-minute drive, tops, but it feels like a damn hour. The car is silent, only the whispers of death spoken into our ears, preparing us for what we’re about to do.
“How are we going to know if Antonio got to the guard?” Carlo questions as he slows the car, turning off the headlights. The elaborate iron gates come into view, and I know my girl is behind them.
I’m coming, Billy.
My head pushes toward the window as we wait anxiously for a sign that Antonio’s done his job.
“Maybe he got caught?” Lou worries, but I shake my head, a cruel anticipation playing across my face as I watch the gates come to life, opening slowly.
We pull in covertly past the guard station, Antonio’s face coming into view as he unscrews his silencer. Behind him a man is lying at his feet with a single shot blackening his forehead.
“Go,” I bark out, and the car peels out, rushing the front entry. We barrel out, men pouring out from every ride. Before we give them too much time to prepare, I charge the front door, lifting my foot and kicking it the fuck in.
Melee erupts, clicks come from every direction. But I’m undeterred, knowing that for every one of his men, I have five.
“Bring me Declan,” I thunder, my voice echoing through the room as I walk to the middle of the vaulted entry flanked by staircases.
When nobody moves, I stalk over to the first motherfucker I see and pull my trigger, executing him where he stands. His body crumbles to the floor as I turn in a circle, my arms spread wide.
“Bring me Declan or everyone dies. Look around—you’re outnumbered,” I yell, enjoying the indecision and fear on the assholes’ faces.
His slimy fucking voice comes from behind me, and I spin, locking eyes with him.
“Don’t you mean Sarah?” Declan counters.
He walks toward me, stopping about three feet away, and tilts his head. “I have to give it to you—using her was a good distraction. It’s something I would have done. Maybe we’re more alike than we realize.”
Declan’s eyes scan the room, and I see his mind start spinning. He’s outnumbered.
“I’m here for my girl. Bring her out, and maybe I’ll let you die quickly,” I counter.
He takes a step backward with a smug look, as if he has the upper hand. “That’s a great idea. We should ask her…she would know how alike we are since she’s had both of us inside her.”
My finger taps against the trigger of my gun as I stare at him. “I told you I’d make you choke on every word. I’m here to do just that.”
Declan lifts his hand, snapping his fingers, and two men in suits come into view behind him, each tugging on one of her arms, shuffling her forward.
“Dante,” she breathes out, and my heart drops.
She’s battered. Barely recognizable. Covered in bruises and cuts. Her breathing is so shallow like it’s hard to inhale, probably because of broken ribs, and I feel as if I’m on fire. Like all the wounds on her body are on mine.
But it’s the dog leash around her neck that shifts something inside of me. Fracturing my reason and my logic.
No,no,no,no,no. He put her on a leash…on a goddamn leash.
My gun begins to tap against my temple as my chest heaves. Rage courses through me, giving life to each of my darkest thoughts. I’m gonna make him suffer. I’ll make them all fucking suffer.
I drop my gun back to my side, staring at her face, letting all the marks burn their way into my memory as Declan says what will be his last words.
“Now, maybe you’d like to negotiate. Be smart, or she gets to feel real pain.”
My eyes shift back to him, a calm possessing my body. I have one singular objective.
He dies.
I cut the head off the fucking snake and then chop up the body.
I rush toward him, my teeth gritting so hard they may break, and his eyes grow wide as I press the tip of my gun against his forehead. “I’m gonna gut you so slow for every goddamn mark you’ve put on her.”
I grab the back of his head and press the barrel harder into his skin until I hear her scream out in pain. My eyes shoot up as I throw Declan back to see one of the suits who’s holding her is biting her cheek as her face contorts in pain while she struggles.
My voice roars in a thunderous clap as the guy Antonio is holding his gun toward falls to the ground, from the bullet in his head. Antonio pivots towards the suits, and charges them, pointing his gun to lead the direction.
I catch something out of the corner of my eye, and my head swings to Declan, who’s wracked with panic as he starts to bolt. My mind goes silent as bullet after bullet pierces Declan’s chest, throwing his body back in quick jerks as he falls to the ground.
The men holding Sarah are frozen in place, but begin to tug her backward as I turn to face them. My gun swings in their direction, empty clicks sounding through the room as I close the distance.
“Nobody can help you now, not even God himself, because I’m not only taking your lives, I’m gonna keep your fucking souls.”
Antonio grabs the suit on her right by the head and tosses him back, pulling a screaming Sarah away from her biter as he does.
Gunshots begin to ring out around the room, creating a fervor. I launch onto the asshole who hurt her, ramming the butt of my gun down onto his face as I fall into a haze. My voice explodes out of my body as a guttural cry rips from my throat.
“You don’t ever touch her. You don’t ever fucking touch her!”
I hear his teeth crack as I pound his soft flesh into a mangled, bloody, deformed version of a face. I grab the sides of his head and pick it up, knocking it back onto the tiled surface, feeling the crack in his skull begin to give more and more.
Hands grab at me, pulling me back onto my ass, dragging me away as I try and get back to beat his lifeless body. I’m crazed, alive through death, unable to pull myself out.
Warm arms wrap around my neck, and a body presses against me. Her voice fills my ear.
“You came. I love you. It’s done. Dante, it’s done. I love you. Thank you.”
My hands scramble up her back, pulling her in closer as we sit in the middle of the floor locked in our embrace. My heart beats slower as she pulls me from the darkness I was sheathed in, allowing the devil inside of me to do his work.
Sarah pushes back to look at me, her eyes glistening as tears stream down her face, making streaks through a smudge of blood on her cheek.
My lips find hers, and I breathe her in before breaking our kiss. “You knew I’d come. There’s no version of us where I don’t show.”
“I know.”
She wraps her arms around me, and we don’t speak as I push off the ground, refusing to put her down. I stand, glaring around the room at the death and destruction, taking stock of my soldiers.
“Burn it to the ground,” I direct to Antonio, pulling Sarah even closer to me.
She buries her face into my neck as I walk us out. “Don’t look back. It was all a nightmare, and you’ll never have to be afraid again.”
I SHOOT UP FROM THE bed, gasping. My limbs are a sweaty, tangled mess gathered up in the sheets of the bed. W
ith fear still pulsing through my veins, my hand reaches for my throat to calm myself, to remind me where I am. As my fingers skim the delicate necklace I demanded was given back to me the minute we arrived back in Chicago, I close my eyes. “I’m okay. It’s over.”
My breaths come out slow and long, and I wipe my hair from my forehead and steady my pulse, glancing around the room, wondering where Dante has gone. He hasn’t left me alone for the entire day we’ve been back.
Pushing to the edge of the bed, I place my feet on the floor, looking over my shoulder when I hear his deep laugh come from the living room of our hotel suite.
My shoulders fall thinking about Dante’s apartment. Everything was destroyed, burned to ash. I’m just thankful nobody was hurt. Most of the damage was contained to his apartment, but we’re still homeless. But we have Matteo. I’ve never been happier to see my friend.
I wiggle my toes on the carpet before I stand, walking to the chair and pulling on the luxurious hotel robe, tying it in the front. I follow the voices out of the door and see Dante with his men—Nico, Vincenzo, Matteo, and Antonio—all sitting on and around the couches.
They look happy. It’s strange to think that the men most fear have become the ones I’m the happiest to surround myself with.
Dante looks over to me tenderly, and I can see that my bruises still bother him. He would bring those bastards back to life just to kill them again for what was done to me.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt your meeting. I just couldn’t sleep…” Alone. I couldn’t sleep without you.
Dante opens an arm, inviting me onto his lap. “You are never interrupting anything. Come sit.”
I pad over, the guys giving me nods and grins as I walk by. I return the smiles, even though it hurts, and crawl into Dante’s arms, pulling my legs up. He closes his arms around me and kisses the top of my head.
“Are you okay?”
I nod and put my head onto his shoulder as Antonio gives me a reassuring wink.
“How’d Luca and Dom fare with the council?” Matteo questions, looking almost as battered as I am.
My bottom lip pops out in a small pout as I look at him, and he grins, motioning between us, mouthing, “Twins.” I reach for my face as if horrified, and he touches his ribs, wincing when he starts to laugh.
Dante rubs his hand down my back as he speaks. “Turns out that the Irish crew was more than happy to give their blessing. Declan didn’t make any friends with the way he came into power. As a show of their gratitude for what we did, the Irish are working a gun deal with our Boston family. It should be pretty sizeable and beneficial to all involved. And Connor O’Bannion is back in his rightful place, and he knows he owes me a favor should I ever call one in.”
My head tips up as my eyes grow wide. Dante doesn’t talk business in front of me.
“Should I go?” I whisper.
He looks down at me, shaking his head. “Why would you do that, Billy?”
My eyes shift around the room and back to Dante. “Because…you’re talking about business…I’m not…”
Dante looks out at the men. “Anybody object to Sarah being here?”
Antonio pipes up from across the couch, pulling my attention his way, “Come on, Sarah, you’re one of us. You put that shit in blood the minute you took a beating for us.”
My brows narrow in as I sit up, trying to understand him. I look back at Dante, who runs his thumb over my sore cheek.
Nico leans forward. “Yeah, and even though I think it was stupid for you to go it alone, what you did, that was stand-up.”
I can’t say anything. I’ve been practically alone my entire life, raised by men who hated me, ignored me, disregarded me, and used me for what they could gain. But as I look around the room, listening to what they’re saying, I realize this is the first time I’ve felt like I belong somewhere. Not just with Dante but with his family too.
“You’re a part of us now, and forever, Billy. You’re a made woman.” Dante teases pulling a smile to my lips.
My fingers roll the belt from the robe around my fingers. “Can I ask a question?”
Dante nods.
“What happened to my father and brother? Did you guys go after them or just come for me?”
Vincenzo squats down by the couch, his hands curving around the arm. He has the kindest eyes, but I know what he’s going to say won’t be that.
“I took care of it, Sarah. The official cause of death will be a heroin overdose, but it was in no way that easy. I made sure it lasted hours and hours. I wanted them to beg and go unheard. But I thought it was fitting for them to go out by the thing they were so desperate to possess.”
My hand darts out and cradles his cheek. “Thank you.”
It takes everything inside of me not to cry. Although, these tears wouldn’t be sad ones, they’d be joyful, but I won’t ever shed another tear about my past or the demons that haunted me.
He pats my hand as he stands, letting it fall back to Dante’s chest. I turn to the group and pat my cheeks, taking a steadying breath.
“This doesn’t mean I like any of you.” I laugh lightly. “But thank you will never be enough.”
Dante pulls me back into his chest as we all sit in silence for a moment. His voice vibrates against my shoulder as he fills the space. “I have a question. What if we didn’t come? What would you have done?”
Without so much as a pause, I answer, “I would’ve killed Declan myself and then come home.”
I hear a rush of breath, and then Matteo laughs. “You better marry her, or I will.”
Dante’s chest shakes as he laughs, and it makes me think back to the last words he said to me before all hell broke loose.
My chin tips up, taking in his scruffy cheek. “You still not wanting to be my boyfriend?”
His mouth pulls at the ends into a smile as he twists his head to the side, connecting with my eyes.
“You wanna be called wifey?” he croons, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth.
“Is that a proposal?”
We sit staring at each other, the room noticeably silent. His face is unreadable, as always, but it doesn’t matter because I know he feels what I do. There is no place I’d rather be than right by his side for eternity.
Dante breaks our connection and looks out at the room.
“Someone go wake up a fucking judge.”
Two hours later, I’m standing in a long oversized white T-shirt that belongs to Dante in the middle of the hotel suite surrounded by my new family.
A barely awake city judge, still in his pajamas, looks between us, pausing before he starts.
“We’ll have to fudge the date on the official paperwork for after you’re declared a widow…” The judge’s eyes shift to Dante’s smiling face.
“Oh, he’s dead, Judge…news just travels slow.”
The judge’s brow shows his discomfort with the admission, but he can’t do anything even if he wanted to. But I’m not sure he would anyway. After I explained his initial worry away, telling him I looked like this by my former husband, it’s amazing how understanding even the most law-abiding man became.
“Okay, well,” the judge says, adjusting the Bible in his hand. “Let’s begin. Sarah, do you…”
My hand shoots out to Dante’s chest. “No,” I blurt out as Dante looks at me with raised brows.
I giggle and shake my head, waving to the room. “That’s not what I meant.” Clearing my throat, I add, “Seraphina. My real first name is Seraphina.”
The room erupts in laughter and claps as I give a tiny shrug to Dante’s amused face. He leans down, kissing my lips softly then pulls back to look at me. “Goddamn, Billy, you keep things interesting.”
We look at the judge as he begins our wedding ceremony.
“Do you Seraphina O’Malley take Dante Sovrano to be your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward—”
“Yes,” I breathe out excitedly, cutting off the judge, who lets out a small la
ugh and turns to Dante.
“Dante?”
“Abso-fucking-lutely,” he agrees grabbing my waist and pulling me toward him to plant the deepest kiss against my lips.
Our tongues swirl as my arms raise and wrap around his neck as he bends over me, kissing me senseless amongst the cheers and applause. The judge yells over everyone in order to be heard.
“By the power vested in me by the state of Illinois, I now pronounce you man and wife. You can keep kissing your bride.”
Dante laughs into my mouth and lets his hand walk down my body, then dips his shoulder, hauling me up and over as I squeal.
He stands and the cheers erupt again. “Now get the fuck out. I got work to do.”
I can’t even look up as he walks us into the bedroom because my cheeks are on fire.
The bedroom door closes behind us, and he sets me to my feet, grabbing the ends of my T-shirt and lifting it slowly over my head.
“I’m going to bury myself inside you until neither of us can remember our names.”
“Yes, please.”
Dante’s fingertips skim over my body, starting at my hips and making their way up the dip of my waist. He moves tenderly past my sore but unbroken ribs, brushing over the swells of my breasts to lay flat on my chest, then running up and over my shoulders to cradle my neck. His thumbs come under my chin to tip my head back, locking our eyes.
“You don’t have to be gentle with me, Dante. I won’t break.”
His head drops as his tongue runs across my top lip before caressing and kissing his way to my ear. “I want to take my time, savor every moan, feel your body ignite around my cock. Tonight, I want it slow because I want to memorize every moment the first time I fuck my wife.”
My hands grip his hard biceps as his lips start their torturous assault of my neck, his mouth and tongue against my skin. Sighs push through my partially opened mouth as my head moves with the movement of his kiss on my neck.
“That feels so good it should be illegal.”
“I plan on murdering your pussy, so that’s fair.” He smiles into my throat.
A moan escapes my lips as our hands roam and brush over each other, exploring and blazing a trail of heat wherever we touch.
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