Craving The Demon: A Standalone Enemies To Lovers Mafia Romance

by Rebel Hart

  My eyes went wide. “What could I have done? I’m sitting here with you! I’m tied up!”

  “No,” she said, looking manic. “No. You did this. Because of you, your brother…” She looked like she was going to start crying. “Your brother could be dead.”

  “Dead?” I said. “What happened?”

  “You tell us.” My father came sauntering into the room. “Moments ago, several of our underlings’ cell phones detonated randomly, including your brother’s, who had half his face blown off. That has Misterro written all over it.”

  “You were the ones who snatched me and threatened to kill me when you thought I was in a relationship with Bryce. I have no idea what happened, but if he came here looking for me and gave your guys tech weapons to the face for it, blame yourselves, not me.”

  It did break my heart to see my mom nearly in tears over my brother, when she was so willing to kill me even after she realized I was pregnant. I’d been stupid for so long to think I meant anything to this family. I’d always just been a tool to them.

  “I wonder though,” I said. “If that’s what they did to the guys below, I wonder what they have planned for you?” A smile came across my face, and with serendipitous timing, the elevator bell rang in the distance. Both my parents’ heads shot in that direction, paranoia thick on their faces. “Oh… Looks like they’re here.”

  My dad ran up to me and grabbed me, using a knife to cut the rope that was binding me, before lifting me by my hair from the chair. He dragged me out of the room I was in, and out into the apartment. Both he and my mom’s heads were on swivels, trying to find who had entered the penthouse. The elevator doors were open when we walked around the corner into the entryway, but the elevator was open and the doors were slowly closing.

  “Whoever came is already in,” I said.

  “Come out!” my father said, holding his knife against my throat. “I’ll kill her if you don’t.”

  “You’re going to kill me anyway, and you don’t even know if anyone’s here,” I said.

  “Shut up,” my mother snapped. She had her own gun out and held up and was peeking all around the place. Behind curtains, in closets. “They have to be in here somewhere.”

  I didn’t fight as my father dragged me around the room. It wasn’t just that I believed that someone was in the apartment, probably Bryce, but also because I knew that my parents’ paranoia was going to cause them to slip up at some point. I just had to wait for my window and I’d be able to get free.

  Not many lights were on in the place, and as we walked around, my mom continued to lead, poking around every corner with her gun, preparing to fight whomever she came up against.

  Suddenly, a glass fell and shattered. We were closer to the living room and all of us looked in the direction of the kitchen before my dad nodded that way. My mom stepped out in front of us, her gun still drawn, and tiptoed her way towards the kitchen.

  “We’re gonna kill this woman you want,” she said. “The baby inside too, if you don’t come out.”

  We stepped into the kitchen and all of our eyes immediately shot to the broken glass on the ground. Bryce was a master of stealth. He’d followed me a number of times when I didn’t realize it. Dropping a glass wasn’t like him.

  He had to have done it on purpose.

  I looked all around, trying to see if I could figure it out, when I noticed something peculiar. The door to the pantry was held slightly ajar and there was a sleeve hanging over the doorknob.

  It took active effort to hold back a smile. Don’t steal my moves.

  Unfortunately, both my parents seemed to be missing it, so I had to do what I could to draw their attention. Just as my dad passed by the pantry, I pulled against him, craning like I was looking in the pantry. He snatched me up, pulling me tight to him and holding the knife a little firmer against my neck, then he looked backwards to what I was looking at.

  “Oh…” He noticed the sleeve hanging over the knob in the pantry and whispered, “Shelly.” He flicked his head towards the door.

  And I started to act.

  It started with a fake fight to get free from my father, and ended with me screaming. “Bryce! They found you! Run!”

  My mom leapt forward, threw back the door and immediately started to fire. The sudden discharging of the gun made my father jump, and it gave me the small opening I needed to snatch out of his grip. I jumped over my mom and slammed my fist into hers, the same way I’d done with Bryce’s when he tried to corner me back at the house I’d rented to kill him in. Her gun went flying forward out of her hand, and I curled my arm around her neck and dragged her backwards, easily overpowering her.

  Suddenly, another gunshot blasted through the silence, scaring me at first, but then I turned and saw Bryce standing there with his gun out. He had it pointed down at my dad who had collapsed to the ground holding his stomach.

  Bryce shot him.

  “Tony! No!” my mom screeched.

  Bryce pointed his gun to her, but I held out my hand. “Don’t!”

  There was still something in me foolishly tethered to my parents. I couldn’t see them die, even if they didn’t share the sentiment. I let go of my mom and she dropped to the floor next to my dad who was bleeding out.

  I jumped across them to Bryce and took his arm. “Let’s just go.”

  He didn’t argue, but rather pushed me behind him so he was a shield between me and my parents. We backed up until we were at the elevator, and I entered the code to activate it. He continued to stay in front of me until we were on the elevator and the doors had closed, then he turned around to face me.

  “Are you okay?” His hands immediately flew to my stomach. “Are you both okay?”

  I looked at him. “You know?”

  “Nique told me,” he said.

  “Is she safe?” I asked.

  He nodded. “Yeah. Immediately after she called me, I thought she may be in danger. She’s at my parents’ house with them now. She’s fine.”

  Overwhelmed with relief, I threw my hands around Bryce’s shoulders and dragged him into a tight hug. “We’re okay.” His arms wrapped around me and held me close. I took several deep breaths, allowing myself to be temporarily comforted by his smell. “Um… My mom said TJ’s dead maybe?”

  “Not dead.” He released me and stepped back to look down at me. “Pretty fucked though. I… saw bone.”

  That phrase nearly made me sick, but I swallowed to hold it back. “What happened?”

  “Apparently my mom has been workshopping weapons,” he replied.

  “Weapons?”

  He nodded. “Of mass destruction.”

  “Nothing like that has been done in Vegas before,” I murmured.

  “I assume that’s part of the reason,” he said. “Mari, I need to—”

  “I’m in love with you,” I said suddenly. “I know that maybe you don’t feel—”

  Bryce ducked and set his lips on mine for a few seconds before leaning back and smiling. “I’m in love with you too.”

  I started to laugh with relief, but tears started to fall from my eyes as well. “Thank god. Because I learned a lot of people actually don’t love me today. I needed at least one that does.”

  “If it makes you feel any better, not only do I love you, but your cousin risked everything to protect you, and my family started a war to help me save you. You’re loved, Mari,” Bryce said. “I’ll show you that every day if you let me.”

  The elevator opened out to the lobby of the hotel, and Bryce and my short-lived euphoria left. Baylor was huddled near the front doors with his gun out, looking haggard and exhausted.

  “Is it the Westuns?” Bryce said, running up, but holding my hand tight in his.

  Baylor looked back over his shoulder. “No. The police.”

  25

  Bryce

  With Mari’s hand held tightly in my own, I ran up behind Baylor and pulled my gun back out. “How many police?” I asked.

  “Explosions
on the strip?” Baylor said. “SWAT and the bomb squad are out there.”

  “Shit,” I huffed.

  He flipped around and looked at Mari. “Hi. Nice to meet you. I’m Baylor. Any chance your dad has a back way out of here?”

  “Unfortunately, no. He was paranoid by nature, so he deliberately chose a place with only one way in and one way out.”

  Baylor sighed. “Of course he did.”

  “Um… I know this is going to sound like an incredibly insensitive question, but do you know what’s going on with my brothers?” Mari asked.

  Baylor looked at her like she’d lost her mind, but I stepped up to him instantly. “Hey. Fucked or not, they’re still her family. She’s leaving them behind, just tell her.”

  “I saw Marcos drag TJ off. He was screaming up a storm, which I don’t say to make things worse for you, but just to let you know that he’s alive at least.” Mari nodded and seemed somewhat relieved. I remembered how much it hurt me to hear my mom even lightly suggest she might kill me if I fucked up or when Baylor pulled his gun on me. Mari’s entire family had turned on her. I couldn’t imagine how much that must be eating her up inside. “From what I could tell, they got away. Boxed up a bunch of the other guys who were too hurt to get away on their own. I got in here just in time.”

  “We cannot go up against that many cops,” I said. “Even if it sounds kind of fun.” That earned me a glare from both Mari and Baylor and I held up my hands. “Relax. I’m kidding.” I tapped Baylor’s shoulder. “Did you get cut off from Mom and Dad too?”

  “Yeah. What happened?” he asked.

  “My dad’s penthouse is a Faraday Cage. If you tried to bring anything like a bug that wasn’t hardwired up there, it wouldn’t work,” Mari explained.

  I pulled out my phone and navigated to the app my mom had set up and reconnected back to her and my dad. They picked up in an instant. “Hello? Bryce? Are you okay?”

  “Mom, calm down,” I hummed. “We’re okay. I got Mari, she’s safe. Baby’s safe. Everything’s fine.”

  “Well, we’ll let a doctor give her a full examination once you all get home. I’ll call for a house call right away. When will you all make it back, do you think?” she asked.

  “Yeah, that’s the problem,” I said. “We are stuck inside the Bellagio because SWAT and the bomb squad are outside, I imagine, with several other officers from the LVPD.”

  “Baylor Misterro!” a voice boomed through a megaphone. “This is Detective Samantha Mington of the Las Vegas Organized Crime Unit. Several witnesses have confirmed you inside this hotel. Come out with your hands up.”

  Baylor scoffed. “I fucking hate this bitch.”

  I peeked through the window and saw a tall woman with straight red hair held up in a ponytail, holding a gun in one hand and a megaphone in the other. “This is your cop, huh?”

  “That’s not funny,” he said. “She does not belong to me. I wish she’d fucking drop dead.”

  “So making nice with the police is going well, then?” I asked.

  “We are in the middle of a full crisis right now. Are you two always this calm during emergencies?” Mari asked.

  “Yes,” my mother answered. “Can she hear me? Put me in her ear.”

  Reluctantly, I pulled the headphone from my ear and slipped it into Mari’s. “She, uh, wants to talk to you.”

  Mari looked shocked at first, but then she gained a more serious expression. She was nodding along like someone was explaining something to her, and she fortunately seemed to understand. “Yeah. I actually do. All I need to do is inform them. Call the number you have and tell them that Willa Davison is being released with the men that saved her.”

  “I don’t know…” Baylor said. “That sounds risky, Mom.”

  “What?” I said. “What are we doing?”

  Mari looked at me and said, “I need you to trust me, okay?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. Of course.”

  “Walk outside with your hands up.”

  Baylor shook his head. “I do not like this plan.”

  Mari reached between Baylor and I and pulled open the door. “Leave your guns.”

  “Leave our—”

  “You said you trusted me,” Mari said. “I’m not gonna let anything happen to you. I promise.”

  Though the thought terrified me, I set my gun on the ground and Baylor did the same, then we both stuck our hands in the air and started walking out. Mari quickly stepped between us, with her hands up, and as soon as we were within earshot of the police, she started to shout out.

  “I’m the hostage that was taken! You should be hearing from your superiors any minute!”

  The captain that had called out to Baylor, Sam, was already charging forward with cuffs out. “Get down on the ground! Now!”

  “Sam!” A man came bustling up from behind her. “Wait just a second.” He rushed up to her side and whispered something in her ear, then turned and smiled at us. “You are good to go, folks.”

  “Wait,” Sam said. “No, no, no. We have a dozen or more witnesses who say they were standing right here when the explosions went off.”

  “And we have since recovered footage that shows both men were standing still with both their hands visible when it happened,” he said. “Whatever caused those explosions, it wasn’t either of these two.”

  “I work for the state,” Mari said. “The Westun family took me hostage, but thankfully,” she took my hand. “Bryce and I have been dating and he came to save me.”

  “This man is very dangerous,” Sam said, then she turned to glare at Baylor. “And this one is even worse than him.”

  I shook my head. “More than me? I—” Mari elbowed me and I shut up. She was right; now wasn’t the time.

  “Well, if that’s all you need. I’d like to get my girlfriend home,” I said, and Mari looked up at me and smiled.

  We walked past her and the rest of the cops who were all being told to stand down, but Sam stepped between us and Baylor, sizing him up like he didn’t have more than half-a-foot’s height on her. “This isn’t over. Baylor Misterro. Not until you’re behind bars.”

  “Best of luck with that… captain,” he hissed.

  He seemed like he was going to linger and puff out his chest, so I reached backwards and grabbed him by the collar and pulled him away, until he was no longer distracted by her and could move on his own.

  “I wanna kill her, Bryce,” he hissed.

  I just laughed. “I know, buddy.”

  Getting back to my parents’ was a relief for us all. Mari was able to hug Nique and see for herself that she was okay, and I was able to formally introduce her to my parents, and a better introduction for Baylor.

  “I’m sorry for all the trouble I caused,” Mari said.

  “Well, I suppose I’ll forgive you if you’d be willing to share your contacts and any inroads you’ve made in the city up to this point,” my mom said. “I’m sure it’s not just MasCat.”

  Mari shook her head, looking like it was her time to shine. “I’m in with the state, the city, LVPD, MasCat, and four of the other major tech companies in the city. If you let me, I’ll help you take over everything within this state’s borders.”

  My mom smiled brightly. “A woman after my own heart.” She wagged a finger at her and looked at me. “I like her.”

  “I had a feeling you would.”

  “Bryce, why don’t you take Mari down to your room to rest, and we’ll call you when the doctor gets here. I’m sure you’re exhausted after this day.”

  She nodded and smiled. “Thank you.”

  It was nice to be able to leave my family behind for a little bit and finally get Mari alone. With the issues with her family behind us, at least temporarily, we had a few things we needed to discuss in private. Some boxes that needed ticking.

  Some laundry that had to be aired out.

  “I’m sorry,” I said once we were behind my closed bedroom door. “I stole your phone and I used it to solidify the M
asCat deal. I thought if I could do that, my mom wouldn’t feel the need to kill you. Which in my defense, she didn’t, it’s just that… then your parents did.”

  “I was hoping that was the case,” she said. “I understand, and I’m grateful for the effort. My parents threatened me, but I was kind of hopeful that it was just smoke and they’d never actually kill me. When my dad came at me with a saw, I realized my hope was ill-placed.”

  “A saw?!” Immediately, I started to run my hands all over her body, checking that she was okay. “Did he cut you? Did he hurt you?”

  “No. Fortunately, the explosions went off and spooked him before he could. He was going to, though. If you all hadn’t showed up when you did, I’d be dead right now.” She pulled against me and set her head against my chest. “Thank you. You saved my life.”

  All I could do was hold her close to me and feel grateful that I hadn’t been a minute later. “I promise, I will never let anyone hurt you ever again.” She squeezed me and I felt the tension leave the room. We were safe, at least for now. “So…” I pulled back from her. “Really solid birth control, huh?”

  “Believe me, I am going to have words with my doctor,” she said. “Speaking of which… if we’re… I mean if you don’t want… I mean, I’d understand if—”

  I cut her off by kissing her. She leaned against me and when she pulled back, she had an adorable blush on her cheeks. “I am so happy,” I said. “Honestly, I never thought of myself as a father, but when Nique said you were pregnant, all I wanted was to get to you and save you and our baby. In a really weird way, I flew into dad mode. I can’t explain it, I was just… I’m so happy I get to start a family with you, Mariana Westun.”

  She smiled up at me. “I’m so happy I get to start one with you too.”

  Wrapping her arms around me again, she pulled me down onto my bed, straddling her legs over me and looking down at me with a now seductive gaze. “Fortunately, we still have a little bit of time before the baby starts to interfere with our… explorations.”