by Bella J.
I stared at the piece of paper I grabbed from Dante’s hand. There it was. In black and white. Importer, Antonio Valenti. Even though it confused the fuck out of everyone to see my name on the bill of lading, the more pressing question was who the fuck was the exporter? “Does anyone know who this Vadik Volkof is?”
“According to Google, Vadik Volkof is some or other rich Russian son of a bitch.” Lorik swiped across the screen of his mobile. “Businessman worth billions. Owns half the fucking world. Has three sons, a daughter, a wife, and a Chihuahua.”
I glowered at Lorik.
“Okay, not the Chihuahua. But the rest is true…according to Google.”
“And we’re going to go with whatever the fuck Google says?”
“Hey, do not underestimate the knowledge of the almighty Google.”
I rubbed the back of my neck. “Jesus Christ. Lucio?”
“Yeah?”
“See what you can find out about this Volkof person.”
Lucio tossed back his bourbon and slammed his glass on the counter. “On it.” And then he left.
Dante and Lorik both looked my way.
“What?”
Lorik rubbed the stubble on his chin. “You sure you didn’t order a bride from Russia, with love?”
I let out a curse. “I swear to God, if it wasn’t for my sister being so convinced she loves your ugly ass, I would have killed you in your sleep already.”
He scoffed. “In my sleep? Coward.”
Dante poured himself a glass of bourbon. “Where did you get this document, Lorik?”
“Like I said, some guy I know knows a guy, who knows a guy.”
Both Dante and I shot him warning glares.
He shrugged. “Okay, fine. The captain we questioned when we found the container, he told us that him captaining that particular ship happened last minute. He was supposed to captain a different cargo ship, but he got the call and was told his schedule changed. He didn’t know who was originally assigned to this particular ship, but some guy I know pulled a few strings, and they found the guy who was set to captain this ship in the first place.” He swallowed a large gulp of alcohol then cringed. “Long story short, we got the bill of lading for this specific container. And instead of finding answers, the fucking piece of paper only gives us more goddamn questions.”
“Yeah, like why the fuck my name is on it.” I sat down on the couch, the warning tingle of an imminent migraine starting at my temples.
Dante sat across from me. “We still suspecting Mancuso?”
“I don’t know. At this point, I’m suspecting the whole fucking world.” And with that, I tossed the piece of paper on the floor. Pieces of the puzzle seemed to drop out of fucking thin air, but it wasn’t enough for us to figure out what was going on.
First, the naked slave girl.
Then the letter.
And now the bill of lading, which clearly stated my name as the receiver.
Yes, we still suspected Mancuso. But there was a chill running up and down my spine, warning me that the giant black hole we found ourselves in went much deeper than just the Mancusos.
Dante leaned back in his chair. “Any progress with the girl?”
I shook my head. “Not yet. I have a feeling getting through to her will be a time-consuming process. And time is not something we have at the moment.”
“Antonio?”
I looked up to see Karina standing by the door. The glare she shot my way was almost painful. It was so intense that even Dante and Lorik picked up on the deadly vibes.
Dante got up. “Yeah, Lorik and I will be…well, not here.”
And then the cowards left, traipsing around Karina like little pussies.
With a sigh, I got up and poured myself another drink. “I have to say, little sis. If looks could kill, I would have been splattered all over the floor by now.”
“What the hell is going on?” The anger in her question echoed with the slamming of the door.
“Well,” I started before taking my seat again, “as you know, there’s a whole fucking lot going on. So, you need to be more specific than that.”
“Nessuno.” She shook her head. “Doe. Whatever.”
Ah, my sister had a conversation with our guest. For some reason, I didn’t like that. I didn’t like that one little bit. If there was anyone who wanted to know the secrets hiding in our guest’s head, it was me. I claimed her. She was mine.
You’re losing focus, Antonio. You claiming her was merely a show. It wasn’t real. Nothing about it is real.
I met my sister’s glare. “What about her?”
“Why is she referring to you as her new master?”
Master.
My spine tingled. Fuck. Hearing that word did something to me. It woke something in me. Something powerful. Primal. A fucking beast.
She also broke a rule. “She called me her master?”
“Yeah. But she said you don’t like it when she calls you Master.”
Good girl.
I shifted in my seat, trying to get rid of the needy ache in my groin. “Is there a point to this conversation, Karina?”
“Oh, there’s a point. And the point is that you’re not telling me everything I need to know.”
I scoffed. “Everything you need to know?”
“Yes. I’m a member of this family too.”
“That, you are. But if I remember correctly, there was a time when you didn’t want anything to do with this family.”
The skin on her neck flushed, all the way up to her cheeks. It happened whenever she got embarrassed or angry. My little sister was a flusher.
“I am a member of this family, no matter what. Don’t you dare use the past against me.”
I sighed then got up from my seat. “That’s not what I’m doing.”
“Then tell me what the hell is going on. Why is she referring to you as her new master? And who the hell is this Master V she talks about?”
I froze. “Who?”
“Master V.” Karina stepped closer. “Antonio, you should see what they did to her. Her face, her ear…Jesus Christ.”
My gaze fell to the piece of paper on the floor. Master V. Vadik Volkof. Could it be?
I turned to Karina. “She said Master V?”
“Yes. What the hell is going on, Antonio?”
My thoughts reeled. Was Master V this Vadik Volkof? Was the letter I received earlier referring to her? To Doe? Jesus.
“Antonio, I’m your goddamn sister. Tell me what the fuck is going on!” She touched my arm, and I snapped.
With a hard tug, I jerked my arm from her grasp. “Stop!”
Karina took a step back. Confusion, anger, frustration—it pulsed through my veins like molten lava. My fingers pushed into the palms of my hands as I balled my fists, my jaw clenched as I fought against the anger. “Let me make one thing really clear. You might be my sister, but I am still the head of this house. You will not disrespect me. You will not speak to me in such a manner.” I moved closer. “I will tell you what I think you need to know, and you will accept it without question. Do you understand me?”
Her eyes narrowed, dark orbs of anger staring up at me. “How dare you?”
“How dare I?”
“Yes, how dare you? You might be the head of this family since Dad died, but the responsibility of taking care of this family isn’t yours alone. It’s on all of us.”
I snorted. “Clearly, you have no idea how this works.”
“My fiancé is out there putting his life on the line, and doing fuck knows what for this family. Every fucking night he leaves with you, I lay awake praying he comes home alive. So don’t you fucking tell me I have no idea how all of this works.”
“It was his choice,” I yelled. “He knew the risks, and he still chose this family!”
A fake smile tugged at the corners of her lips. “And now I can’t help but wonder if he made the right one.”
I hated when my sister was angry at me. I hated when she sta
red at me with those big, brown eyes beaming with disapproval. But it was time she learned how it worked in our world. Our father insisted she be kept in the dark, that we protected her from the truth. Now, it was time for her to realize that in our world everything was either black or white, and she had been living in a gray area all her life.
I squared my shoulders and straightened my tie. “I might be your brother, Karina. But the night Dad died, I became the boss. And you will respect me and the decisions I make when it comes to this family.”
She scoffed. “And the decisions you make when it comes to your new slave.”
My eyes widened, and it felt like she had punched me in the chest.
She smiled. “Yeah. I’m not so naïve and clueless as you think…Boss.”
And then I lost it. Without thinking, I launched forward and grabbed her chin between my thumb and forefinger, squeezing just hard enough to know it fucking stung. “Do not test me, Karina. Dad might have tolerated your blatant disrespect and complete disregard toward loyalty to your own family. But I will not. We might have the same blood running through our veins, but that does not make you exempt from showing goddamn respect.” I pinched her chin harder between my fingers. “Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?”
Her nostrils flared, her cheeks burning red. It would have taken a special kind of stupid to not notice the animosity that swirled within her dark brown irises. But it was time my little sister learned her place. I was not our father, and I had just made her painfully aware of that fact.
“Crystal,” she muttered, and then I let go of her face.
She touched her jaw then turned to walk out, but stopped by the door, glancing over her shoulder. “Just so you know, the doc gave Doe something so she can sleep. So if I might request one thing, leave her be. Let her rest. She needs it.”
And then she left.
I knew I had hurt her. I saw the faint red marks my hard grip had left on her jaw. But I felt nothing. No remorse for hurting her. Why? Because this was so much bigger than us. Bigger than just she and I. This was about our family, about the Valenti name, and how I planned on keeping it as strong as my father had made it during his years. No matter what, I would not let my father’s legacy go to shit while I ruled.
Chapter 11
Antonio
I knew I was an asshole. Lucky for me, in my position, being an asshole was expected. The days when I gave a shit were over when my father let out his last breath. I no longer had the luxury of thinking with my heart. In fact, I never actually had that privilege. Every move, every decision I made had to be calculated, planned—strategically analyzed. Control and power were the two most important things a man like me strived for. My father had spent every minute we shared together teaching me how to accomplish just that. Little did he know that my need for power and control would spread far beyond the borders of this family.
Regardless of the fact that I was an asshole, I heeded Karina’s request by letting Doe be. To let her rest. I was so close to barging into that room and forcing information out of our guest. There were answers hidden within that mind of hers, answers we desperately needed. But I also knew that if I overplayed my hand with Doe, she would give me nothing. A woman like her had mastered the art of making her mind a fucking fortress. Impenetrable. I had to woo her into opening up. Into trusting me. So instead of chaining Doe to the wall and coercing her into telling me everything I needed to know, I got into my car and drove to the one place that always managed to tame the demons I fought to keep contained.
Club X.
From the outside, it seemed like a normal, rich, family home. Large open windows, big white pillars, and a beautiful evergreen garden. It was almost ironic how perfect and serene it looked from the outside. Inside was an entirely different story. Those large open windows displayed nothing but staged bedrooms with untouched furniture. It was the rooms below, hidden in the basement, which exposed the secrets of Club X.
I glanced in my rearview mirror then pulled out my phone before dialing.
Lucio answered on the second ring. “Yo, cous.”
“I can see you.”
“Well, what do you know? I can see you too.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Why are you following me, Lucio?”
“Like I said before, I take my job very seriously.”
“Maybe you should take it a little less seriously.”
“I’m going to pretend I didn’t just hear you say that since that would be a very irresponsible thing to say.”
I let out a breath and leaned with my shoulder against the door. “Drinks at Vertigo?”
“I’m right behind you.” When he hung up, I couldn’t help but smile. Son of a bitch might have been a pain in my ass, but with Dante’s time being occupied by Layla and Rafe, I couldn’t have asked for a better head of security.
Lucio followed me all the way to Vertigo, and we parked in our usual spot. Back in the good old days, we liked making an entrance, letting everyone know when the Valentis arrived. But nowadays, we just slipped through the back. People didn’t have to see us walk in with an entourage to know we were there. We had a presence which could be felt the second we walked in, whether from the back or the main entrance.
Lucio grinned my way when he rounded his car. “No dirty play tonight?”
“Fuck you.” He laughed, and I shoved him to the side when he stepped in next to me. “You should mind your own fucking business.”
“Sorry, cous. But your business is my business. You know, being family and all.”
I pointed toward his heavily inked arms. “Make sure you keep an open spot for the date.”
“What date?”
“The date of the day I finally kick your ass.”
He smiled like an idiot. “I’ll keep a spot open on my right butt cheek.”
We were just about to head inside when the sound of screeching tires made us turn around. A black Jaguar followed by a Hummer came to a stop, and as the doors opened, both Lucio and I reached for the guns safely tucked away at our sides.
Lucio took a slight step in front of me. “You should go inside.”
“Not a chance.”
“I’m serious. Get your fucking ass inside.”
“I said not a fucking chance.”
He grumbled something under his breath, but my attention was focused on the three men who stepped out of the cars. All three of them were equally ugly, huge-ass motherfuckers. Two of them sported rifles, not even trying to keep their deadly intent discreet.
“Antonio Valenti?” One of them with a thick Russian accent stepped closer, buttoning up his suit jacket.
Lucio wanted to move forward, but I grabbed his arm and pushed him back. “Who are you?”
He smirked, his black mustache curling up at the edges. “I’m here to give you a message.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
The asshole straightened his jacket sleeves. “You have seventy-two hours to return Mr. Volkof’s property.”
I cocked a brow, every nerve ending in my body hyperaware of the threat. “I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.”
He snorted, the look on his face both amused and annoyed at the same time. “You took something that doesn’t belong to you, Valenti.”
“I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The guy gave one ugly-ass-motherfucking smile. “I’ll give you a hint…that something is missing an ear.”
Instantly, every hair in the back of my neck stood up, the blood in my veins burning my skin. I remembered Karina mentioning something about Doe’s ear earlier. But she was too distraught to make sense, and I was too fucking angry to care.
“Gentlemen,” I stepped forward, clutching the gun tighter between my fingers, “I don’t know who this Volkof fuck is you’re talking about, but I can assure you I took nothing that belonged to him.”
The men in front of us looked at each other, amused grins plastered on their ugly faces. The one wi
th the mustache looked our way. “It would be in your best interest to not fuck with us.”
I raised a brow. “I don’t know who the fuck you are, but you’re on our turf now. So, I suggest you move the fuck along.”
Mr. Mustache leisurely lit a cigar, pretending not to be the least bit intimidated. My fingers itched against the steel of my gun as I watched him blow out the smoke he inhaled. I also picked up on Lucio’s vibe. He was ready to slaughter the three fuck-faces in front of us. But the risk was too great. We didn’t stand a chance against their rifles, and we didn’t have a clue how many men were hidden behind the heavily tinted windows of the two vehicles these bastards came in.
The asshole flicked his cigar. “We don’t want trouble. Mr. Volkof is willing to give you one chance to return his property. In turn, you have his word that there will be no, how can I put it?” He rubbed his mustache. “No collateral damage.”
I balled my fists, anger creeping up my spine. “Why don’t you tell this Volkof fuck that he should show some balls and come toss his own threats around, instead of sending you three ugly motherfuckers to do it.”
He wiped down the sides of his mustache with his thumb and forefinger. “Yeah, it’s such a shame when we don’t get the cooperation we need. It makes us do things we don’t really want to do.” He held out his arm and gestured toward the car. Lucio and I both dropped a shitload of f-bombs when they pulled a woman from the car. It was one of the waitresses who worked at Vertigo, the one Dante fucked against the bathroom wall. Her mouth was gagged, and her hands tied behind her back. The nipple patches she always wore were conveniently absent, her tits on display for everyone to see.
I took a determined step forward and pulled out my gun, aiming it at the fuck-face in front of me. “Let her go.”
He let out a mocking laugh as he glanced from my gun at the men holding the two rifles. “Please tell me you’re not too dumb to make the math here, Valenti.”
“Let her go, and there doesn’t have to be a bloodbath here tonight.”
Cautiously yet purposefully, Lucio moved in next to me, aiming two guns at the fuckers. Thank fuck for a trigger-happy cousin.
Mr. Mustache reached into his pocket, and my skull pounded with warning, my finger readily waiting on the trigger. But he pulled out a small card and tossed it to the ground right before my feet.