Page 114 of A Bossy Proposal

“What did you say about my mother?” My voice comes out as a whisper.

“Such a beautiful woman. So willing to debase herself. Too bad it didn’t save either of them.”

I squeeze the trigger, but it won't fire. The gun shakes to much in my grip.

“Luca,” I say through gritted teeth. “Kill him.”

Vincenzo’s laugh echoes through the warehouse. “Speaking of beautiful women, how’s that lawyer of yours, Luca? Freya, isn’t it?”

Luca stiffens beside me as I hand him the gun.

“Such a pretty thing. And that baby...” Vincenzo clicks his tongue. “Would be a shame if something happened to them. Imagine that. Another of your lawyer’s dying.” He purses his lips and tuts.

The gunshot is deafening.

Vincenzo screams as Luca’s bullet shatters his kneecap.

“And that might be the final nail in your coffin.” Vincenzo gasps through the pain. “And hers.”

Another shot echoes off the walls.

Another scream as his other knee explodes. “My men,” Vincenzo pants, blood pooling beneath his chair, “they’ll taketurns with her. Break her. And when they’re done, they’ll kill her and her baby.”

Luca’s face turns to stone. “Nobody will touch a hair on their heads.”

The final shot hits Vincenzo between the eyes. Blood and brain matter painting the wall behind him.

His body slumps forward, stretched against the binds holding him in the chair.

The sound of the gunshot still rings in my ears, but all I can focus on is the lifeless body before me. The man who murdered my parents, who haunted my nightmares for years, is finally gone.

My legs give out, and I sink to my knees on the cold concrete.

Luca’s arm remains extended, gun smoking. Like his face is carved from marble, emotionless. But it's his eyes that burn with such an intensity that it makes me shiver.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, though I’m not sure what exactly I’m apologizing for. For bringing this darkness into their lives? For not being strong enough to pull the trigger myself?

Luca lowers his weapon slowly, his jaw clenched tight. “Don’t apologize. He needed to die.” His voice is flat, controlled, but I can hear the underlying rage. “No one threatens what’s mine.”

Mine?

I don’t ask what he means by that, as Gabe helps me to my feet. His grip is gentle but firm. “It’s over now. You’re safe. It’s time for you to go back to your world.”

I look at Vincenzo’s body one last time. The monster who destroyed my family, who forced me to live in fear and isolation, reduced to nothing but a bloody heap in a warehouse.

“Can you take me back to the hospital?” I ask, my voice stronger than I feel. “I need to be there when West wakes up.”

Luca nods, already pulling out his phone. “Romeo will take you back while we tidy up.” He pauses, then adds softly, “You’reone of us now, Amelia. We protect our own. You only have to call.”

I nod. “I know, and thank you.”

Chapter 32

Amelia

Ican’t take my eyes off West as we ride the elevator up to our penthouse. He’s pale and a little groggy from the painkillers, but alive. The white bandages peeking out from his shirt are a stark reminder of how close I came to losing him.

“You okay, princess?” he mumbles, catching me staring.

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