Page 149 of Bride By Initiation

"Easy, man. I was just in the moment," he claims.

"'In the moment'? You're supposed to be part of that ceremony, right?"

He looks back. "Yeah."

"You know what? Fuck you," I say, and slice my knife down his arm.

"What the fuck, man?" he shrieks, backing up.

I step closer, holding the knife out, and threaten, "Don't you ever even think about my wife again. Zara, let's go." I spin and grab her arm, leading her toward the door. I open it, move her through, then shut it.I lock the knob and then spin her against the wall, fretting, "Are you all right?"

She nods. "Yeah. But, Sean, I don't think you should have done that."

"I didn't mess up the ceremony. They did," I claim.

Her expression turns more worrisome. "Sean."

"No one's touching you, Zara. No one's coming near you, and especially not with their dick near your face. They better not even think about it. Do you understand me?"

She nods.

I add, "Unless that's what you wanted?"

"Of course that's not what I wanted. I told you I wanted you, not any of them."

Relief hits me. "Good." I step back and grab my shirt from her, ordering, "Put your shirt on. Thanks for bringing my clothes." I kiss her on the lips.

She returns my affection.

I retreat, tug my shirt over my head, then slide into my jeans.

I lead her out and back onto the plane. We don't speak until we're in the air and I've calmed a bit. My heart finally stops racing, and I pull her into me. I kiss her head, adding, "I'm sorry if I scared you."

She looks up at me with tears in her eyes. She blurts out, "I killed somebody else."

My insides quiver. "What are you talking about?"

She starts to sob.

I tug her closer. "My pulse, what's wrong? Tell me what happened."

She wails, babbling, "I killed her. I had to choose who was the traitor, and I killed her. And Valentina is my cousin, but I killed the Marinolady without thinking twice. Sean, I'm a horrible person!" She sobs, her tears drenching my shirt.

"Shh. No, you're not. Why were you with Valentina?"

"She just showed up."

"What do you mean she's your cousin?"

Zara pushes away, sniffling. "My dad had a sister. It was her mom, and she married an Abruzzo, but... Well, supposedly he wasn't a bad one, and my dad wouldn't believe it. He joined The Underworld. He believed in your dad's vision. He wanted peace."

I stay silent.

Her face falls further. "Sean, haven't you told me everything you know about The Underworld?"

I shrug. "We haven't had a lot of time to talk about things. But why haven't you told me what you know?"

She hesitates, then winces. "I don't know."

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