Page 82 of The DeLuca Crime Family: Vol. 1

“I just hope he understands it as well, or else my nose isn’t going to be the only part of my body he will have broken today.”

I patted him on the back. “Brandon knows what kind of woman he married. It shouldn’t come as a surprise to him that I’m not willing to walk away from this until it’s finished.”

“Can you blame the man?” Tommy asked, turning towards me as he paused in front of a door with his fingers wrapped around the knob. “You were taken from your wedding reception, with his baby in your belly. He isn’t really in the mood to be reasonable about anything, I don’t think.”

“He knows about the baby?” I gasped.

“You bet your sweet ass I do,” Brandon growled as the door opened and he blocked my view of inside.

My gaze flew up to his face, which looked like it had been carved from granite. A muscle jumped in his jaw and his eyes blazed down at me, filled with fury and love. “This isn’t how I wanted you to find out. I had it all planned out, too. I wanted to surprise you with the news. I guess this is one more thing to lay on the heaping pile of shit that rests at Sean’s feet.”

My hand moved down to my belly as I spoke, drawing Brandon’s attention lower. Realization of what I was wearing filled his gaze, and his face turned red with anger. “Why are you wearing Tommy’s shirt?”

The question was asked softly, but the menace in his tone was unmistakable. I threw myself at him and wrapped my arms around his waist as I hurriedly answered him, positive he was thinking the worst. “He didn’t touch me. I think he took my dress away because he was angry about his plan being ruined. And, he wanted to make it harder for me to escape.”

His arms tightened around me, and I heard his heart racing underneath my ear. “You would have found a way to escape, wouldn’t you?”

“If I had to, yes. But I knew you wouldn’t be too far behind. Not after I saw all the SUVs at the airport. I trusted that you’d find me in time, and now it’s your turn to have faith in me.”

“Letting you in this room is the last thing I want to do right now.” His chest rose before he let out a huge sigh. “But fuck, you know how to play hard ball.”

“Didn’t you realize that when I shot you in the leg?” I teased, stepping out of his hold.

“Just make sure your aim is better this time around,” he grumbled, brushing a kiss across the top of my head.

“I never miss what I’m aiming for,” I promised, walking into the room at his side before continuing. “No matter how small the target is. Like Sean’s balls.”

My gaze landed on the man in question, and I was pleased to see it looked like they’d only roughed him up a little before tying him to a chair. The Haitian man who owned this home was in the seat next to him, in much the same condition.

“Since there’s two of them, why don’t we each take one?” I offered. I waived my hand at the dark-skinned man whose wide eyes were filled with horror. “You can kill him, but I want Sean.”

Both men sputtered behind their gags and wiggled in their chairs. They were desperate to get free from their bindings, even though they were surrounded by men holding guns aimed their way. Stupid idiots. The only way they were getting out of here was in a body bag.

“You’ll have to go first,” Brandon muttered. “I can’t kill this one until I receive confirmation that our man found the women and children they planned to use for their next shipment.”

“I’ll take my time then, just in case you need additional information from him,” I promised as I lifted my right arm and fired straight into his groin. “But he’s going to feel immeasurable pain every single second he remains alive.”

I pulled the gag from his mouth and listened to him sob, begging for his life. My response was to fire another bullet, this time into his knee. He screamed in pain until his voice cracked before he started to plead for a quick death. By the time Brandon received word that the rescue had gone off without a hitch, I’d shot Sean in the other knee and both shoulders. He’d passed out twice, and I’d had one of my men bring in a cold bucket of waterboth times so I could toss it in his face and rouse him again. Between the lack of food and my pregnancy, I was starting to feel light-headed, so I finished him off with a shot straight between his eyes.

“Feel free to take your time with the other one,” I told Brandon, when I really wanted him to do anything but. “I’ll wait for you outside.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

BRANDON

Iwatched her backtrack the way she’d come in, followed closely by Thomas and a few other men. Seeing her in Thomas’ shirt was driving me crazy and it struck me that I didn’t give a fuck about being the one to take out the Haitian. It wasn’t about a thirst for killing, it was about revenge and someone else could just as easily accomplish the task. I needed my Carly. Needed to make sure she was safe and unharmed, to hold her and never let her go.

Turning to Aiden, I gestured to Josué. “Handle it. I’m going to my wife. Meet us back at the plane in an hour.”

Aiden raised an eyebrow in surprise, but nodded his agreement. Turning my back, I showed him a high level of trust by putting myself in a vulnerable position. Before I walked out the door, I glanced back and saw him smirking at Josué, his chest puffed up with pride at knowing his superior had confidence in him.

Carly was resting her back against the wall of the house, so I joined her, then pulled her into my arms, chest to chest, with her head tucked under my chin. I slipped a hand between us for a moment, caressing her flat stomach. My heart hadn’t stoppedracing since the moment she was taken, but the feel of her in my arms was slowing the pace. I held her for a moment, reassuring myself that she was real.

“Brandon.” Thomas interrupted our moment. I glared at him, contemplating adding a broken jaw to his list of maladies. “The house. It’s done.”

I grunted in acknowledgement, cuddling Carly a little closer, her little sigh soothing me. I kissed the top of her head and then reluctantly released her, placing one hand on the back of her neck. “Let’s get the fuck out of here.” Carly didn’t question anything, her eyes filled with trust and love, never doubting for a second that I would keep her safe.

My eyes swept over her body from head to toe, assessing for injuries. She appeared to be mostly unharmed, but it reminded me what she was wearing. I held my tongue, not wanting to start anything in front of the men, but she was going to get her ass spanked later.

---