Page 43 of The Red Queen

Desi bent over, gripped his ear, and twisted viciously.

He screamed and reached for her wrist, but the blood on his hands from his nose made her too slippery to hold on to.

“Next time you come at me, you better bring some backup,” she purred in his ear. “I expect a better show than this… stepson.”

She straightened and looked at Vitto who was holding his gun on Antonio. Vitto shook his head but said nothing. She looked around at the others, taking in their expressions of sheepishness for not kicking Antonio’s ass before she could, and impressed at the show she’d given them.

“Signora.” The waitress who had served her on the balcony was hovering. She handed Desi a towel, which was wetted down with warm water. “For the blood.”

Desi nodded and wiped the blood from her wrist, then dropped it on the floor next to Antonio. She stepped around him and walked toward the exit, her bodyguards falling into step behind her.

She couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face despite the painful throbbing in her hand. She’d punched Antonio with her right hand, forgetting about the severed finger. From now on, she’d have to remember how to throw a punch with her left hand. It had been a while since she’d trained with that arm as her dominant. This wasn’t going to be the last she heard from Antonio.

Chapter Nineteen

Giovanni’s body was in Rome, but his mind was in Venice with Desi. He’d left her two days earlier, and the loss felt like a visceral tearing within. Like he was missing something vital, and his soul was shouting at him to find the missing piece.

It felt glorious and terrible at the same time. They didn’t know each other, not well anyway, and he was obsessing over her like she was his first girlfriend. He lost all self-possession where she was concerned.

He was standing on the balcony of his hotel room, enjoying a cigar while watching the nightlife bustle below. Laughter and shouts filtered up to him, a testament to the vitality of the city. The Colosseum was brightly lit in the distance, a large stone ruin surrounded by a modern society that would eventually crumble and fall around it.

Giovanni was not one for introspection. He lived, worked, and breathed and had been doing it for so long it hadn’t been until recently that he realized that he’d been sleepwalking through life.

Less than a year ago, he’d seen through Raina’s eyes. He’d taken solace in her youth and basked in the warmth of her joy in life. She’d been escaping an admirer, a man who eventually captured her, both body and heart. Raina’s story had turned out okay, but would Giovanni’s?

He was falling under Desi’s spell. Had fallen under it the moment he first met her, when she shot him in the head, grazing him and knocking him unconscious for a few precious moments while she attacked Raina.

A woman like that, all fire and fierce intention, was intoxicating, but she was also untrustworthy. Giovanni longed for her, for her body. Yes, who wouldn’t? But it was her spirit that ensnared him. Her mind was quick, and she followed up thought with action.

Holding on to a woman like that would be difficult. Like caging a wild animal. It was why he gave her more freedom. Otherwise, she would have hurt herself by repeatedly trying to escape.

Yet Giovanni felt that if he didn’t keep his eyes on her, she would disappear like smoke. Impossible to hold on to. She was fragile and strong, intelligent, and quick-minded. He had no doubt she could leave him if she wanted to. Of course, he would hunt her and recapture her. No question. But he didn’t want to risk harm befalling his beautiful captive while she was out of his control.

Desi had enemies. More than she knew.

Mateo Gutierrez, while supportive of Giovanni’s decision, wasn’t entirely convinced Desi should still be breathing. She’d attacked him, his woman, and his home. The only reason she was still alive was his distaste at killing women. Something Giovanni shared, though he was more than willing to do what was necessary to maintain his organization.

Desi also had enemies that had once been allies. Men from the Garza cartel who were attempting to reclaim the territory lost when Gutierrez had taken out their leader. They considered Desi a threat and had put a hit out on her. If she stepped foot in Mexico again, she would be in grave danger.

There were likely other enemies that Giovanni didn’t know about. Desi didn’t set out to make friends. In fact, she was opposite. She cultivated a prickly exterior that kept any potential friends or admirers at bay.

“Boss, the car is ready for you.”

Giovanni turned to nod at Dino. Though he’d been loath to leave his estate in less experienced hands, he’d invited Dino to accompany him to a neutral territory meeting of family heads. It would be good for Dino to be seen and heard by the powerful men and women who would be in attendance.

Stubbing out his cigar on the railing, he tossed it in the marble ashtray provided and strode through his suite. He’d booked the entire floor for his men and instructed the hotel to keep their staff out. There weren’t enough men to fill the rooms, but he wanted the security of the entire floor where he could have men at all exits. Though the annual meeting was supposed to be neutral territory, there would still be some backstabbing and black market dealing.

Giovanni took the elevator down to the main floor, surrounded by Dino and three others. All wore tailored suits, rings, shiny shoes, and had their hair and facial hair groomed to perfection. There would be no slouches in the Savino organization. The more put together they looked, the more others would assume their business was the same, which was accurate.

Still, there was some irony in the small group of men who committed unspeakable acts on a regular basis getting dolled up for a meeting of the mobsters.

Dino held the car door open for Giovanni who ducked to climb in. As his head dipped, a deafening crack shattered the night around them. Giovanni was shoved forward by Dino who landed on top of him with a grunt. Two more cracks split the night.

“Get off me,” Giovanni snarled, trying to shove Dino so he could reach his gun.

When he got no response, he twisted around and caught sight of Dino’s white face. A red stain was spreading outward from his chest. His collapsing body had shoved Giovanni into the car, saving his life.

“Cazzo!” Giovanni pulled himself out from underneath Dino and slapped the man on the cheek. “Stay with me,amico.”

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