Page 113 of The Tempted

Chapter Eleven

2014

There are benefits to being part of a powerful organization, just like there are rewards to everyone knowing who you are and what you do. They tell you what you want to know, when you want to know it, without asking questions. It didn’t take me long to get the info I needed to locate Adrianna’s ex. The degenerate had been searching high and low for product to snort, leaving a trail of his whereabouts. I tracked him back to some crack bitch’s apartment that doubles as a drug den. My guess is he is friendly with the girl and he’s either hoping she’s got shit lying around he can get his hands on or he’s banking on a drug dealer bringing her his product to cut. Either way he’s itching to get his hands on the shit and she’s his only hope.

I climb the stairs of the apartment building not willing to ring the bell and give the asshole a chance to escape. I reach the apartment and bang on the door, anxious to come face to face for the first time with Adrianna’s ex-boyfriend. The door cracks open as much as the chain on top allows and the woman stares at me through bloodshot eyes.

“Open the door,” I demand gravely.

“Who the fuck are you?” she slurs.

I roll my neck to keep myself in check before blowing out a breath and looking into her eyes.

“You have ten seconds to open the door or I will break the fucking thing down. I’m not looking to hurt you but I need a word with your house guest.”

She glares at me for a moment trying to decide in the state that she’s in if I’m being truthful or if I’m playing her. In the end, she closes the door, unlatches the chain lock and opens the door wide.

“Get him the fuck out of, here will you?” she says, closing the door once I’ve entered. She motioned to the living room turning around herself and walking into the kitchen. The back of the couch faces me and I can see Vinny sitting on it dazing out at the television in front of him. His back facing me, and to be honest, I don’t even know if he realizes that someone was at the door.

I crack my knuckles, one by one, as I stroll towards him. I picture Adrianna and Luca for a fleeting moment and it’s all the ammo I need to bring this motherfucker to his knees. In one swift motion, I have him in a headlock, bringing him over the back of the couch. His arms flail at his sides before reaching for my forearm that is tight around his neck. I reach behind me, pull my gun from the waistband of my pants, and press the barrel against his temple.

“You Vinny?” I grind out as he gasps for air, eyes bulging and all that shit.

“Nod your fucking head,” his head jerks in response and pull him over the back of the couch with the arm I have lodged against his neck.

I release my hold on him and he falls like a sack of potatoes to the ground gasping for breath and holding his neck as he peers up at me.

“Who the fuck are you?” he manages to say.

“Your worst fucking nightmare,” I say calmly, tucking my gun back into my pants before crooking my finger.

“Get on your feet.”

He crawls to the wall, holding on for leverage as he gets to his feet. I glance over at the woman in the kitchen who looks unfazed by all this, making me wonder what kind of shit she saw regularly.

“Don’t come back here without my money,” she says, pointing the utensil she’s using to cut drugs with at Vinny. I see red the minute the words leave her mouth and turn my attention back to Vinny. It settles in that he was trying to shake down A to give this crack whore money. He was trying to take food from his own kid’s mouth to pay this bitch for drugs. He could give a fuck less that he hasn’t supported his son never mind that he’s missed a year of his life.

I grab him by the back of his shirt and drag his sorry ass to the door, thinking all the while I should fucking kill him. There’s a chance I might but when Luca grows up and asks what happened to his old man, I don’t want him to know how much of a monster I can be. I know what it’s like not to have a father. This piece of shit is still Luca’s dad – I won’t be the man who robs him of a father.

I drag him down the flights of stairs and push him out of the heavy fireproof doors into the courtyard of the apartment building. I don’t care about the bystanders that are huddled in the corner around a fire they made inside a trashcan. They’ve probably seen a lot worse shit than what I was about to do to Vinny.

I push him up against the wall by his neck and stare into his bloodshot eyes. I can hardly believe that my beautiful Adrianna ever hooked up with someone like this, but who am I to judge? My fist collides with his jaw.

That’s for taking advantage of my girl.

He tries to turn his face, lift his hands in defense, but my hands are too quick and I punch him again in the same spot. His lip splits open and blood trickles from his mouth as he turns the other cheek, giving me a fresh piece of his face for my knuckles to bruise.

That’s for making her fall for you.

He pulls back his hand attempting to fight back but my hand closes over his wrists as I twist his arm, breaking it or at least fracturing it. He cries out in agony and it’s like music to my fucking ears to hear him sing in pain.

That’s for getting her pregnant.

Vinny slides down the brick wall holding his wrist with his free hand. I stop, making him think the beating is over. He lifts his head to meet my gaze and begs me to have mercy on his pathetic soul. I lift my boot and stomp on his balls, applying just the right amount of pressure that his eyes roll behind his fucking head.

That’s for leaving her pregnant and alone.

I bend over him grabbing the sides of his head with my hands, lifting his head off the ground slightly just to slam it back down. I can’t explain the rage inside of me for this man–it’s lethal consuming every ounce of my fucking existence.

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