Page 80 of His Captive
CHAPTER 34
Massimo
I have no idea how long I’m unconscious.
I wake up in the back of a car and my hands are tied. My vision doesn’t have time to focus before I hear Erica’s voice and something sharp jabs into my neck.
The next time I regain consciousness, I’m sitting in a chair. It feels like handcuffs are on my wrists. My ankles are shackled. I blink several times and see shadows moving.
“Fucking bitch,” I mutter, even though I can’t see Erica. I assume she’s in the room.
“Mo! You’re awake!” It’s Emilio’s voice.
I blink several times and glance to my right. Emilio is in a chair, too. His hands and feet are secured like mine.
“No matter what I do, I can’t get away from this family,” another voice sighs.
“Leo?” I look to my left.
Leo looks like he put up a fight. He always was a tough fucker. But this means we’re all here. The shadows come into focus. I see Erica and Paulie. No sign of Big Boyd, but he’s the least of my worries now. I yank at the handcuffs and my shoulder aches. I try the shackles and see they are secured to the floor.
“Why?” I demand, glaring at Erica.
“Why did I hire a hitman?” Erica laughs.
“No, I get that,” I growl. “But why Layla? She was like a fucking sister to you.”
“She was…” Erica walks closer and smiles. “Until she got pregnant and told me it was a boy.”
My face pales. Layla wanted to know, but I didn’t. I wanted it to be a surprise.
“Your brother was next in line after you, and you were such a hothead, I figured you’d get your damn self killed before you became a problem,” Erica continues. “But a baby? An heir? He’d jump the line, and I couldn’t have that, now could I?”
“This isn’t how we do things!” Emilio spits out. “I told you I’d never sit on my father’s throne!”
“But Matteo will,” Erica says, referencing my nephew. “One day, after I deal with the three of you.”
Leo is silent. I glance over at him before looking at Erica again.
“Leo doesn’t even want the damn job!” I growl. “There’s no reason to kill him! He’s a fucking priest!”
“Too risky.” Erica shrugs. “I can’t have a crisis of faith getting in the way of my son’s destiny.”
“You’re going to kill your own fucking husband?” Emilio shouts. “Who do you think is going to raise Matteo right, so he can even run this damn family, huh?”
“You coddle the boy. It’s better this way,” Erica answers. “I thought I could deal with Massimo and force you to man the fuck up, but we’re past that.”
I size up the room, even though there’s nothing I can do except sit in this damn chair and listen to the bitch who killed my wife talk about killing the three of us. Paulie still has his M16. It probably has bullets now, instead of darts. Most of the men here are associates, but I spot some former Bratva in the mix, too. Guys that survived the massacre. They must have been hiding for years.
My brother isn’t the one leading the coup. It’s his damn wife. If I’d taken the bullet in my skull instead of my shoulder, he’d be completely oblivious to everything.
“Got any bright ideas, Mo?” Leo mutters. “You’re supposed to be the leader here, aren’t you?”
“No,” I sigh. “Maybe you should pray for us.”
“Lo?” Leo asks.
“Besides strangling my wife?” Emilio says dryly.
