Page 50 of Dare To Free Us

Out of nowhere a blast hit me in the back. It knocked me to the ground as the air was punched from my lungs. The body armor had done its job of saving my life but it still hurt like a bitch.

A dozen shots fired in the direction the bullet came from. I turned just in time to see a bloody body shot full of holes hit the ground. Getting to my feet I took a few steadying breaths and pushed on. There was no time to dwell on the fact I almost died twice in just a matter of minutes.

By now most of the initial shockwave was over. Bodies covered the once pristine white space, blood pooled on the hardwood floor and painted every wall. Some men were still dying. If they were mine I ordered someone to get them out, if they weren’t, I put a bullet between their eyes.

Commotion and a few lingering pops were going off upstairs, but for the most part we’d massacred the assholes.

Nico appeared in front of me. “You look like shit.”

“Thanks.”Bastard.He didn’t look any cleaner. “Any sign of Shura?”

He frowned and shook his head.Damn.

It was a long shot. Shura probably had another location— or two— set up just like this for all we knew. Of course we weren’t lucky enough to take down the one he holed himself up in. But we put a huge dent in his man power, at least two dozen. Hopefully the loss would discourage his uncles from sending more help.

“Bring all the bodies inside. Disable the fire alarms and burn it down.” If we were lucky the authorities hadn’t been called yet— due to the secluded location— giving ample time for the house to turn to ash before the fire department showed up.

“On it.” Nico nodded and turned to leave.

Just then my phone buzzed in my pocket. The number was blocked. I knew who it was by the way the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. I pushed the answer button and brought it up to my ear but didn’t say anything.

“Hello, Matteo.”

My phone case groaned as I crushed it in my grip. “Shura.”

“You found my house.”

“Not yours apparently since you weren’t here.”

“You sound disappointed,” he mocked.

“You fucking coward, come out a face me like a man. Although I shouldn’t expect anything more. You are a spineless piece of shit, just like your father.”

There was a long silence on the other end. I could hear Shura taking deep breaths. Good, I’d gotten to him. “You will be seeing me soon enough, Matteo. Until then, keep Arianna warm for me until I get there.”

I opened my mouth to tell him I would rip out his liver and eat it whole if he came anywhere near Arianna but he hung up. Fury burned my cheeks and twisted my stomach. He knew just how to hit back.

Even after all the blood I’d spilled and the carnage that surrounded me my bloodlust wasn’t sated.Shura.Shura’s blood was the life force I needed to spill. I wanted to roar at the top of my lugs. Fire bullets into bodies until my rage subsided, but that wasn’t me.

Taking a deep breath I crushed everything in to a ball in my chest and tucked it away. I would not let my emotions control me or jeopardize my authority.

“Head out!” I yelled though the house. As we all headed out the back the smell of gas and smoke invaded my nostrils. Glancing over my shoulder I watched Nico and several others throw molotov-cocktails through the windows. By the time we reached the edge of the large yard the place was consumed in flames.

* * *

I satat my desk above Red waiting for the Irish don to show up. He’d called for the tenth time in four days demanding an in person meeting.

Cleaning up after the crash had taken just about every ounce of sanity I had left. Things happening in public were a hundred times more complicated to make go away. Dozens of phone calls and new threats had to be made. Nico laid good ground work but as the Boss it was my responsibility to have the last word and make the final impact.

Not to mention the night we torched a multi-million dollar home after murdering nearly two dozen men caught major attention. But I’d been expecting that. The media was in a frenzy, however, a few less than friendly calls made the stories stay away from mafia speculation.

On top of that I spent every extra moment I could scrounge up with Arianna, she was still incredibly sore and shaken by the crash. Also, almost having died— twice— tightened the cord that always pulled me back to her when shit was going wrong.

As a guy I craved her body to help relieve my own stress but she was still in pain even days later. So I did nothing more than gently hold her in bed and stroke her hair. Sex would have been painful on her bruised ribs and probably sent her head spinning— especially the kind of sex I was craving— so, I would wait.

But I started to notice a change in Arianna after we’d gone to see Vasilisa. She often stared off into space, looking lost and sad. When I’d asked her what was wrong she would give me a weak smile and say she was fine. Which even I knew was code for: not ok in the slightest.

A few times I came home to find her sitting in front of her easel just blinking at the blank canvas. A sadness would have her shoulders sagging as hands that were usually filled with brushes remained empty in her lap.

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