Luca's pov
For the first time in my life I wasn't looking forward to breaking bones and inflicting other forms of pain. The act used to be my very own therapy session and I relished in the tortured cries of men that had made the single mistake of pissing me off. But as I walked down to the basement, to carry out a long overdue judgment, I felt less anticipation and enthusiasm. My mind was elsewhere, my body wanted to be where my mind was. But I couldn't indulge the need and it pissed me the fuck off.
Cara should be at work for her afternoon shift by now and as much as I wanted to come up with an excuse to seek her at Rico's, I had a million things to do. Things I'd ignored over the past week because I'd been too busy spending time with her.
We basically acted like we were newly weds on their honeymoon. And in a way, we were. Our relationship had begun on a fresh slate, there were still things that needed to be addressed, things that were yet to be unearthed but we were doing much better. We were much secure.
All we'd done in the past seven days was make love, talk, have fun together and make love again, the cycle continuing. All without leaving the confines of the penthouse. I'd dismissed my men taking guard within the perimeter because I and Cara went at sex like addicts. We fucked everywhere: in the shower stall, in the bathtub, in my office, on the kitchen counter, against the library shelves, against the living room windows, in the pool, on a terrace deck chair… even the foyer wasn't spared. Cara had liked the idea of the elevator doors sliding open to some unsuspecting person walking in on us.
There was no nook and cranny in the place that we hadn't made sexy, hot memories. Memories that haunted me up to this moment. I wanted her at all times.
I'd learned more about her these few days than all the long months I'd known her for. I now know she eats her chips with mustard instead of ketchup, that she hates watermelon, that her favorite color was surprisingly dark blue and not green like I'd thought, that she wanted to be a social worker and was top 5 in her fashion department.
I learned that she was scared of millipedes and that she wrapped up broken glass in multiple plastic bags secured by tapes before discarding them in the trash can so it doesn't hurt stray cats scavenging for food. I learned so many amazing things about her and I fell in love with her all over again.
I would love nothing else but to be in her arms at the moment, learning and discovering more but I had to deal with Alesky and Rocco Amato first and just like I said before, it made me all the more pissed. Which was not a good thing for the dirtbags.
"Boss, you need to hear this." One of my high ranking soldiers came up to me the second I arrived at the basement.
My eyes coated around the place until they landed on a half beaten Alesky and Rocco, the two of them glaring at each other with unbridled hate. It was clear that the only thing keeping them from lunging at each other was the tight restraint holding up their worn bodies to two metal boards mounted beside each other.
Well something interesting had been going on in my absence.
It made me smile.
"It would be a lie if I said I wasn't curious to know what had incited this unexpected development." I mused.
The soldier tugged on his collar "Yes boss about that-"
"Don Salvatore, you're finally here. I was beginning to think that you genuinely forgot you locked us in here." Rocco said, his breaths heavy and wheezy.
I clasped my hand behind my back, my expression nonchalant. "I tried to Rocco, believe me when I say I thought about leaving you here to rot away but it's really hard to forget dickheads that stabbed you in the back."
Rocco's temple throbbed and his lips twitched nervously. He looked like a desperate gambler on his last stake. "You might become forgiving when you hear what I have for you, what I'd been wanting to tell you.
I quirked a brow at the same time Alesky glared at him.
"Changing your stance already?" I mused.
His smile was pressed. "I have to live, my- my wife, she's due October."
I stared unblinkingly at him, amused by his audacity. "We're still in June. Plenty of time for her to get a new husband."
"Don Salvatore-"
"Speak again and I'll rip your lips apart."
Rocco swallowed, his lips pressing together.
I took off my jacket, handing it the nearest soldier. Both bastards eyed me waringly when I began to roll up the sleeves of my black dress shirt and yes, the color was no coincidence. I'd specifically worn black for today.
Can't return to Cara a bloodied mess.
"Like I said, I'd have left you here to rot but we have a very limited number of cells you see, and more idiots like you keep springing up. Can't have you occupying space for too long."
"Oh cut the crap Salvatore, you never planned on leaving us here. We all know you've been taking your sweet time deciding on the most twisted way to deal with us. It's something a sick bastard like you would do."
The curve of my lips was just what he described. "You know me so well, Alesky. I'm almost touched." The smile died the next instant. "So you should imagine my surprise when you went and did the single most stupid shit to piss me off royally."
His mocking smirk was replaced by a seething sneer. "The Mikhalov prick offered me a better deal, what was I supposed to do? Not take it?"
"If you valued your life and that of your men over greed, yes." I said, moving to my prized collection of torture devices.
Thumbscrews, pliers, kunai knives, an heretic's fork, an instep borer, a spanish tickler and even a priced pear of anguish I'd acquired at an illegal auction.
And a lot more.
Rocco snickered and Alesky shot him a glare before focusing back on me, animosity fanning the fire in his eyes. "You'd never get away with this."
I picked up a dart. "I actually have."
"My men will come for you. They must be finalizing their attack plans by now." He snarled.
Rocco rolled his eyes.
I flicked the kunai between my fingers. "Your men are currently fugitives, their biggest concern is how to escape the country without being caught by the police."
Even if I was yet to take care of the rest of the Polish mob, and they were actually mobilizing an attack, the fool's weak attempt to scare me would have ruined that for them. I'd have come up with a preemptive strike, all thanks to his babbling. The Polish mob had really been run by a total idiot.
Alesky's silence told me he was stunned into silence or maybe it was just fear and the realization that he'd completely lost.
Just to rub salt to injury, I said, "By the way, I got your latest container. The Columbians sure know their stuff. My clients loved it."
"YOU FUCKING-"
I flinged my kunai in one fluid motion.
He screamed in pain, his eyes glancing at the sharp metal now settled firmly in left his kneecap. They grew twice their original size.
Rocco was also staring at it in fear, visibly swallowing, his gaze slowly turning to me. He started to fight uselessly at the restraints keeping all of his limbs fastened to the board as I drew nearer.
"I have something for you, remember? You cannot kill me until you hear it."
"Actually, I can torture you until you tell me. Keep trying to bargain with me and I might just move you to The Strappado, see how you like your arms pulled back to the point of dislocation."
Blood drained from Rocco's face, his mouth parting in a gasp.
"Speak, before I get any more angry."
"It's Mikhalov, he- he knows your stepsister is your weakness. In the meeting before our last, he mentioned a plan to take her as a hostage. Use her to make you do whatever he wants."
My blood went cold. "And how does he know this?"
Rocco began to tremble. He flattened his bank against the board as if to put more space between us, a futile attempt to escape the burning force of my stare.
Alesky sneered beside him. "Don Rocco here was the most excellent spy. It hadn't taken much for us to know that the blondie meant a lot to you. Especially after you supposedly shielded her with your body during the wedding party attack.
"To be frank, I'd found it unbelievable. The infamous soulless Luca Salvatore risked his own life for a woman that wasn't even family. It was as believable as pigs flying."
Red crept into my vision as demons awoke inside of me. A deathly shadow wrapped around me, I was beyond livid.
It was suddenly obvious why the both of them had been glaring at each other when I walked in. Rocco had made his intention to save himself by ratting out and Alesky had been against it.
Once a rat, always a rat.
Rocco became even paler as he recognized whatever he saw in my expression. He flinched when I stepped closer until there was only a couple of inches of space between us.
His plan was backfiring, he'd basically shot himself in his own foot.
"Don Salvatore- Luca, I can explain. Give me a chance, I swear-"
Alesky let out a loud snort. "Oh come off it, Amato. There's nothing to ex-"
"Soldier." The single word came in a commanding rumble and a bullet was whizzing past me, lodging itself in Alesky's throat.
His pupils dilated, shock permeating his face as blood spritzed out of his neck profusely, gurgling sound pouring out of his mouth.
Rocco watched, frozen as Alesky eventually stilled, his face stuck in a permanent expression of shock.
He began to writhe and jerk against his restraints.
"I'd been easy on you even after knowing you'd committed the biggest sin in our world. You broke the omerta and yet I'd spared your life up to this moment." I backed away from him and returned to my torture collection.
"Now," I continued, picking up a sashimi knife, "you're going to taste hell on earth."
The bastard began to stop like a fucking baby. "No, Don. Luca, please, remember that we're family. That I'm a crucial member of the Cosa-"
"Have you ever watched a chef skin a fish?" I flipped the knife, moving back to where he was. "The carefulness, the precision that is exercised so as to not cut it the wrong way and let the bitter parts affect the meat."
His nostrils flared with dread. "You plan on skinning me… like an animal. Like a fucking fish."
I paused in front of him. "Just your limbs." I replied with an impassive tone. "And unlike a chef, I plan on using such skill to ensure that you stay alive for the rest of the ride I have in store for you."
I put the sharp blade to the skin of his stretched out arm. "I will leave you with an experience so heinous you'd remember it in your next life."
Then I slashed.
***
Cara was already asleep by the time I returned to our bed, looking like a peaceful angel as she inhaled and exhaled soft breaths of air.
I sat quietly at her vanity, watching her and thinking. My heart constricted with the love I felt for her and an acute sense of anxiety as I wondered what next Alexei Mikhalov was up to. How far he planned to go.
Unlike other matters I couldn't think with a logical mind when it came to Cara. My thoughts were emotional but they were also volatile. Cara hummed softly in her sleep, a soft smile appearing on her face. She was obviously having a good dream.
She unconsciously reached for my side of the bed, pulling my pillow close to her plush chest and the band around my heart tightened even harder. Cara was dreaming about us, about me and it sent a balmy feeling over me in spite of my turmoil.
Alexei might think he'd hit the jackpot with how to destroy me this time but he was dead wrong. Cara was my weakness alright but she was also my greatest strength.
I hadn't been lying when I said I'd burn the world for her if I had to. The bratva's boss was about to discover the madman I could become for her sake.