4

Mateo

She’s here.

I stare at the text Timofey just sent me, clenching my phone so tightly I’m surprised the screen doesn’t crack. He’s sent a picture, and when I zoom in and see the look on Amber’s face as she kneels next to that fucking bastard, I’m seconds away from storming in there and lighting the whole goddamn place on fire. It’s the first time I’ve seen her in two years, and my chest aches at the sight. I’d recognize her anywhere, but it’s impossible for me to not see all the changes. Her blue-green eyes are empty of everything except fear, her full lips are in a tight line instead of the smiles that once came so easily to her, and she’s too fucking thin. Her clavicle sticks out sharply, and that stupid fucking dress isn’t doing shit to hide how gaunt she’s become. When I realize she’s wearing a collar and that he’s holding the goddamn leash, a growl escapes from my tight throat. I’m going to enjoy killing Konstance very slowly for everything he’s done to her.

“Almost, brother,” Levisays, looking over my shoulder at the picture I’m still clutching. “Just a few more minutes.”

I nod, knowing he’s right. I can’t risk her life just because I’m running out of patience and my need to feel his blood on my hands isbecoming overwhelming. I’ve waited this long. I can manage a few more minutes.

Looking over, I see Donny texting someone. “Is that Dominic? What’s he say?”

Donny reads the text that comes in. “There are five Lebedev men stationed around the building and ten entered the building with Konstance and Amber, along with Onil. Davey met them at the door.”

“I’m sure he did,” Vitorio mutters, stuffing another gummy into his mouth. “I bet the little fucker had a raging hard-on when he did it, too.”

“Don’t forget Artemis’s mine,” Levisays.

“He’s yours,” I agree.

“And I’m taking out Emory’s dad,” Roger says from the front seat. He looks back at us and gives a soft laugh. “I can’t believe he agreed to come here tonight. I may have lied and said that Konstance demanded he and his friends show up.” He laughs again. “Yeah, that might’ve been it.”

I smile as much as I’m able to. I know how much he’s been looking forward to killing Emory’s dad, and I’m happy he’ll finally be able to make it happen. I don’t mention that Konstance is mine. Everyone already knows he’s to be left alive. I have plans for him and none of them include a quick death.

Looking at my watch, I try and force myself to relax. Ten minutes left. As if on cue, another black SUV pulls in front of us and Dominic steps out, followed by several of his men. Before we get out to join them, I look at my brothers, knowing there aren’t any guarantees tonight. I’d made Vitorio promise he’d leave me behind if it came to that, but I know he’ll never do it.

Five of us will be walking out or none of us will be. It’s as simple as that.

I meet their eyes, and as serious as the moment is, I’m not at all surprised when Vitorio breaks the silence with a laugh and asks, “Are we about to start crying?” He finishes the fruit snack that Levihad tossed him earlier and adds, “Because I’m not so sure my dick can take that. Plus, we can’t go out there and meet the Italians with tears in our eyes.Dominic will never let us live that down. It will destroy our reputation as fierce Russians who shouldn’t be fucked with.”

“True,” Leviagrees. “Dominic’s cocky enough as it is.”

“So true,” Vitorio says, looking out the tinted window at the future head of the Alessi family. “I mean, who the fuck shows up for a gunfight in a bespoke suit and wool jacket?”

Levilaughs. “I’ll just gently remind him about the time I shot him. That might take him down a peg or two.”

Donny looks back at his phone and types another quick message before meeting my eyes. “It’s time.”

I nod, knowing that every detail of tonight has been planned out meticulously by Donny. There won’t be any security footage, and because Roger made sure to have the mayor and a few congressmen here, the police won’t be a problem either.

“Let’s get Amber and bring her home,” Roger says. He squeezes my shoulder when we start to get out, and all I can do is nod or I’m going to end up getting all choked up and embarrass Vitorio. Amber is Roger’s sister, and I know how hard these last two years have been for him, but he’s stepped aside, letting me have Konstance and letting me take the lead on this, and I’ll always be grateful to him for it.

“Aren’t you a little overdressed?” Leviasks, walking over to Dominic. “I’d hate it if you got shot again because you couldn’t maneuver around easily in your expensive suit.”

Dominic eyes the five of us. Donny and Roger are in casual suits, but Leviand Vitorio are wearing jeans and long-sleeve tees, while I’m in my usual jeans and dark hoodie.

“I thought it best to not draw so much attention,” he finally says. “And I can move just fine. No way in fuck am I taking another bullet tonight.”

Vitorio laughs. “Oh, we’re definitely going to be drawing some attention tonight, but it’s not going to be from our casual attire.”

Levicuts in and adds, “And I really hope you don’t take another bullet because we all know how you’re still bitching about the last one you took.”

Dominic laughs and rubs his shoulder. “You know, it aches when it’s about to rain. I feel like a fucking eighty-year-old man.”

Levilaughs and smacks him on the back. “It’ll be a fun story to tell your grandkids one day.”

“What fucking grandkids?” Dominic shakes his head at Leviand then checks his phone. “My men are all in position. We’re ready when you are.”

We’ve joined forces with the Alessi mafia for tonight. Our men will be working and killing together, and we’ve set things up so there will be teams hitting the mansion at the same time as we’re taking out everyone in the club. The Lebedev Bratva dies tonight.

“We’re ready,” I tell him.

He says something to the men around him in Italian before they start walking towards the club. Stepping closer to me he says, “I’m jealous of the revenge you’ll be getting, Mateo. I can’t wait until it’s my turn.”

He and I have both been consumed with our need for revenge, and I know it’s killing him to not know who killed his sister. Donny’s been searching for a name, but it’s a slow process and Dominic is handling patience about as well as I’ve been.

“You’ll get yours soon,” I tell him.

“I fucking hope so. Tonight will make me feel a little bit better, though.”

We’re all looking forward to getting our hands bloody, and when we start walking towards the club, I can feel the anticipation, the almost giddy desire welling up around us. By the time we reach the front of the building, Konstance’s five men have already been quietly taken out, leaving the idiot bouncer as the only thing standing in between us and the front door.

“Hey, Robbie,” Donny says, taking the lead and giving the man a grin. “We’re Konstance’s guests tonight.”

Robbie’s not a small man, but he’s no match for us and the mention of Konstance has him paling a bit. He gives a quick nod and steps aside, too stupid and trusting to frisk us. It’s a mistake he won’t live verylong to regret. As soon as it’s time, he’ll be getting a quick bullet to the head by one of the men we have ready and waiting along the back of the building.

Stepping into the club, I ignore the way the crowded interior makes my skin crawl. The pain from my burn scars may have finally disappeared, but small, crowded places like this always bring the memories back. I scan the room, and even though I know exactly where Amber’s going to be, I still search every dark corner for her. Instead of her familiar blue-green eyes, I see several of our men in the crowd. They’ve positioned themselves near the men Konstance brought with him, and they’re also stationed around the exits. No one is leaving this club without going through us first.

Dominic and his men veer off in the opposite direction, easily blending into the crowd like they’ve done it a million times before. They’ll stay hidden until it’s time to start killing, which I’m guessing won’t be too long from now.

“You going to be okay?” Vitorio asks from beside me as he waves away one of the women working here. It’s still strange to see Vitorio turning away women, but ever since he married Kate, he hasn’t even looked at anyone else.

“I’ll be fine.” I meet his eyes, and when it’s obvious he’s still worried I’m going to lose control, I add, “I won’t fuck this up.”

He nods and when he looks ahead of us, I can tell the exact moment he sees her. His mouth tightens, his eyes narrow slightly, and his entire body goes still. “Fuck,” he groans, and when I turn my head and meet Amber’s eyes for the first time in two years, I almost fall to my goddamn knees. The look only lasts a second before the crowd closes in again and there are too many people blocking my view of her, but that one second was enough. The hope and longing in her eyes is an image I’ll never forget, and underneath it had been a shame and embarrassment that I can’t wait to free her of because she has absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. None of this is her fault, and I’ll happily spend the rest of my life convincing her of that.

“Want some company?”

The topless blonde who’s just walked up to me gives me a huge smile and starts to reach for my arm, but I quickly jerk away from her.

“No.”

She backs up at the tone of my voice. I’m not trying to scare her, but I don’t want her touching me, and I sure as fuck don’t want her hanging around me or trying to sit in my lap.

“That’s a no for me, too,” I hear Vitorio say from behind me. I know the rest of my brothers will be saying the same thing. I’d be concerned about our lack of interest in any of these women raising red flags if we were going to be spending any length of time here tonight, but most of these fucks will be dead before anyone can get suspicious. Playing nice with Konstance while we sit down and have several drinks together was never an option. Honestly, I’ll be lucky to last three minutes with this fucker.

When I walk over to the table in the corner and get my first up-close view of Amber on her knees with a fucking collar around her neck, I realize I may not even last sixty goddamn seconds. I take the seat next to him, putting Amber so close to me I could reach out and touch her. I’m forced to keep my hands in tight fists to resist the urge to pull her into my lap.

“Glad you could make it,” Konstance says, and then he puts his hand on Amber’s head and starts to pet her.

I can’t take my eyes off the way he’s stroking her hair while Vitorio says, “I told my brothers they needed to see your pet in person.”

“Isn’t she beautiful?”

The tone of his voice has me raising my eyes to his. The fucker talks as if he’s the one responsible for how beautiful and perfect she is, as if he had anything to do with it. He shouldn’t be allowed to breathe the same air as her, let alone touch a single hair on her head.

“She is,” Roger says, and I know him well enough to hear the pain in his voice.

Konstance gives a soft laugh. “She’s usually so well behaved, but earlier she decided to get mouthy, so I’ll be punishing her later as part of the entertainment.”

“Really?” Davey asks, his interest immediately piqued at the thought of seeing a woman suffer.

“Will you allow others to join in?” Artemis asks.

“No.”

The tone makes it obvious that Artemis had better not ask again while Onil laughs and shakes his head.

“He never shares her.”

I look over at Onil. He’s trying hard to look like he doesn’t care, but there’s something there. Jealousy, anger at being denied something he wants, and beyond that there’s something else hiding behind the slight smirk he’s giving. I don’t know what it is, but I’ll be finding out soon enough.

Waitresses come over with shots of vodka and whiskey, and I quickly down one, waving away the woman who makes it clear she’d like to sit in my lap.

“You don’t want company tonight?” Konstance asks, noticing that we’ve all declined lap dances.

Levilaughs and takes another shot. “The night is early. There’s plenty of time for women later.”

Before he can ask anything else, a loud voice calls for Roger right before Emory’s dad walks over with three congressmen and several naked women. They’re laughing and groping the tits and asses they’ve surrounded themselves with, looking every bit like the jackasses they are.

“Glad you could come, Chris,” Roger says to his father-in-law, visibly cheering up at the knowledge that he’ll finally get to kill him soon.

Pulling up some chairs, they join our group. Their loud laughter and jokes mix with the too-loud music, threatening to make my fucking head explode. Even though I’ve been looking around the club, my attention has never wavered from Amber. She’s kept her head down, no doubt it’s one of Konstance’s many rules for her, but I can see the way her body is shaking. My eyes run over the spine that’s way too obvious, the bare knees that are pressed against the hard, dirty floor,and the heels that must be killing her feet. When I spot the bruises through the lacy dress, everything starts to harden inside me. They’re along her hips, exactly where he’d be grabbing her if he were holding her still while he forced himself on her, while he forced himself inside her, and that thought has me seeing red.

I use the very last of my restraint to look over at my brothers. It’s the only warning I give, but it’s enough for them to reach for their guns before I grab the hand that keeps petting my woman. Konstance’s eyes widened in surprise. No doubt it’s the first time anyone’s dared to stop him from doing anything. He might want to get used to not being in control. Whatever future he has left is going to be for me to decide.

“What the fuck?”