LORIK
Dante drove, speeding like a maniac. Antonio had been typing on his phone, glancing at it every five seconds. I’d been going out of my goddamn mind sitting in the back seat of Dante’s car, unable to do anything but wait for us to get wherever the hell we were going. After Dante stormed out of the house and jumped into his car, he kept on talking about a beach house, and that since Enzio was one twisted motherfucker, it only made sense he would take her back to where it all began.
The second he pulled into an unfamiliar driveway, I was out the door and running up the stairs.
“Lorik, wait!” Dante called after me. “You can’t just rush in there unprotected.”
I grabbed my gun and pulled it from the holster. “You thought I’d come here without a gun? I plan on killing this motherfucker…tonight.”
Antonio and Dante raced up the stairs behind me, and I pushed down the door handle. Locked. Fuck.
I scanned the house and spotted a window to the right. Without thinking twice, I tore a piece of fabric off my shirt, wrapped it around my fist, and smashed it through the glass.
“Someone would have heard that,” Antonio said behind me, but I ignored him, smashing more glass so we could climb through the window without getting carved into pieces.
I went first, holding my gun at the ready, ready to shoot any fucker who got between me and my mission of saving Karina from this goddamn psychopath.
With precision and stealth, I moved down the halls without making a fucking sound, Antonio and Dante close on my heels. Soft lights on the back porch caught my eye, and I slowly moved through the house, the sound of voices getting clearer and louder the closer I got. I no longer had a heartbeat. What I did have was a giant jackhammer in my chest wrecking through my motherfucking ribs. Every part of me that ever longed to believe in a God was praying Dante was right about this, that they were here…and that we were not too late.
A few soundless steps brought me to the edge of the hall, right in front of an open sliding door…and I saw her standing at the edge of the porch with that son of a bitch next to her. Their backs were turned to us, and I could see the head of a person peeking out from in front of them, and a few bodyguards scattered around them. Only then did I notice the white dress she was wearing, and the daunting thought that we might already be too late.
I launched forward and aimed my gun.
“Let her go!”
Karina and Enzio both jerked around, and within a split second I had about ten guns aimed at my forehead. But when I saw Karina’s face contorted in pain, her eyes red and weeping, I didn’t give a flying fuck that I’d probably have twenty bullets lodged in my skull within the next two minutes. The sight of her made me want to skin Enzio alive…and fucking slowly.
“Lorik.” She breathed my name like it was a prayer on her lips, and my heart broke into a million goddamn pieces.
“Detective Stone,” Enzio started before gesturing to his bodyguards to back up. “Did you come to join the festivities? To congratulate us?”
“Fuck you.” I held my hand out to her, still aiming the gun directly at Enzio. “Come here, princess.”
Just as she started toward me, Enzio stepped forward. “Karina, should I remind you what’s at stake here?”
She froze.
Jesus.
“Karina. Don’t listen to him. Come to me.”
She closed her eyes, and more tears streamed down her cheeks.
Oh, no, I’m losing her. I’m fucking losing her…I can see it.
“Karina, don’t do this.”
She didn’t move, and a chill spread through my body, the hair on the back of my neck standing up. “Karina?”
“I can’t,” she whispered while she remained still, a doleful expression on her face. My pulse echoed inside my head, panic twisting my gut in a vise.
“Karina, you can. Just trust me.”
Dante and Antonio moved up behind me with four guns aimed at the crowd in front of me. They remained silent while I kept my eyes locked on Karina. “Don’t let him do this. So, you made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes.”
“But mine will destroy my father.”
“No, it won’t.”
Everyone’s attention turned toward the strong, heavy voice. Lorenzo Valenti.
“Daddy?” Karina said softly.
“I know, bambina. I know everything.”
What the fuck was he doing here?
I glanced at Antonio and knew it was him. That was why he was on his phone on our way over here, informing the big boss about everything that was about to go down.
“Daddy, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know—”
“Shhh.” Lorenzo walked toward her, the authority and confidence that oozed out of him claiming everyone’s attention. “I understand. What I don’t understand is how you could even think I would rather you marry this bastard than have the truth out there for the world to see.”
All I could do was watch while Karina cried, her sorrow weeping out of her soul.
“I want to see you happy, bambina. And I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like my pride and our values are more important than your happiness.”
“Daddy—”
Enzio moved, and I caught a glimpse of the gun he pulled from his back. The pull of my trigger, the boom of the shot, and the crimson that seeped through his chest happened within the blink of an eye.
Lorenzo grabbed Karina and pulled her down to the ground, covering her with his body while Antonio and Dante rained down a storm of bullets. Bodies fell, and I stared at the Valenti brothers, who stood next to each other like the fucking Boondock Saints.
I glanced down at Enzio. He was on the ground, his blood pooling around him. My ears rang, my heart pounded, and the only thought that ran through my mind was…she’s safe.
I was frozen on the spot, everything around me on mute. It was only when I felt two arms wrap around my neck and a warm, soft body against mine that I was able to shake the haze.
“Lorik.” Karina’s sweet voice filled my ears, and relief flowed through me like a stream of fucking living water. Dear God, she was safe. She was safe, and that was all that mattered.
I dropped my gun and wrapped my arms around her waist, pressing her harder against me. My fingers weaved through her dark curls, and I inhaled, wanting her sweet vanilla and honey scent to consume me.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
I pulled away and looked at her. “Did he hurt you? Touch you in any way?”
“I’m fine.” She wiped away a tear with the back of her hand.
Again, I pulled her against me and buried my face in her neck, kissing her soft skin. Relief had never felt so good, so liberating.
“It’s over, princess,” I murmured.
“Why am I not surprised to find you here where all the shit is going down?”
I looked up to see Anderson standing by the sliding door with his hands on his hips.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I asked, surprised to see him.
He walked closer and glanced at Lorenzo. “I had a friend call in a favor.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You? You’re—”
He nodded. “Yes. I’ve been working with the Valentis for twenty years.”
“Which is why you were so sure they weren’t behind the drugs and kidnappings,” I said with my arm still tightly wrapped around Karina’s waist.
Anderson stepped in next to Lorenzo. “This man gave me what our legal system couldn’t. Justice.”
Holy shit, my head was spinning. “What are you talking about?”
“Twenty years ago, my sister’s seven-year-old daughter went missing. Her body was found a few days later in a dumpster. There was no evidence of what happened to her, or who did it, until an anonymous tip came through that little Alison had been seen at the house of a local police officer.” Anderson pulled his hand through his hair, his cheeks pale. “Naturally, the investigation went nowhere. The precinct didn’t need that kind of scandal. After months of pleas, and numerous attempts to have this man at least questioned, I had no choice but to ask for help.” He swallowed hard. “I had no choice but to ask the Valenti family for help. Lorenzo agreed to investigate. And as it turned out, the anonymous tip was right, only everyone refused to believe it. No one wanted to believe a cop, sworn to uphold the law and to make the residents of Boston feel safe, was actually a child murderer. Unable to live with the thought of knowing this man would never pay for his crime, I asked the Valentis to give Alison the justice she deserved by making this man pay with his life. And in turn, I would be in their debt until my last breath.” He turned toward Lorenzo. “A debt I would gladly pay over, and over, and over again.”
I always knew demons haunted Anderson; I just never knew how strong those demons were. But now, I did.
“You see, Stone. No one is perfect, but some bad guys are worth more free than behind bars.” He turned toward Enzio’s lifeless body, and the priest crouched and shaking. “I’ll take care of this.”
Karina ran toward her dad and jumped into his arms. “I love you, Daddy.”
“And I love you too, bambina.”
My head was still spinning. Anderson has been working for the Valentis all this time? Motherfucker.
“Detective Stone.”
“Yeah.” I shook my head and looked at none other than the big chief himself, Lorenzo.
“Thank you for helping my sons find my daughter.”
“Oh, um…Dante was the one who figured it out.”
Dante came up from behind and slapped me on the shoulder. “Nah, don’t pass the credit, man. If you hadn’t come to warn us in the first place, we wouldn’t have been able to stop this.”
Lorenzo extended his hand, and I took it. “I am in your debt, Detective. If you ever need the debt repaid, you know where to find me.”
I glanced at Karina, who was silently standing next to her dad. The poor woman looked like she had been through hell. All I wanted to do was take her home, wrap my arms around her, and hold her for as long as she would allow me.
“Mr. Valenti,” I started, but Karina stepped up.
“Dad—”
Lorenzo held up his hand. “I know what you want to tell me.” He glanced at Antonio, and I knew the little snitch told Daddy Dearest everything. Not that I was complaining. The man arrived here just in time.
“Karina,” Lorenzo said, “I can’t condone it. You know our rules.”
My heart twisted inside my chest, and it felt like I was about to choke on my own goddamn stomach.
But then Karina did the unexpected. She stepped away from her dad’s side to mine, took my hand, and fixed her gaze on his.
“I’m sorry, Dad, but this time I’m following my heart and not your rules.” She looked up at me, and my heart swelled inside my chest. I felt like a goddamn peacock about to show everyone who had the prettiest fucking tailfeathers.
“I love him, Dad. I love him, and I want to be with him.”
God Almighty, those words almost knocked me the fuck out. I didn’t know whether I was relieved and fucking happy beyond comprehension, or just plain suicidal, but I reached out, pulled her against me, and kissed her like my life depended on it. I didn’t even care that I probably had about six guns pointed at my head at the moment. All I cared about was this woman loved me and had chosen me. Now, what man would not be instantly pussy-whipped by that?
I felt Karina nudging against my chest, silently conveying that if I wanted to live a long life, I should keep my dick under control, since I was surrounded by three trigger-happy mafia men.
Reluctantly, I pulled back and turned toward Lorenzo, tightening my hold around Karina’s waist. “I know this is all real complicated, but I’m not letting your daughter go. There is nothing I won’t do to be with her.”
To be honest, Lorenzo’s hard expression scared the bejesus out of me. Luckily, I still had my balls intact and never took my eyes off him once. Like two male lions, Lorenzo and I had what I would call the stare-off from hell.
Then he glanced at Antonio, who nodded—then he glanced at Dante, who nodded—then at Anderson, who also nodded.
What the fuck were they doing?
“Well, then,” Lorenzo focused his gaze on me, “since you say there’s nothing you won’t do for my daughter, I think we can come to some sort of an arrangement.”