Heavy rain pelts the windshield and after a few seconds trying to figure out the controls in Mrs. Salesi’s fancy car, I flip the wipers on high speed so I can see. Somewhat. At least the slapping sound of water against glass drowns out the horrifying sounds of bullets exploding and people screaming that keeps reverberating between my ears. A bloody massacre flashes across my mind, and I say another silent prayer for the safety of my friends, that these images are not real, that they were able to escape an unfathomable fate at the hands of Luca Cappodamo.

I run a trembling hand through my wet hair and twist around in the driver’s seat, my lips stretching into a smile that is one-hundred-and-fifty-percent fake. They quiver as I force them upward, and I struggle to keep my voice even.

“Lilibelle? Are you all belted in?”

She nods, her face pale and her dark eyes heavy. “Yes,” she murmurs, her voice completely void of her usual bubbly, child-like energy. Her eyes drift closed before I can back out of the parking spot. Poor baby. Sitting in this hospital all day, knowing her daddy is hurt, seeing her mom so upset…it’s been a shitty day for all of us.

Taking her back to Nico’s is the least I can do to help them. She needs to rest, and there’s only so much ice cream you can shovel into a little kid before she gets sick. I told Duke to stay back at the hospital, but he insisted on following us home. Said Nico would skin him alive if he let me leave alone, not that he’s answered any texts from Duke, either. The cops are still swarming the Emergency Room, so I know the Salesis will be safe until Duke can get back here.

A chill slithers through me, my mind full of questions I have no answers to because nobody will tell me what’s going on. I’ve sent plenty of texts—to Kat, to Max, to Nico. But nobody’s responded. I know they’re together, and with Kat to back them up, I have a little more faith that things haven’t gone completely sideways. But that’s pretty much the extent of my knowledge, and the dark thoughts keep creeping in. I squeeze my eyes shut to force them away. I can’t focus on them now. I have to stay positive, but it’s hard when nobody is telling me what the fuck is happening!

Please just come back to me, Nico…

I know I don’t have the right to lament since it was my brilliant idea for him to go after Luca in the first place. But dammit, why did he have to be so stubborn about it and leave without the guys? He’s smarter than that!

But rage trumps intellect when push comes to shove.

I take a few deep breaths, trying to calm my pulse, which has been raging out of control for the better part of the afternoon. Duke flashes me from across the parking lot. I flash back, put the car into Drive, and head toward the hospital exit. Thunder claps and rumbles as I slowly accelerate onto the road, the ominous sky completely black save for the occasional crash of lightning. I peer into my rearview mirror to confirm Duke is still behind me, but the rain is coming down in torrents. I can barely see three inches in front of me, much less what’s behind me. I slow at a traffic light right before easing onto the main road back to Nico’s. No other cars are even on the road. The only set of headlights I can see are pointed directly at the back of Mrs. Salesi’s car, so I know it’s just us and Duke. The light turns green, and I press my foot on the gas, and…nothing. The engine fires, but the car doesn’t move. I try again, only to hear the tires spin, hydroplaning on the wet ground.

Damn sport tires. I gas it again and the car juts to the right, skidding on the slick pavement before hitting a deep pothole on the side of the road with a loud thud. I swallow a yelp, thanking God that no cars were in the other lane and that the huge oak tree to my right wasn’t a foot closer. I glance over my shoulder to see that Lily’s eyes are still closed. With a hammering heart, I ease back onto the road and flip on my right turn signal.

Jesus Christ, the threat of death is lurking everywhere today.

I grip the steering wheel tighter as I drive, effectively killing circulation in my fingertips. Long, deep breaths do absolutely nothing to calm me.

Raindrops smash against the sunroof with even more force than before as we near Nico’s house. The wipers are already on the highest setting, and I just pray that nothing crosses my path because there’s no way in hell I’m going to see it. Just a couple of more blocks, a couple of more minutes, and about a thousand more prayers.

A few agonizing moments later, I finally turn into the driveway and shut off the engine. I quickly glance into my rearview, but no headlights shine back. Duke probably didn’t make it through that last traffic light around the corner. I barely squeaked through it myself. A loud ping from my iPhone blares, piercing the silence.

Where are you?

I cover my mouth to silence the squeal, tears pooling in my eyes. He’s alive. Oh my God, he’s alive!

My fingers, cold and stiff, tremble over the keyboard. I just pulled into your driveway with Lily.

Are you fucking insane, leaving the hospital like that?

I furrow my brow. If he’s texting me, Luca must have been taken care of. I admit, leaving the hospital without first hearing from Nico wasn’t my brightest idea, but Lily needed to get out of there, and Christ knows, I couldn’t sit around for another second not knowing the fate of my friends. Being at Nico’s makes me feel closer to him when he’s not there, closer to the way we used to be, the way I’m desperate for us to be again. I don’t know, maybe in some crazy way I figured I could channel that energy and use it to will him back to me. Stupid, yes, but slightly more comforting than waiting around in that hospital.

We’re fine. Duke followed me. Are you okay?

For now.

What the hell does that mean?

Where’s Luca?

A pause…much longer than I would like. Lily stirs in the backseat, the quiet stillness in the car deafening while I wait for his response.

I don’t know.

Fuck.

Are you with Kat and the guys?

Yeah. I’m coming home now. Just get into the house and set the alarm.

I swallow hard, my head darting left and right. It’s so dark. Anyone could be out there. I unclip my seatbelt and lean over the center console to unhook Lily. “Sweetie,” I whisper. “We’re home.”

“Mmmph,” she murmurs, eyes still closed.

I fling open my door and open the one on Lily’s side, thick raindrops pounding my skin and clothes. I pull up her hood and gather her in my arms, covering her face. I slam the car door shut with my hip and jog to the front door. The house is completely dark, except for the tiny, flashing red light that tells me the alarm is set. I fish out my key and stick it into the lock, shifting Lily against me. The alarm bleeps, and I enter the code to shut it off. Duke will be here in a minute, and then I’ll reset it. I flip on the foyer lights, kick off my shoes, and peel off Lily’s jacket.

I head upstairs, shooting off a quick text to Duke that we’re here and the front door is open for him. I switch on as many lights as I can, praying we don’t lose power anytime soon. But judging by the winds that have picked up speed, I know it’s only a matter of time before lights start to flicker. I hear the alarm bling downstairs and let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. Duke is here. Nico is on his way. Everything’s going to be okay.

It has to be.

I lay Lily in one of the guest bedrooms and drop a kiss onto her forehead. “Sleep tight, sweet girl.” I pull the door closed most of the way, allowing a sliver of light through so she doesn’t wake up in complete darkness, if she stirs at all.

I hear the refrigerator door open and close in the kitchen. Jesus, I’m not a drinker, but I could really use some vodka right about now.

The front door is still unlocked so I flip the deadbolt as I pass, ready to join Duke. “I hope you poured me a glass of whatever you’re having.”

The lone figure sitting on the counter stool swivels around holding up a shot glass filled with clear liquid. He narrows his beady eyes at me, a menacing glare icing my insides. “I’m gonna guess that you’re wishing for a bottle of it right about now. Am I right?”

Holy fuck. I know those eyes. I’ve seen them before, shivered under their lecherous leer. And that gruff voice...I’ve heard it, felt it slither over my skin like a snake. The hairs along the back of my neck prickle at the memory.

Holy crap, it’s him. The man from Nico’s club. The one who propositioned me that night. The one whose face is burned into my memory. But how did he—?

I clutch my stomach, realization smacking me square in the face.

Oh my God…no, please, no!

“You’re putting it all together now. Good. I knew you weren’t a real brunette.” He gulps down the contents of the glass, hurls it at a wall, and hops off the stool. Shards of glass fly into the air, shattering on the ceramic tile floor, but he just steps around them, creeping closer toward me. My feet feel like they’re weighted down with cement blocks, and as much as I plead with them, they refuse to move.

He’s dressed head to toe in black, his heavy work boots thumping along the polished hardwood floor as he walks in my direction. He leans close and sniffs. “You smell good. I knew you would.”

Breaths come fast and furious, my heart galloping faster than a thoroughbred.

Need to get away. Need to protect Lily!

Out of the corner of my eye, I see my handbag laying at the foot of the stairs where I’d dropped it before heading upstairs. My gun is inside of it. Locked. Loaded. Ready for this moment. It’s what I’ve been practicing for, what I always knew would come. I glance at his fists—huge, torn-up, bandaged, and bloody. “Where’s Duke?”

Luca laughs, the sinister sound curdling my blood. “Oh, he didn’t make it through that last traffic light. I doubt he’ll make it through another one again.” He leans closer, his smile fading. “And I’m sure of that because I took care of it myself. You know how it is. If you want something done right, do it your fucking self. That asshole who hit Salesi earlier…I knew he’d fuck it up. But it doesn’t matter. Took the old man out of commission, and that’s what I needed.”

My gaze flickers toward the upstairs bedroom. The door is still cracked open, but at any second, Lily might wander down here. I can’t let that happen. I can’t let him hurt her. I can’t let him hurt anyone else.

Luca circles me like he’s a starving lion and I’m a raw steak. My chest tightens, the smell of vodka making my stomach roll. “So, tell me, do you think your pussy of a boyfriend is gonna know what hit him when he shows up here and sees me fucking his girl? Because that’s exactly what’s gonna happen.” He fists my shirt and forces me backward into the first-floor bedroom, shoving me onto the bed.

I pop up to a seated position as soon as my back hits the mattress and elbow him in the jaw before rolling out from under him. “Fuck you, asshole!” I leap off the bed and reach out to grab a lamp from the nightstand.

Too fucking slow.

He fists my hair and yanks me backward, making me yelp. “Oh, no, you don’t.” One fat fist closes around my throat, slowly crushing my windpipe. He lifts my flailing body, my toes now barely grazing the floor. White spots dance in front of my eyes as I struggle for oxygen. “Don’t be stupid, sweetheart,” he hisses. “It’ll be much more enjoyable for both of us if you’re alive.”

He loosens his grip, dropping me on the bed, and I grab my throat, gasping and choking on the air I suck into my lungs. His demonic face hovers over me, his eyes narrowed. He leans closer, dragging his fingertips down the side of my face, an incredulous look shadowing his features. “You look just like her, just like my Lia. When I saw you that night at the club, I knew it couldn’t be, but fuck…” His gaze becomes trance-like, like he’s possessed by something…someone…who the fuck cares what. It’s my chance to get away, to get to my bag, to get to my gun.

His broad chest presses against me, pinning my arms against the mattress, still studying, still questioning, still in another world. “But she’s gone.” His voice is menacing. “Murdered, because of—"

I swallow hard, his breath heavy on my cheeks. I don’t think. I don’t plan. I don’t even pray.

I just act.

Leaning forward, I open my mouth, my teeth slicing into his cheek, tearing through flesh and skin. The taste of metal fills my mouth, making me gag, but I bite down harder until his screams pierce the air around us and he recoils, falling backward against the tall dresser.

A creaking sound jolts me. The stairs…shit!

“Shaye, what’s that noise?”

I gasp and jump off the bed and stumble over the corner of an area rug, slipping across the floor in my haste to get the fuck away from the psychopath struggling to his feet behind me.

“Lily!” I yell. “Get back upstairs and lock that door! Don’t come down here!” A firm hand grips my ankle, yanking me backward, but I grab onto the door handle for leverage, kicking at the bloody hole in his face with my free foot.

A loud roar that sounds more like it came from the lungs of a jungle predator than a man shakes the walls. Milliseconds are all I have before his beefy hands close around my neck again, and this time, I’m not so sure he’s going to care whether or not I’m alive when he fucks me.

The sound of screeching tires registers somewhere in the depths of my mind, but my window is about to slam shut. I slide across the floor, pulling my bag with me.

Thump, thump, thump!

“You fucking whore!” he yells, stomping into the foyer, reaching out to grab me by the neck again. I fumble around inside the bag, my fingers closing on the cold metal. Sobs explode out of my throat as I roll onto my back and point the gun at the evil monster staring down at me. “Die, you motherfucker!”

I pull the trigger, but my eyes are too blurred with tears, my hand trembling with an uncontrollable force. I fucking missed! All of those months of target practice, and I missed! He reaches down and pulls me up by the shirt, slamming me against the wall. Hard. So hard that my brain shudders inside of my skull. My hands fly up to my constricted neck, the gun clattering to the floor. I kick my feet against his shins and squeak out some imperceptible sounds, trying like hell to pry his fingers away from my neck as I gasp, flail, and pray for mercy.

Nico…Nico…please save me…

The front door slams open and Nico barrels in, my unspoken prayer answered, yanking Luca away from me. My body hits the floor, cold and limp. Lifeless.

I need to move. I need to help him. I need to do something before…before…

But the tingling sensation in my arms and legs is replaced by an all-consuming numbness that seeps into every cell of my body, draining me of any and all remaining energy. My vision is hazy, but I can see blood. So much blood.

He saved me.

But I don’t think anyone can save him.

Luca twists his hulking body toward me, blood gushing down the side of his face, pure malice in his demonic eyes. A slow smile lifts his lips as he takes a few steps toward me. My fingers twitch to grab my gun, but in my haste to get inside the house, I left it in the car. I glance quickly around the foyer to see if there are any potential weapons close enough to grab. Where the fuck is Max’s baseball bat when I need it?

“Salesi,” he grunts, closing the distance between us. “You finally found your balls. I was afraid you’d lost them for good, that I’d never get a crack at you because you were too much of a pansy ass to show your face.”

With a hammering heart, I look past Luca to see Shaye lying motionless on the floor where he’d dropped her. Her limbs are twisted, eyes closed, neck bruised and covered with welts. Rage courses through me as my eyes return to his twisted grimace.

“Don’t worry. She ain’t dead. She’ll wake up soon, hopefully in time to see me fuck your shit up. Maybe I’ll make her suck my cock before I kill you. Give you a good show as a parting gift. It’ll be a nice memory to take to the afterlife. Something to haunt you for fucking eternity.”

He lunges for me, and I duck around him, grabbing a brass candlestick holder from the entryway table. I launch my arm back and swing it to the side of his head, but he slips away before it crashes into his skull. Motherfucker!

“Come on, bitch. That’s all you’ve got? I’m gonna tear your fucking ass apart with my bare hands, Salesi. I don’t need a weapon. Remember your pal from the club? The guy whose throat I punched a hole through? You know what I’m capable of, so don’t fucking bother.” He leans closer, his breath hot against my face. “You can’t escape me anymore. Nobody can save you.”

I throw my weight against him, pushing him back against the wall, framed pictures crashing to the floor from the force of impact.

“Nico?” I look up for a split second to see Lily’s tearful face peeking out of one of the upstairs bedrooms.

“Go back inside and lock that d—!”

A piercing shriek erupts as my body flies backward, airborne for long enough that I know the landing will be fucking hell. Sharp pain slices through my jaw, but it’s nothing compared to the crushing agony of cracked ribs and mangled limbs. I lay in a corner like a rag doll, hunched over, trying to catch my breath, thanking God I can still feel my fingers and toes after being flung across my front hall. This guy doesn’t need a gun, but I fucking do. Panic settles into my shattered body. How the fuck am I going to battle this lunatic? There isn’t time to get to the gun safe, and if I can even manage to grab a knife from the kitchen, he’ll grab it and fillet my ass before I have a chance to use it.

I’m out of my fucking league here, but I have two people to protect. I take a deep breath as he kneels in front of me. “That was quick. I expected a little more from you. Now get up so I can knock you down again.” He fists my hair, yanking my head back. “I want you to feel real pain. You think this is it, but it’s not even close. And it won’t be quick, either. I wanna enjoy every goddamned second of it, so I’m gonna work nice and slow on both of you.” He nods his head back at Shaye, whose body stirs on the floor. Her eyes flutter open and then close again. “I want you to watch me fuck your girlfriend, Salesi. I want you to see me fill her with my hot cum. And then I want you to watch me kill her. You need to feel that loss, asshole. It’s what I’ve waited five years to do to you. Pain! Like you’ve never fucking felt before! You’re the reason I’m here right now, you’re the reason she’s gonna die!”

“You’re not gonna fucking touch her, you bastard!” I gather every sliver of strength in my bruised and broken body and shove him backward, cringing in pain. Adrenaline rushes to the surface, arming me with power I never thought I had. He tumbles back, caught off-balance, and I jump on top of him, pounding at his open facial wound, the only thing I can think of that might slow him down and give me a chance to get us the hell out of this alive.

Left, right, left, right. My fists are flying, and he laughs like the fucking psychopath he is. “Does it feel good? Do you feel like more of a man? You’re tickling me, jackass.” He shoots upward and pushes against my chest with his two huge hands. I groan and fall backward, the candlestick holder on the floor next to me. He grins, still taunting me. “Go ahead. Grab it. Take another shot.” He points at his face. “Come on, ya pussy! Right there! Hit me! Show me you’re a real fucking man, not some jealous asshole who needs to steal shit away from people to feel better about himself!”

He grips the collar of my shirt and pulls me up, pinning me against the wall. He says nothing. He doesn’t need to.

People use the term “death glare” all the time. I doubt they’ve ever seen one up close and personal.

And I have no fucking gun, so Luca looking at me like this shows that he’s confident in how this struggle will end.

I push against him, wiggling out of his grip only because he let me. I’m not stupid. This guy is almost guaranteed to be doped up on Christ only knows what, and when, not if, he wants to kill me using his bare hands, he will. In his own time.

It’s his MO.

Where the fuck are Rocco and Max? They were right behind me. I’d raced over here, expecting to find Duke with the girls, not shot dead around the corner from my house. I can only pray nobody got to the others.

But it still doesn’t buy me enough time.

I straighten up as much as possible, a loud groan rumbling in my throat. But I swallow it down. I take a few deep breaths and lunge forward to bury that asshole’s smile into his skull. I land the punch, hearing the satisfying crack before my arm immediately recoils, a shattering pain exploding up my arm.

Thank fuck I’m ambidextrous.

I twist to my other side, clench my other fist tight, and launch it at his chest with as much power as I can channel. Jesus, it’s like fucking steel. I grit my teeth. I’m so screwed.

Those are the last words I remember thinking before a massive fist flies at my face. I didn’t even see it coming since I was trying to figure out how to save my girls without the use of two hands.

That concern was beaten out of me pretty fast, and I’m pretty sure it was joined by a couple of teeth. I crash-land against a table, the sharp corner jutting into my spine. I wipe away the blood streaming from the sides of my mouth, and with labored breaths, I straighten up as best I can to protect what’s left of my mangled body.

Luca creeps toward me again. “You having fun yet? I sure as fuck am and cannot wait to pump my cock in your lady’s tight pussy!” He swings another fist, but this time I’m prepared, my fingers closed around a weirdly shaped vase I battled my decorator on years ago when I bought this house…she said it added character, I said it looked stupid. In the end, she won because she’s a woman and gave me a blow job since this place was her big calling card.

I’ve never been happier to see that vase than in this moment.

I slip away from the punch, which promised to be brain-shattering, and swing the vase at the side of Luca’s head. He doesn’t flinch. Fuck me, it’s lead crystal, and the guy doesn’t even blink. He just laughs. Motherfucker.

His eyes spit venom and reek of insanity, and that was my only shot to knock him off balance so I could get to my guns.

I blink fast, my head darting left and right, but there’s nothing here to grab…nobody to call…no fucking way out of this.

Lily’s cries pierce the air from her hiding spot in a corner of the upstairs hallway, and my gut clenches. What the fuck will he do to her once he’s finished with me?

Who the hell is going to save them both?

Luca’s face twists into a menacing grimace. “I can see the wheels turning. Trust me, you don’t wanna waste the energy.” He flexes his fingers as he inches toward me. “And it’s gonna be a long night. I’m having fun watching you suffer. But that ain’t nothing compared to what’s gonna happen when that girlfriend of yours wakes up. I’m gonna shove my cock in her mouth while you bleed out next to us, you son of a—"

Crack!

A glass-shattering explosion makes me flinch. Luca’s body buckles, back arching as the bullet tears through his spine. But he doesn’t fall. He doesn’t even grit his goddamn teeth. His eyes are wild, his breathing labored—the only indication that he feels the searing bullet now lodged in his body. He turns toward Shaye, lumbering toward her, swinging his fist at her head.

All it takes is one bullet…

Except when you’re trying to kill the devil.

My breaths are short and sharp, hands clammy but steady. I grip the gun tight, pointing it at the man who has overshadowed our future for too fucking long. Luca’s eyes are wide, his mouth agape, but still he doesn’t fall.

He takes another step toward me, bringing his bloody fingers to his face, a look of disbelief momentarily veiling the rage. There’s no exit wound so I know that bullet is lodged somewhere inside of his body. How he’s even still walking is a damn miracle.

All of the emotions roiling inside me are not enough to stop me from pulling the trigger again.

“You’re not gonna shove your cock anywhere tonight,” I hiss. “In fact, the only thing that’ll be shoved is your body into a drawer at the fucking morgue, you bastard!”

He lets out a resounding roar, a frightening predatory sound that reverberates between my temples. “Fucking whore! You’re nothing like her! You’re a—"

Crack! Crack! Crack!

I’m not taking any chances.

Luca collapses to the floor, his body crumpled, torn, and bloody.

Dead. Retribution for all of his sins is finally granted.

His gruesome acts will be judged, his soul forever caught in a fiery hell for eternity.

He took so much from so many. Now he will suffer the same fate.

The gun clatters to the floor, and I crawl around his massive body, salty tears stinging the scrapes and scratches as they stream down my face.

“Nico,” I whisper, reaching out to grasp his hand. “It’s over. He’s dead.”

One of his eyelids float open, the other already swollen shut. His lips are split and bloody, his jaw bruised and shattered. And that’s only what I can see on the outside.

“You did it,” he rasps, wincing as he shifts himself on the floor. “I thought you were…fuck, I don’t even want to say it.”

Lily’s screams get louder and louder as she scrambles down the stairs and collapses on the floor next to her brother. He struggles to a sitting position, lifting his arm and draping it over Lily’s shoulders, his face twisted into an agonizing mask of anguish.

“Try not to move. You’re pretty mangled, babe. We need to get you to the hospital.”

“I don’t care. I need to keep my girls close,” he chokes, holding out his hand to me.

I lace my fingers with his and bring it to my lips.

I didn’t think anyone could save him.

But I was so very wrong.

I did it.

I saved him.

And he saved me back.