Page 118 of Angelic Vengeance

After a moment, he carried a chair over to where I was on the bed, and sat opposite me. Leaning forward, he covered his mouth with one hand. I didn’t meet his eyes, but I knew he was studying my face.

I forced myself to stop crying, but the silence remained filled with my sniffs as I tried to calm down and regulate my breathing.

We didn’t speak for a long time. He just sat there,watching me, as the sun set and any light withdrew from the apartment.

“You have no idea how long I dreamed of this moment.” Zach’s deep voice broke the silence. He held a small metal up in the moonlight, and my stomach turned when I saw the familiar golden bullet encrypted with the wordÁngel. “When I’d finally avenge myself… My family’s business… My family’s honor…” He closed his fist around the empty ammo.

“When did you realize it was me?”

“I always knew.”

My eyes burned. “You tricked me.”

“Kind of hypocritical.”

“I didn’t know who you were!”

“You gave me your heart, you know?” His eyes were dark underneath his brows as he glanced at me. “Now, you want me to hand it back; whole again. But I won’t.”

My chest moved frantically with heavy breaths while he remained still. But then something snapped inside him too.

“Was that your plan?”

I looked at him, bottom lip still trembling – and Ihatedmyself for it.

“Hm? To fuck it out of me?!” He growled, motioning with his hands, the anger radiating off him…Chilling.

I closed my eyes, silent tears so hot I thought they’d burn my skin, fell down again. “I wasn’t there to kill you. And no one’s hired me to do it now.”

He scoffed. “You’re such a fucking liar.”

“Zach… I swear.”

He shook his head, an emotion I couldn’t place in his eyes. “I don’t believe you, Maria.”

Manipulating to get out of unwanted situations, cheating to get ahead, lying to avoid expressing my feelings… It all worked out just fine for me, my whole life.

But the thing about being a liar and a cheat… No one believed you when you were actually telling the truth.

CHAPTER 37

Present

I TRIED TO FOCUS ON the fight, but there was only one thing on my mind. I was in love with her and she was hired to kill me –twice. And I fell for it –twice.

The glove connected with my jaw. Pain exploded in my face, forcing me to take a few steps back. I shook my head and turned back to Tony, as we circled each other on the mat.

He pulled up in the gym parking lot on his motorcycle at the same time I did, and challenged me to a kickboxing match.

Antonio DeMone.

Gìovanni and Francesca’s younger brother. Reckless. Immature. And the official pain in the ass of the Cosa Nostra.

How could I refuse?

Tension and suppressed anger had oozed off him earlier and I could tell he needed to fight someone just as much as I did.

A fist turned my face to the side with force. I tasted metal.