Page 137 of Angelic Vengeance

I pushed him off me harder than necessary; he took a few steps back in order to catch his footing.

“I amnevergetting over her.”

All I wanted was to drink alone and think about Maria.But these idiots just had to tag along and ruin my free time.

Was that such a big fucking ask?

I forced the anger back down and downed another drink.

“That serious between you two, huh?”

I stared into my empty glass. “I love her.”

Silence.

No one said anything, and eventually, the bar’s jazz music took over. I ran my hands through my hair; pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration. Anything to try work out how to solve this.

After a while, the alcohol stopped burning. “I couldn’t move on… Couldn’t get over it…”

Trevor shrugged. “Maybe you didn’t want to move on.”

“What?”

“Yeah, he’s right,” Matteo chimed in. “Maybe you fell for her right then and there, and couldn’t comprehend it cause she didn’t feel the same.”

I stared at my hands. I missed when Maria used to hold them. “Yeah. Maybe.”

The ache in my chest was constant. I wondered what Maria was doing and if she was as twisted up over this as I was. An ache shot in my chest when I thought of her scrubbing her skin raw off me.

“If I ever get this twisted up over a woman, shoot me in the head,” Zane drawled, before downing his whiskey. A moment passed before he spoke again, “I’ll help you.”

I turned to him, frowning. I didn’t think I heard right.

“But if you ever hurt her again…” Zane stood, throwing his black leather jacket on. “Iwillkill you. She’s like my little sister.”

My jaw clenched as I stared at him. The idea of any man caring about Maria – being willing to kill for her – pissed me off. Though, the fact that I knew their relationship was that of siblings, and that he would protect her like a brother, seemed to calm me down. It was something I respected.

I was thankful there was somebody else who was looking out for her.

Even if it meant protecting her from me.

“I understand.”

CHAPTER 41

Present

I DIDN’T FEEL LIKE WORKING. I felt like staying inside, watching rom-coms and eating ice cream. But Zane needed my help on something, and getting my mind off of my personal life seemed like a good idea. I could use a distraction. I’d been feeling my feelings all week. I was tired of crying and feeling sorry for myself.

Taking my hand out of my pocket, I lifted it to check my watch. I was half an hour early simply because Zane was always there before me, and I wanted to handle this as fast as possible.

He hadn’t been specific on the phone, which was unlike him, just like not being at the location early.

I glanced around the industrial outskirts of Brooklyn; the Manhattan skyline on the other side of the river, behind a chain-link fence to my side. The sun was setting behind the skyscrapers, burning hot red. Gravel crunched under my sneakers as I made my way to the one-story building Zane had described.

Without a second thought, I pulled the metal door open. The light sensors activated as I advanced inside, illuminating the dark warehouse. Glancing around, Inoticed another door cracked open. Behind it, a cement staircase lit up by a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling.

I couldn’t stop myself from wandering downstairs. Several floors underground, I found more hallways, going in all directions. They must have stretched under the whole city. I wondered if these were the tunnels Zach told me about; the ones used by the Cartel to move weight.