Page 35 of Madness & Mercy (Deadly Sins #1)

Cassian and I lock eyes. His mouth curves into something that’s not quite a smirk, not quite a snarl, like he’s savoring the moment before the kill.

“If it’s money you want,” I say, moving slowly, “I’ll give you five times what Silvio offered. And there’s plenty more where that came from.”

His brow arches. “You’ll give me five million dollars?”

Silvio, you bastard.

“Yes,” I bite out. “Five million. Cash.”

Cassian laughs, the sound grating against my nerves.

“It’s not just about money, Vitale. You want to know why I’m here?

Because my own twin brother left me buried in debts I could never crawl out of.

Because when he went to prison, I was the one taking loans from men you don’t walk away from…

to keep him alive, to keep our parents in that nursing home, to keep from fucking starving to death.

And while I was drowning? He was nowhere.

He never gave a damn about me. He didn’t even bother telling you I existed, did he? ”

Julian’s head snaps toward him. “Cass, that’s not true. I didn’t know—”

“Yeah,” Cassian cuts in. “That’s the point.”

Then, the slow sound of footsteps echo down the hall.

Silvio Romano appears behind Cassian, a shadow in the flickering light. He steps in close, resting a hand on Cassian’s shoulder.

“You see?” Silvio says, his gaze flicking between me and Julian. “You two made my work easy. Cassian was already broken when I found him. I just gave him an outlet… and a reason to aim.”

He leans closer to Cassian, his voice lowering. “Do it. End him now. Make him pay for every sleepless night, every broken bone, every time you had to sell your body, every dollar you bled to keep him alive.”

Cassian raises the gun, his hand steady at first.

Julian’s voice cracks. “Cass, please. I didn’t know what you went through. I swear to God, I would’ve helped you. I’m sorry. For the debts. For walking away. For everything.”

Silvio’s tone turns venomous. “He’s lying. He always is. Do it.”

“No,” I cut in, stepping between them. “Kill me. I’m the one you want.”

Julian’s voice cracks like a whip. “Nico—stop!”

Cassian’s breathing turns sharp and erratic. The barrel hovers inches from my chest.

Cassian’s jaw tightens. The muscles in his arm twitch.

For a heartbeat, I think the shot’s coming.

BANG.

Silvio’s body jerks back. His expression freezes in shock as the blood blooms across his shirt. The control he’s had over this room evaporates in an instant. He stumbles, then collapses.

Cassian lowers the gun, his voice barely there.

“I took on those debts to keep you alive. I’m not killing you to pay them off.”

For a beat, none of us move. The gunfire fades. Romano’s men are gone.

It’s just me, Julian… and the twin brother he never told me existed.

My pulse is still hammering when I grab Julian by the shoulders, scanning him for injuries.

“You hurt?” I ask, my voice harsher than I mean it to be.

His eyes are glassy, his chest heaving. “You’re an idiot,” he mutters, the words catching like splinters. “Why the hell would you step in front of me like that?”

My grip tightens. “Because if someone’s gonna take a bullet, it’s not gonna be you.”

His jaw clenches, eyes flicking away like he can’t stand to look at me. “That’s not your choice to make.”

I close the gap. “It became my choice the second I realized losing you would gut me worse than any bullet ever could.”

His gaze snaps back to mine, his voice shaking. “You think I’m worth dying for? After everything I’ve done?”

“I don’t give a damn about your sins,” I murmur, my voice steady but burning. “I’d spill blood for you. I’d stop my own heart for you. I’d watch the whole world burn to ash if it meant keeping you safe.”

His breath hitches. His hand twitches like he’s fighting the urge to grab me, to pull me in. My pulse roars in my ears.

“You’re insane,” he whispers.

“Probably,” I murmur, stepping closer until there’s barely a breath between us. “But so are you for thinking I’d ever let you face this alone.”

Before he can answer, a low, rasping chuckle echoes from behind us. “Hate to interrupt your little confession,” Cassian says, the gun still in his hand. “but we’ve got a body to bury.”

Julian whirls at him. “Jesus Christ, Cassian.”

“What? We’ve got a six-foot, two-hundred-pound problem bleeding all over the goddamn floor.” He jerks his chin toward the corpse. “Help me out here.”

I sigh, running a hand down my face. “I’ll get the arms.”

Cassian crouches, hooking his arms under Silvio’s legs, making a show of grunting. “Careful with his head, Vitale. Pretty sure the bastard’s got more brain in there than he ever used.”

We drag the body outside. Julian’s posted at the warehouse door, scanning the street, one hand on his gun. The last thing we need is the feds or Romano’s stragglers showing up.

The Benz is gone. Enzo and Luca must’ve taken it. So we wedge Silvio Romano into the trunk of the Rolls. It’s like cramming a corpse into a designer coffin.

I climb behind the wheel, Julian slams into shotgun, and Cassian drops into the backseat, legs stretched out, smirking at both of us through the rearview.

“What?” he says, almost cheerful. “Nothing says family reunion like a body disposal.”

I laugh. Julian elbows me in the ribs.

“Don’t encourage him,” he mutters, glaring out the window.

“Encourage me?” Cassian leans forward between the seats, grinning like the devil. “Oh, I haven’t even gotten started.”

He turns to me. “Vitale, did you know your boy here used to cry every time he lost to me at chess?”

Julian whips around in his seat. “That was when I was eight—”

Cassian waves him off. “Eleven. And it wasn’t just chess. Cards. Checkers. Anything, really. Once in high school, he lost a coin toss and didn’t talk to me for three days.”

I glance at Julian, smirking. “Is that so?”

Julian mutters something under his breath that sounds like a death threat.

Cassian’s eyes glint in the rearview. “Oh, it gets better. You should ask him about the time he—”

“Cassian.” Julian’s tone sharpens.

“—tried to ‘hack’ into Mom’s email… and accidentally deleted all her contacts. For weeks, she thought everyone had ghosted her.”

I choke back a laugh. Julian shoots him a glare. “I will put you in the damn trunk with Romano.”

Cassian just shrugs. “At least then I’d get some peace and quiet.”

I clear my throat.

“Cassian, I’m heading back to the estate to have my driver take care of the body… Care to join us for dinner?”

Julian shoots me a panicked, wide-eyed look that screams, No. Please, God, no.

Cassian just smirks. “I’d love to.”