Page 99 of Ruthless King

“Promise me,” he whispers, nothing more than a gurgle of air. “You’ll take care of her.”

Another sob rips through my clenched teeth. “No, don’t say that. You’re going to be fine.”

“Promise me,” he mouths.

I squeeze my friend’s limp body to my chest, my insides caving in on me. “I swear it, Vinny.Lo giuro. I’ll always protect her.”

His head falls back, and his eyes glaze over as he stares into the night sky.

“No!” A shriek fills the silence, and I’m too fucking gone to realize it came from me. I hug my best friend tighter, his blood soaking into my shirt.

I’m trembling. A firm hand holds me steady. “Luca! Snap out of it.” Dante gives me another shake. Jianjun coalesces before me, his wiry white brows tangled. My brother pries the gun from my hands and pockets it before he flashes his phone in my face. “One of my guys got a lead on Stella. Let’s move.” He shoves me toward the exit, my mind still swimming.

I don’t even remember I’ve abandoned the Ducati at the Red Dragon until my hazy thoughts come to focus as we speed down the West Side Highway. Dante’s driving, white-knuckling the steering wheel.

“We’ll find her, I swear,” he mutters.

Fuck. I’m having a mental breakdown, and now is not the time. Forcing my mind to sharpen, I focus on Stella. She trusts me. I promised Vinny to keep her safe. I failed him once; I won’t do it again. “Give me my gun back.”

Dante eyes me, a skeptical twist to his lips.

“I’m better now,coglione. Just do it.”

He digs it out of his waistband and hands it over.

“Where are we going anyway?”

“Charlie said he saw Bo and some of his guys go into a warehouse in Meatpacking. He didn’t see a girl, but maybe they had her hidden or something.”

My gut twists. “Where’s Tony and the rest of them?”

“Meeting us there.”

“Good.” I squeeze my fingers into fists to keep them from shaking. I bury the fear deep within the rage and allow it to flow freely. Then, I wait for the icy calm.

CHAPTER44

PAYBACK

Stella

A pounding headache forces my heavy lids open. I blink quickly, shoving back the lingering haze as memories flit to the surface. The subway station. Bo.Merda. Metal bites against my wrists as I try to move. My shoulder blades burn from being forced behind my back. I sit in a hard metal chair, my legs and arms bound.

Fear lances through my chest as I take in the murky surroundings. Once my eyes adjust to the darkness, the sprawling warehouse takes shape. Soaring metal rafters overhead and massive rusted containers surround me.

We must be near the water. Right? They have to load these containers somewhere.

A strip of small windows lines the top of the vast space, but they’re too small and too far to make out any details. I try to wriggle my hand through the metal cuff but it’s too damned tight. My pepper spray sits in my pocket taunting me.

All that time wasted with Luca. I should’ve spent it learning how to fight like he did. Dark memories surge to the surface. Vinny, bullets in his torso, lying in a pool of his own blood. I squeeze my eyes shut to bury the images, but in the dark of this godforsaken warehouse, it’s all I see.

Dad was wasted, too drunk to get out of bed when we’d gotten the call from the cops. So I’d gone by myself at twelve years old. More memories flood my mind. My small hands trembling. My heart racing so fast because I’d taken too many puffs from my inhaler. I’d called Luca on my way, and he’d never answered. Never returned my call.

He’d completely disappeared.

How had I not put it together back then?

Nonno died a few weeks after Vinny. A heart attack. Had it been guilt? Had he known all along that it was because of him my brother was dead? So many people to blame … and yet none of it mattered because nothing would bring him back.