Page 39 of Single Mom’s Mafia Daddies (The Forbidden Reverse Harem Collection #22)

LILA

“ S tay with the cameras.” Alessio pushed me toward a chair in front of the bank of screens. “You can watch everything happen from here, and you’ll know if anyone is coming.”

“I should be out there.” I’d known this was coming after he’d laid down the law that I wouldn’t be participating in the counterattack, but that didn’t mean I had to stay locked away. “The best way for me to protect Leo is to be out there.”

“Leo is safe in the panic room with his toys and a personal guard. That’s where you should be.” He stopped long enough to grasp the back of my neck and pull me in for a searing kiss. “Sorry. I want to keep you safe, and it makes me crazy that you refuse to hide. I have to go.”

He bolted from the room, calling out orders as he ran. He mentioned something about choke points and stationing men at each one. His voice faded into the distance until there was nothing left but the tick of a clock and my pounding pulse.

An earpiece like Renzo’s rested on the edge of the metal table. I reached for it and held it up to my ear. Voices crashed through. Matteo. Renzo. Others I didn’t know but answered in response to Alessio. They were a unified system intent on destruction.

I had refused to hide. I reminded myself of that and dragged a chair over to the center of the console.

Every screen showed me a different part of the estate.

I scanned them for threats, desperate to do my part in ending the threat.

Color popped on the screen to my upper left, and I focused on it.

A gunfight raged, four soldiers firing at each other from their respective places.

Our men hunkered down on the high brick wall.

The others ducked behind a SUV and fired through the busted-out windows.

Voices rang in my ear, the gunfire a constant background noise I tried to block out so the words made sense.

“Man down on the south wall.”

“We’re taking heavy fire on the north. Anyone got eyes on the tunnels? I thought I saw an explosion over there.”

I checked the cameras near the tunnels. “Debris scattered looks like an explosion. No movement.”

“Who’s that?”

“This is Lila. I’m covering you on the cameras.” Would they respect that I’d joined the fight my own way? “West wall, you have three men approaching.” I leaned forward to double check myself. “Make that four. They’re carrying something between them.”

“On it,” a voice fired back. “Shit, boys. We got a Jessica inbound. Take them out.”

Jessica? I leaned in closer to the screen, using the toggles to zoom in. A rocket launcher came into view. They’d wrapped it in a tarp and carried it like they would a wounded comrade.

“Nice spot, Lila. Glad to have you at our backs.”

I warmed at the praise. “Stay alive, boys.”

“That’s the plan, ma’am.” The men on the west wall opened fire, and the approaching soldiers dropped. One rolled sideways several times, taking the rocket launcher with him. “Jessica’s in hiding. Keep your eyes open.”

A burst of orange fire erupted seconds later, blowing a giant hole in the west corner of the wall. Brick flew in every direction. Grit spewed into the air in a cloud of dust that obliterated my vision.

“Breach in the west wall.” I managed to keep my voice even despite the terror. “I have two men coming through. They split on the inside. Anyone available?”

“This is Benson, I’m on my way.” A man ran into view, rounding the corner from the gardens and firing off a series of shots.

I turned away from the camera long enough to check behind him, then scanned the other cameras in case of a second breach. Benson had eyes on the two men, and I let him carry the reports of their demise to his comrades.

The door behind me blew open with a thunderous boom. I covered my head with my arms and whirled to face the man standing in the way of my escape. Pale blue eyes gave off a ghostly light and seemed to look right through me. A vicious grin twisted his lips.

“Well, now. This is exactly what I hoped to find.” His sharp features twisted with a grimace. He towered over me, his thin, wiry frame covered in a crisp suit that matched his eyes.

“Who the hell are you?” I shoved away from the desk and stood, turning my body to hide the earpiece until I’d adjusted my hair over it and the side of my face.

The grin stretched wider, the menace in it rushing through the air to chill the room. He hissed a series of tsk ing sounds. “They didn’t tell you about me? How thoughtless of them.” He bowed at the waist, one hand to his belt and the other fanned toward me. “Luca Verducci, at your service.”

“So you’re the asshole who thinks he can take out my family.” I stood my ground. I had no choice with the desk at my back and Luca guarding the door.

“Oh, it’s nothing to do with you.” He strolled toward me, the blue ice in his eyes glinting dangerously. “You’re simply the weakness I plan on exploiting.”

“Good luck with that.” I felt around behind me, found one of the keyboards, and chucked it at his head.

He caught it from midair and heaved it back, clipping my shoulder. “You like to play? Good. That’ll make things interesting.”

“I’m not your type.” I locked my stance the way Dad taught me and resisted drawing the knife from the hidden sheath behind my back.

“Everyone is my type.” He withdrew a long, curved blade and tilted it into the light. “You all bleed the same.”

The voices in my ear offered a flurry of encouragement. Help was coming. I just had to live long enough for it to arrive.

Luca made a slashing motion through the air, and the blade sang a raw note of death.

I flinched back, using the desk as a weight to balance. When Luca laughed, I bit down on the inside of my cheek and ducked my head, sneaking out my knife.

“Such a pity. A waste, really.” He sidestepped back in front of the door. “I’m tempted to offer you a chance to join us.” He shrugged. “But the boy has to die.”

“You’ll have to get through me first.” I launched at him, the knife steady in my grip.

Men like him underestimated women. He thought us weak and foolish, not worth the time or effort of learning our value. I used that against him and slashed at his face.

He leaped back a split second before the knife carved into his cheek.

Rich laughter rolled out. How did a man so vile have such a pleasing laugh?

It soured my stomach to see his pleasure in my perceived pain.

“You should have listened to Alessio. This is not the place for you. But if you want to fight, I won’t stop you. ”

He crouched and sprang all in one smooth motion.

I didn’t have a prayer of meeting his speed, but I did have years of cunning and Dad’s voice in my head from all those self-defense classes to keep me alive.

I jumped sideways and blocked the knife with my wrist. The point of the blade tagged my shoulder, tearing through my shirt and drawing blood.

Luca danced out of reach of my returning swipe. Grinning, he held the knife aloft and licked my blood from the blade. “You taste like victory, my dear Lila.”

Renzo’s training had been quick but efficient.

I combined it with every move I knew, spinning around and lashing out with a kick that landed square in Luca’s midsection.

He doubled over long enough for me to follow up with a second kick, this one landing between his legs.

A grunt wheezed out, but he didn’t topple like most men.

Instead, that grin reappeared. He grabbed my leg and yanked, pulling me off balance. I’d been too confident the move would succeed and let him get the jump on me. It wouldn’t happen again.

“I’m on my way, Lila.” Alessio’s voice in my ear gave me courage. “Hold on.”

Luca twisted my leg and pulled again. I hopped forward to keep from falling.

“Where’s the boy?” He cocked an eyebrow. “Make this easy on yourself. You can have more children.”

“Fuck you.” I spat in his face and pushed off with the foot on the ground, twisting upward and kicking him in the side of the head.

He dropped my leg and staggered back.

Taking the opportunity, I dove at him with the knife tight in my hand. But the damned man had to be part ninja. He turned before I reached him and backhanded me from the air, sending me crumpling to the floor and my knife sliding out of reach beneath the desk.

“I suppose playtime is over.” He stood over me and tapped the knife against his thigh. “They really should have warned you about me. I can’t be killed. I’m ‘The Ghost’ and nothing can stand in my way.”

“People who have to give themselves a nickname are looking for validation.” I kicked at both his kneecaps. He might fall on me, but most likely he’d throw himself backward. He wavered, but the knife never shifted positions from where he held it poised over my heart.

Alessio burst through the door, his face twisted and a roar of rage tearing from him. “Get away from her!”