Page 91 of The Madman and his broken Princess

The words sounded flat, as if it wasn’t of consequence to me, but the stabbing pain in my chest and the utter sense of powerlessness told a different story. He was gone. Shouldn’t Ifeel like I had won? Like I was finally in absolute control? He would never be able to manipulate or taunt me again.

And I would never be able to make him pay for what he’d done.

Niccolo’s eyes widened, and he dropped his hand from the button that would have started his car. “Oh damn. That’s not good.”

I grimaced. “Didn’t you tell me over and over again to kill him?”

“I did, until I didn’t because you threatened to rip my tongue out.” He pressed the engine button, putting the car into Drive. “Now I’m almost scared to ask what you did to Amelia.”

I glanced at the mansion, which became smaller as he headed down the driveway. Away from Amelia.

“Nothing,” Niccolo said with a disbelieving laugh. “Wow.”

“Take me to the Bratva hideout where they killed one of our drug dealers.” I’d begin there and then see where my rage would take me next.

Niccolo let out a low whistle. “You’re going to spill blood.”

“Blood and bowels. I need to unleash the rage inside me.”

“As long as you don’t unleash it on me, I’m fine. I have plans for tonight which I’d loathe to cancel because I’m dead.”

“We are family. It would take a lot for me to kill you.”

Niccolo chuckled. “To be honest, for a while I wasn’t so sure.”

“For a while, I wasn’t either, but now I am.” I could kill him, like I could kill anyone I knew, except for Amelia, but I didn’t want to. With Amelia, it wasn’t as simple as not wanting to kill her. I knew I’d be physically unable to kill her. I’d ram the blade into my own heart before I’d kill her with it.

“Should I call for reinforcements?”

“I’ll go in there alone.”

“No, you won’t. I’ll come with you. Madness doesn’t make you invincible.”

I nodded. “No one else.” We left the walls covered with rose tendrils behind, and I felt a mix of longing and relief like I did every time.

“What are you going to do now?”

“About the corpse? Tell trustworthy men to drag it down to the enclosures and feed him to the lions. If anything of him remains, I want them to dump it in the ocean so fish devour it.”

Niccolo smirked then nodded, his eyes focused on the traffic ahead. “All right. Any other plans I should be aware of? Amelia seems to bring change.”

I narrowed my eyes at my cousin, not sure if he was mocking me, but he looked relieved. Change. Maybe it was really time for it. “I want you to find someone who can brick up the entrance to the basement.”

Niccolo nodded. “All right. Noted. So you’ll keep personal prisoners in our official prison now?”

“Yes.” I hadn’t had a personal prisoner except for Achille since I’d killed the last of the other men who’d tortured me a year ago.

Niccolo parked in front of the warehouse that housed two to five Bratva soldiers. I closed my eyes and allowed the rage to come forth. Taking a deep breath, I shoved open the door and got out.

I had a knife and a gun in the holster under my coat. I hoped I’d get the chance to use my bare hands, though. I needed the personal kill.

Niccolo caught up with me, his gun drawn. “I’ll watch your back. I assume you want to do the killing?”

“Yes. I need to.”

With a martial scream, I kicked in the wooden back door and allowed darkness to consume me.

I showered and stuffed today’s clothes into a garbage bag, then I dressed in a flowy white skirt and a short-sleeved white blouse.