Page 100 of The Mafia Marriage Contract

Bronx and Reign appear, stopping next to me. Roman grimaces, pressing the knife in deeper. "Tell your boys to back off or I'll slice her goddamn carotid artery so fast your head will spin."

Bronx freezes, the gun in his outstretched hand.

"What do you want, Roman?" I say.

"What do I want?" He laughs. It’s a harsh and bitter sound that grates against my ears. "I want my brother back. I want Cormac to suffer the way I've suffered. But since I can't have that…"

He looks down at Livvie, the disdain in his expression mixing with rejection.

"You know what's funny? I thought I’d be able to win her back. I thought if I saved her from the life her asshole father condemned her to, she'd see I was the one who could protect her."

Roman shifts the knife slightly and Livvie stiffens, her eyes wide.

"I had it all planned. That USB drive I gave her… it contains the real Blood Vault files. I was going to use it to destroy the Tribunal and her father, rescuing her from everything that was hurting her."

The USB drive. The one Bronx has been trying to crack.

"But then she fucking fell for you. She chose you overme." Roman's voice takes on a vicious edge. "So now she dies. And you get to watch."

He grips the knife tight, starting to drag it across her throat. Livvie shrieks. But I don’t hesitate. I fire.

Livvie moves at the same time the bullet whizzes through the air, like she anticipated my move. She lunges sideways, jerking her body out of the path of the bullet.

The chair next to them topples to the floor. Roman's blade clatters at her feet as he crashes backward against the wall, and she grabs it.

He staggers, his shoulder blown open, but stays upright. Then he pulls a gun from his waistband with his good arm.

"Kingston!" Livvie screams.

Time slows, like I’m trudging through wet, sticky tar to get closer. Roman's finger presses the trigger. More shots fire. I shoot again but he dodges and drops.

Then Livvie scurries across the floor, the steel blade in her hand raising high before she drives it into his chest.

“You fucking bitch,” he snarls, reaching for her hair. But before he can grab her, I squeeze off two bullets, one to the chest, one hitting the side of his throat.

He staggers backward, eyes wide, gurgling blood. The gun falls from his hand, crashing against the floor.

"That's for my family," she growls through clenched teeth. Blood bubbles on Roman's lips as he writhes against the floor, the life slowly and excruciatingly seeping out of him. "And for putting your fucking hands on me."

"Y-you were m-mine," he chokes out.

"I was never yours," Livvie says, voicedeadly calm. "I choose him."

Ragged breaths follow. Blood pools beneath him, staining the concrete.

I run over to Livvie and pull her into my arms, shaking, tears streaming down her face.

"I'm sorry," she whispers against my chest, her bloodied hands shaking. "I should have told you about the Tribunal’s order. I should have trusted you. We could have figured it out together."

"You're safe now." I hold her tight, feeling her heartbeat against mine. Guilt gnaws at me. I made the same fucking mistake. I could have told her about my order to kill Cormac. We could have figured things out, come up with a way to neutralize the threat against us. "That's all that matters."

I hug her tight. She’s cut, bruised, and bloody. But she's alive. And she's mine.

"The USB drive," I say. "Roman had everything he needed to take down the Red Tribunal."

"I’d never heard of any Blood Vault. Then after he kidnapped me, he told me everything. I guess he didn’t think I was a threat to him at that point.”

She slants his body a dirty look.