Page 35 of Vow to Corrupt You (Gods of Corruption #1)

Nikos

My chin rests heavily on my fingers as I sit in one of the meeting rooms at Olympus.

We need to finally discuss the exclusion of the Castro family.

After their direct attack against me, all members now agree they’re out.

A betrayal against one member is a betrayal against us all.

He’s brought this upon himself and has no one else to blame.

Heavy smoke hangs in the air as we plot our next move.

The vendetta is brewing, and we need a new channel to smuggle the drugs.

South America’s out—the Castro cartel’s got that locked down.

But there’s one more possibility that, until now, was off the table.

Monsera. A small but influential country in North Africa.

Leandro Jamal Almaviri, who has a grip on the underground there, wanted to join The Gods for many years.

But there’s one slight issue. He’s the king’s brother.

A fucking member of royalty. And while such an influential network, all hidden behind the facade of royalty, is tempting, it’s also dangerous.

A man with that much control may be a threat, and in our world, such a man is either an ally or an enemy—there’s no in-between.

Vidar Vold, Aric’s father, leans forward.

“We need to vote.” The room goes still. The older man rarely attends meetings anymore.

His declining health keeps him in Norway.

While some meetings occur in other regions of The Gods, including Norway, Olympus is the headquarters, and most meetings are held here.

That’s why we accepted his son, Aric, into The Gods because the frequent travel had become a burden for Vidar, just like Rodrigo Castro, who took his seat because his father’s got one foot in the grave already.

However, Aric is far more mature than Rodrigo ever was. He couldn’t handle half the weight Aric already carried. That’s the difference. Aric is steady and calculating, a man with a good head on his shoulders. And yet, despite everything, Vidar insisted on showing up today.

Vidar methodically scans the room, scrutinizing each of us.

The vote begins. One by one, hands rise—every man in favor of Almaviri joining.

Everyone except Vidar. His hand stays down.

The decision is dead, just like that. Every member must agree unanimously for a decision to pass—no exceptions.

The room falls silent, jaws tightening as all eyes turn to Vold.

“Then there’s only one way to solve the issue,” Thorne breaks the silence.

“And what would that be, Thorne?” Vold drawls.

“An alliance between the Volds and the Almaviris.”

Vidar’s expression darkens. “You mean to suggest?”

“A marriage,” Thorne states, as if proposing a simple business deal. Nothing unusual in our world. The word is that Barry Thorne himself is planning an arranged marriage for his heir with a Polish mafia princess. “Aric and Leandro’s daughter. It ends the war and forges the alliance we need.”

The room erupts into murmurs, half the men nodding, the other half whispering, but I can’t bring myself to focus. My fingers absentmindedly tap against the marble surface, and since I occupy a head seat as the leading chief, it draws attention. But then my phone starts ringing.

“Excuse me.” I grab my phone, which won’t stop vibrating and distracting the hell out of me.

“Where are you going, Nikos?” Hyunseok yells after me as I’m heading out of the meeting room. “We were supposed to discuss the joining of the Vergoossens to our society. Their leader, Chris—”

“Not today,” I bark before closing the door behind me.

My soldiers know better than to interrupt me during these meetings, so I assume something serious might’ve happened.

I dial the last incoming number and press the phone to my ear, looking through the glass wall in the hallway. “What is it, Remo?”

“I’m sorry to bother you, boss, but it’s about your wife.”

A sudden tension seizes me, every instinct on high alert. “What about her?”

“She hasn’t returned home yet.”

“What do you mean my wife hasn’t returned home yet? And where is she?”

“We’re trying to figure that out.” He clears his throat. “She was supposed to finish her classes three hours ago.”

“Three hours, and you’re telling me about this now?” I feel a wave of heat rushing through my veins as I consider all the possible scenarios.

Three hours is enough for a motherfucker like Castro to kidnap her, take her out of the country, fulfill his threats, and kill her. Now my blood runs cold. I remember the threat from the filthy note he left me.

“Locate her,” my tone drawls darkly through the empty hallway.

“We’ve tried, but we can’t. It seems the signal is blocked.”

My palm clenches around my phone so hard, I wouldn’t be surprised if the screen cracks.

“She better be safe and sound because if a fucking hair is harmed on her head, I’ll skin each one of you and choke you on your own flesh.” I hang up and rush outside. “Tell everyone that the meeting is over,” I say to the receptionist on my way out.

The engine roars as I speed up the highway, overtaking every car like a madman.

This is what she does to me. She drives me insane.

My teeth graze my lip, hand gripping the steering wheel.

Chiara. She was supposed to give her a lift, and they’re literally inseparable.

If anyone knows something, it’s her. I dial her number since I copied all the contacts from Serena’s phone into mine.

Twisted? Possessive? I’d say protective.

“Hello?” Chiara rumbles through the speaker of my car’s audio system. Clearly tipsy. The music and people’s chatter in the background muffle her voice.

“Chiara,” my voice comes out low and heavy. “It’s Nikos Romano.”

I hear her cough as if she choked for a fraction. “How do you have my… never mind. Why are you calling?”

“Is my wife with you?” I go rigid, hoping she’d say she’s there, hiding from me, or wanting to run away from me. Anything is better than her being taken by Castro.

She clears her throat, “She’s here.”

Thank fucking God.

The tension releases, giving way to anger. Serena doesn’t seem to realize the world she lives in now. How dangerous it is, and if she thinks I am her worst threat, she’s fucking wrong. Only someone as dangerous as I am can save her from worse things.

“Is she safe? You have eyes on her?” My jaw clenches.

“Of course.” I could almost imagine her squint. “And with all due respect, Mr. Romano, I do hope you won’t be an asshole to her for wanting to have a taste of normal life.”

Bold to call me an asshole when I’m literally about to lose my mind because my wife wants to have a taste of ordinary life.

“Her life is anything but normal now, whether she likes it or not. You have no idea the danger she could be in.” I try to keep my composure. “Give her the phone.”

“Last time I checked, I’m neither your soldier nor your servant. Please would be nice.”

She’s fucking drunk. Not tipsy. Wasted.

My hand clenches the steering wheel again, and a deep breath draws in my lungs.

I look at the tracking app; the advantages of having access to the newest technologies.

As soon as Chiara picked up, I had her location on my screen.

I take a turn to get there. They’re close.

If I keep driving at this pace, I’ll get there in ten minutes.

Ten more fucking minutes of torture. Whatever sneaked into the innocent head of my wife won’t go without punishment.

I’ll have to punish her for going against the rules and disobeying my orders, my will.

I don’t like not having control, and Serena…

she’s so fucking resistant to any sort of control.

One would think a shy girl like her would be easy to handle.

She’s fucking gasoline to my fire. My fucking kryptonite.

“Please,” I force the word out, teeth barely parting.

The things Serena pushes me to do. I do not fucking ask, I demand.

Command. But one thing I know is there’s no reason to fight a wasted person.

Let alone a woman defending another woman.

That’s an entirely different kind of force that could ignite a firestorm I do not have the time to deal with now.

“Wow, did I just bend the most unyielding man in the country?” she pauses momentarily as if impressed by her achievement.

Serena has bent me, and she’ll get punished for that. The list of her misdeeds is growing.

“Chiara, trust me, you don’t want to fucking play games with me.” My patience is wearing thin. “Give my wife the fucking phone.”

“But, she’s…” I hear a hint of panic in her voice, followed by a brief pause, that fills me with dread.

“What?” I urge. Seven minutes, I’ll be there in seven fucking minutes.

“She’s not here, but she was just here beside me. I…”

My hand runs through my hair. Fuck. “Find my wife. I’ll be right there.”

I hang up and accelerate, pushing my Ferrari to drive to its limit.

I see red, fury consuming every shred of my being once I arrive at the location. The engine’s still running as I get out of the car and rush toward her. I knew she was in danger. I felt it in my fucking bones.

“Instead, you married a ruthless psycho, a murderer who has power only because he slaughters people.” I hear the motherfucker who dares to corner my fucking wife.

“That’s true,” I grab the back of his collar and drag him away from Serena, “and you’ve just jumped to the top of my list of people I’m going to kill.” I land a direct punch to his nose, and the blood splatters all over his shirt and the ground.

“What the fuck, dude?” He holds his nose while crying like a baby, as if he hadn’t just tried to force himself on my woman against her will.

Before I can land another hit, Serena gets in between us, pressing her chest against mine. “Please, don’t.”

I look at the bastard with my jaw clenching, every muscle in me tensing with lethal fury. His pupils dilate as he realizes who I am and that he’s fucked with the wrong person.

“Please, just take me home,” Serena’s voice breaks; her body quivers as she clings to me with so much intensity like she wants to sink into me and fuse into my very soul.

She fucking succeeds. She’s imprinted deep in my core like the ink on her skin I made her get—and there’s no possible way of getting her out.

She runs through me. In my blood. In my veins.

“This is not the end,” I growl, using every ounce of my willpower not to smash his head against the street until it’s no longer recognizable. Motherfucker’s lucky she’s my priority. It extends his shitty life for a few more hours.

The dude’s lips tremble as he looks at me with growing fear before he starts running.

As if there was a place in this world where he could hide from me.

There’s no escape from my wrath. I’ll find him and give him exactly what he deserves without Serena ever finding out. Revenge served cold tastes best.

“Did he hurt you?” The words barely leave my tightening jaw.

I gently pull away from her vise grip, so strong as if her life depended on it, and look at her. Into her eyes. Teary. Full of fear. Fucking bastard will pay for the pain he caused her.

“No, he didn’t. I’m sorry.” A tear drips down her cheek. “I shouldn’t have come here.”

“You shouldn’t.” But now’s not the time to dwell on that. I must take her home, make sure she’s well. Let her digest the events. Then, we’ll get back to that so she never makes the same mistake again.

My black-gloved thumb caresses her cheek on its own before I lead her to the car.

I help her settle into the passenger’s seat and secure the seatbelt across her fragile, quivering body. Swiftly, I circle to the other side of the driver’s seat and pull away.

“Tell me his name.” My fingers dig into the steering wheel.

Abruptly, she turns to face me. I focus on the road, but I sense her apprehension. “What do you want to do to him?”

At least a hundred possible ways of killing the piece of shit cross my mind. “We’ll just have a little talk.”

“I don’t believe you.” Her voice falters.

“Just tell me his name,” I demand, anger fueling every inch of my body. “You know I will get his name even if you don’t tell me. You’re just stalling the inevitable.”

Her shoulders slump, her arms tightening. “Promise me you won’t hurt him… like you hurt Claudio.”

“I can’t promise you that.”

“Please.”

“I will not make any promises I can’t keep.

” My tone is as cool as my heart. I’ve no mercy in me.

I’m like a machine with no feelings, and I kill with cold blood.

With no remorse. Especially those who dare to cross me or touch what’s mine.

I vowed to protect her, and I will, no matter the price—until I am the only threat she ever has to fear.

Then I will protect her even from myself for as long as she needs to embrace the darkness, hers and mine.

“His name,” I hiss.

A heavy sigh escapes her lungs, and she looks away as she whispers, “Raffaele Gordon.”

The vein in my eyelid throbs with anger at the sound of his name. I select Remo’s number. It doesn’t even take one full ringtone before he answers.

“Yes, boss?”

“I found my wife.” I glance at Serena, who stares at the passing landscapes through the window. Her arms cross as if she wants to shrink until she’s so small no one can notice her.

“Any orders?” Remo snaps me back to my focus.

“Find Raffaele Gordon.” I hang up.