Page 29

Renzo

A fter a brunch that was so late it really should have been called lunch, I had Milo take Isabetta back inside.

Her father had shielded her from much of his business, and though I didn’t plan on hiding things from her forever, watching Havoc interrogate someone was the introduction you gave someone you were trying to intimidate or scare, not the wife you wanted to rule by your side.

Havoc met the plane when it landed, as I didn’t want his men coming to the house.

Honestly, I didn’t want this to interrupt our honeymoon, but I also knew the house was private.

While we weren’t the only people on this island, the house was isolated.

I didn’t have to worry about nosey neighbors calling the authorities, or someone with a telephoto lens snapping pictures to display at a grand jury trial.

This would not take long. Havoc was good at what he did, and his men had already started the job. If I didn’t know how tightly he kept them in line, I might have been worried about the asshole making it here in one piece. But Havoc didn’t repeat instructions. He didn’t need to.

I spread my wings as I waited on the grass near the pool.

The man Havoc was bringing would not make it off the island alive, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t important to make an impression.

I kept my hands in my pockets and ignored the urge to pace.

The sun glinted off the gold in my wings, making the red feathers at the bottom look like blood.

I heard the car arrive, then the sounds of a scuffle, but I didn’t move.

Havoc would never shut up if I made him look weak by coming to his rescue.

It was less than a minute before he pulled the bound man into the yard.

There was a bag over the man’s head, which really wasn’t necessary, but a nice touch.

Havoc kept dragging him, not letting him find his footing. When they reached me, he kicked the back of the captive’s knees and forced him to the ground. He wrenched the bag off and stepped to the side, ready to intervene if necessary.

I ignored the cursing, taking a few seconds to study the bloodied face.

He wasn’t anyone I recognized, which was both a good and a bad thing.

Good, that I wouldn’t have to put a bullet in someone I thought of as an ally, but bad that someone unknown was attacking us.

Havoc hadn’t filled me in entirely. This could have been some nameless rank-and-file member of a rival organization.

I crossed my arms when the curses and threats of revenge didn’t stop.

This was getting old, and all the bluster was for nothing.

The man knew he wasn’t leaving alive. There was nothing he could offer me, and certainly nothing he could do to stop what was coming.

I had hoped he would realize the seriousness of his situation, but he kept pushing my patience.

Havoc stepped in before I could lose my temper.

A well-placed kick to the ribs left the idiot hunched over and gasping for breath.

At least it had stopped the incessant yapping. I gave him a couple of seconds to gather himself, as I wanted his full attention. When he glared up at me, I knew I had it.

“You know why you’re here. Whoever you work for is attacking my territory.

I am sure they think they can do enough damage while I am away to tip the balance of power in their favor, and who knows, maybe they can.

But you won’t be alive to see it happen.

Once we have everything we want from you, you will die.

” It wasn’t a threat. There would be no bargaining.

This was war, and though I hadn’t started it, I was going to finish it.

The threats came again. Some in English, others in a language I didn’t speak. That didn’t narrow the list down, as the only other language I spoke was Italian. I looked over at Havoc, who was wearing a scowl. Guess I didn’t want to know what the idiot was saying then.

He was ranting about how he wasn’t a snitch and would not tell us anything when Havoc slammed a knife into his shoulder.

I was grateful for his intervention, he always knew when to step in.

The man howled in pain as Havoc pulled the knife free.

It was effective, as it had gotten him to stop ranting.

I crouched down, putting myself at the idiot’s eyeline.

“See, you are wrong about some things. A lot of things, actually, but I am not in the mood to reeducate you. I don’t care who you are, it doesn’t matter.

Maybe the people you work for will try to make us pay for your death, but you won’t be around to see it.

And I don’t need you to speak, thank god.

My lieutenant here is going to take care of that for me.

” Havoc gave a sarcastic little wave, as though there might be some question about who I meant, as I tapped on the captive man’s forehead.

“Everything I need to know is in here, and I don’t care if you want to give it up. ”

I straightened up and stepped back as the man tried to headbutt me.

It took great restraint not to roll my eyes, as though that cheap shot was going to accomplish anything.

Havoc had stepped forward, his wings were out now, the black feathers forming a wall between us.

I heard the thud as Havoc threw his knife into the ground and I was surprised he hadn’t buried it in the man rather than the grass.

Maybe he wanted him focused on something other than a knife sticking into him for what was to come.

Stepping back further, my hands returned to my pockets as I settled in to watch.

I enjoyed seeing Havoc at work; he didn’t do this sort of thing often, not unless it was necessary.

Even though I couldn’t see them, I knew his blue eyes were glowing.

His hands reached down, and he gripped the captive’s head between them.

The sound of flapping wings filled the air as Havoc tore through the man’s memories, sorting and taking what he wanted, then discarding the rest. With his shirt sleeves rolled up, I could see the inked ravens on his arms as they moved, the flock realigning themselves as new birds were added.

A physical representation of the memories Havoc took that were not his own.

Everything had a price.

When he was done, he pulled his hands back with a hiss, shaking them like he could cast the memories off like water.

His wings stretched before folding away.

I didn’t move, giving him space to sort through everything he’d seen.

Havoc hated being touched when he was using his powers.

The only exception was Milo, but he was the exception to all Havoc’s rules.

“They’re fucking Alps.” He spoke the words like they were supposed to mean something to me.

I was sure he didn’t mean the mountain range, so I waited to see if he was going to explain further.

Alp had to be a Scion lineage, though I didn’t know which one.

There were more types of Scions than there were stars in the sky, and I had better things to do than try to keep track.

He finished shaking his hands off, wiping them on his tactical pants. “They’re a type of Elf. Germanic, not Celtic. Kind of like an Incubus, without the sexy parts. They’re nightmares—literally. Alps used to sit on people’s chests and feed on the fear in their dreams.”

I wasn’t sure if he knew this already or if he was getting the information from Milo.

They both knew more about the different lineages than I did.

Milo because he was always socializing and wanted to keep on people’s good sides, and Havoc because he liked to know everyone’s weakness, especially if they were trying to attack us.

But none of this explained why these Alps were making a move on our territory. Ultimately, the reason didn’t matter as long as we won the fight, but I still liked to know. If there was a rumor out there that we were weak, I wanted it dealt with swiftly.

The man on his knees whimpered, his eyes clenched as he muttered under his breath.

Havoc must have taken some important pieces of his memory.

I had seen this fallout before; it was rarely pretty.

When he invaded their mind like this, removing things without care or precision, the person rarely recovered.

Since he wasn’t a threat for now, I turned my attention back to Havoc.

“Anything else useful?”

I didn’t want to press him, but I needed information. Maybe talking it out would help him sort through it faster. We didn’t have long, as our flight back was organized for this evening. The plane was already refueling from its journey here.

He ran a hand through his hair, leaving it disheveled, but I kept my hands in my pockets, waiting for him to move toward me.

“This guy was pretty high up. The Alps are opportunists, rat bastards. They listen for rumors of changes in power, people going out of town, or deaths in the family, those sorts of things. Then they attack fast, wrecking as much shit as they can and taking what power they can get.” Havoc spat once he’d finished speaking, wiping his mouth to get out a foul taste that wasn’t actually there.

My nose wrinkled at the description. “So they’re scavengers?

” It was a tactic that clearly worked for them, but it didn’t mean I had to respect or admire it.

Clearly, I needed to send a message that not only was my father’s legacy safe in my hands, but my territory was protected, even when I wasn’t present.

Havoc nodded, still looking disgusted. I was going to need to talk to Milo and see if there was something we could do. Usually, I left Havoc to sort things out on his own, but this time it wasn’t sitting well with me, and I certainly didn’t want Isabetta seeing him like this.

“Is there anything else we need from him?” I couldn’t think of anything, but it was one of the many reasons I kept the twins close, they always thought of the things I didn’t. Havoc looked over at the muttering man for a few seconds before he shook his head.

I took out the gun I had tucked into the shoulder holster hidden under my jacket.

It only took me a second to aim it at the Alp’s head and fire, the crack echoing loudly in the late afternoon air.

I wasn’t worried about anyone hearing it.

I was so focused on the man in front of me and Havoc’s agitated state that I almost missed the gasp from behind me.

But it was one I recognized, so I lowered the gun before I slowly turned to find Isabetta standing next to the pool.

Her eyes flicked from the body on the grass to the spray of blood, then to Havoc before they settled on me.

She wasn’t supposed to be outside. I kept a tight grip on my annoyance at her disobeying my order to stay inside with Milo.

She wasn’t to blame, he should have kept her distracted, but it still took me a couple of seconds to speak.

“What are you doing out here, tesoro?” I briefly considered stretching my wings out to hide the body from her view, but it was too late. She had seen me shoot him.

What happened next was important. It would shape our relationship.

I could only hope she didn’t cry. That was the last thing I needed.