Cruel Vows

MASSIMO

Father looks grave as he sits behind the large mahogany desk in the study — the same study I deflowered my princess in, on that exact desk he’s sitting behind. I try to push the erotic images of her splayed out over it out of my mind.

“What is this about?” I ask, as my younger brothers will not speak first.

He runs a hand across the back of his neck. “Rourke was right. Adrik is planning something big. We can’t ignore it.”

“Fuck,” I say, clenching my fists by my side. The mere idea of working with the Callaghan clan makes my blood boil. “How can we work with them after everything between us?”

He stands, approaching me and setting his hands on my shoulders. “It won’t be easy.” He glances at Leo, who also looks just as pissed as me. “But sacrifices have to be made for the survival of our famiglia.” His jaw clenches. “And you know what that means.”

Unfortunately, I know exactly what that means. Calling a truce with Spartak Volkov and asking him to consider working with us to stop his unhinged nephew. “I don’t like it.”

“Neither do I,” Father admits.

Luca shakes his head, walking forward. “Spartak can’t be trusted. How do we know this isn’t a ploy and Adrik is working with him?”

“We don’t,” Father admits, propping himself against the edge of the desk. “But we have to trust the intel that both Rourke and our own people have come up with.”

Leo shakes his head. “He took Imalia.”

“And Rourke’s grandfather killed your mother. I killed his mother. There’s bloodshed on all sides, and we have to look past it if we want to avoid a catastrophe.” He grabs a piece of paper off his desk and holds it up. “This is Adrik’s plan.”

I walk forward and take it, checking over the map, which is marked with targets. One of them is a huge X over our family home. All three families are targeted, except for the Estrada Cartel. “Hernandez is a slippery bastard.” I give the plan back to my father. “He’s as much to blame as Adrik.”

Father nods. “Believe me, he won’t get away with it lightly. First, we need to arrange a discreet meeting with Spartak to ensure Adrik and the Cartel don’t realize we know their plan. As that could just accelerate them into action.”

Adrik’s plan is certifiably insane, although it would achieve what he wants. He intends to blow apart each one of the reining families with short-range missiles. Ones that will cause collateral damage, but I sense he isn’t the kind of person who cares about that.

“I underestimated Adrik Volkov,” I say, running a hand through my hair. “Everyone always wrote him off as the black sheep.”

“It’s always the black sheep you have to watch,” Luca says.

I raise a brow. “Does that mean I have to watch you, little bro?”

“Fuck you.”

I laugh, as although Luca isn’t a black sheep, he’s always been the hot-head of the family.

“Shall I arrange a meeting with Spartak?” I ask.

Father’s brow furrows. “How do you intend to secure it?”

“Imalia.” I shrug. “She’ll listen, even if she’s still pissed at us.”

“Sure, sort it out. And I’ll ask Rourke for a second meeting to agree to terms of a ceasefire.” My father looks at Leo and Luca. “Can I trust you two to brief our men and ensure that everyone is on the same page?”

“Of course,” Leo answers.

Luca just nods in response.

“Good, then get to it. We have no time to waste.” He glances at the piece of paper in his hand. “We couldn’t ascertain a timescale for Adrik’s plan.”

“I’ll also pay a visit to Axel, as we might need all the help we can get,” I say.

“Good thinking,” Leo says, clapping me on the shoulder.

I turn and head out of the study first.

“Massimo,” Father says, when I’m at the door.

I glance back at him. “Father?”

“Be careful. Don’t underestimate Spartak.”

I shake my head. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” We all know he’s fucking crazy after the shit he pulled at our casino.

The bastard was there for peace talks while his men robbed us. It’s the ultimate sign of disrespect, which means I’m not stupid enough to trust him.

I pull my cell phone out and dial Imalia’s number, hoping beyond hope she picks up.

“Massimo?” she answers after the second dial tone.

“Hey, Imalia. I’m sorry to bother—”

“What’s wrong?”

I swallow hard, wondering if it’s that obvious that something is wrong from my voice. “I was hoping you could help me arrange a meeting with your husband.”

She blows out a long breath. “I think that’s a pretty bad idea considering what happened last time, don’t you?”

“It can be under his terms. Imalia, a threat beyond any of us, has come to light. We agreed to a ceasefire with the Callaghan Clan to deal with it, but we need Spartak’s help too.”

“His help? What on earth could have happened?”

I shake my head. “I can’t tell you on the phone. Please can you speak with him and ask him to meet? Also, he’ll have to keep it secret, particularly from his family.” I run a hand through my hair. “Let’s just say someone close to him is not exactly loyal.”

“Fuck, he’s suspected as much for a while. Okay, I’ll let you know how I get on.”

“Thanks,” I say.

“Massimo?”

“Yeah?”

“It’s really nice to hear from you. I know after everything—”

“The past is the past, Imalia. Let’s just sort out this threat and keep those we love safe, hey?”

“Right,” she says, sounding a little disappointed by my dismissiveness. “I’ll get back to you soon.” She cancels the call and I stow my phone in my pocket, heading out of the front door.

Axel King is our newest ally, but he’s also got power in numbers. If this gets messy, we can rely on his help or he can stuff his deal up his ass.

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