"Do not get in my way," I growled at her. She froze in place, staring at me in horror. I knew my words sounded more like a threat as my anger pulsed through me, more like I'd kill her if she got in my way than the truth. But even then, I wouldn't risk Calla getting hurt in my desire to get revenge on the man who'd taken my life, my history, and twisted it out of context to fuck with Calla's head.
To destroy my marriage and rip away everything I loved.
He tried to squirm away from Enzo when he saw me coming, his movements frantic as I approached with the hatchet in my hand. Grabbing him by the throat, I lifted him off his feet and squeezed. "Please," he begged, so desperate for the pathetic life that didn't amount to much. He had no family of his own, no one who would miss him when he was gone.
"Did you think…" I paused, tossing him until his back crashed against the back of the SUV. "That I would just let you drive off with my wife and kids?" The words came on a growl as I touched the bloodied blade of the hatchet to the side of his neck and watched him whimper.
"You don't deserve her," he spat.
"I'm very aware of that fact, but the best part about being a man like me is that I do not give the first shit if I deserve her. Because I took her, and I will kill every man who tries to get in my way." Calla whimpered behind me as Enzo left my side. I knew she'd disobeyed me again, could feel that she'd taken a few steps closer to me.
"No!" she yelled, and I imagined Enzo restraining her. "Stop him. I can’t lose him, Enzo. Please don’t let him do something that could get him arrested," she sobbed. A startled smile crossed my face with the realization that Calla wasn’t concerned for Jason’s life.
She was worried about losing me.
I glanced over at Matteo when the sound of sirens rang through the air, and Jason looked foolishly relieved.
The police who came wouldn’t help him. I slammed the handle of the hatchet into his nose, enjoying the way it exploded in a spray of blood. "Get him the fuck out of here," I snarled, stepping away and swapping places with Enzo. The moment he released Calla, she ran forward and grabbed my shirt.
"I don’t want to lose you." She gaped as she stared up at me. “Can’t we just walk away from this part of your life?” I had nothing to say to that, because the reality was it was just as much a part of me as the man who loved her unconditionally.
I'd been raised in the shadows and in the shadows a part of me would always stay.
; No matter how Calla tried to shine her light on me.
Enzo peeled out, getting Jason away from the scene of the crime. I led her over to where Lino waited with the kids and Calla broke free from my hold and ran for them. Axel was the first to bolt up, racing into his mother's arms as she collapsed to her knees and flung her arms around him. He cried in her embrace, burrowing into her in a way I hadn't seen him do before.
“It’s okay, Cookie. Mommy’s okay,” she whispered with a sob.
I didn't know what had happened before we arrived or how Calla ended up fighting off her attackers, but Axel had seen bits of it. I suspected all of it. Ines quickly shoved her way in between them, crying in high-pitched sobs that made me question her ability to breathe.
By the time I found the ability to move, I dropped the hatchet on the floor of Lino's car. Then I wrapped myself around the kids' backs, closing them in tightly between us. Calla didn't protest my touching them even though we were both stained with blood. She just trembled as she clung to her children. "You were so brave," she whispered, kissing Axel's cheek.
His breath hitched in his chest, but I knew he'd be okay. I'd make sure of it, because my son would need to slowly become more and more involved in the family. Once we were at peace, I reasoned. By then he'd be old enough to understand that for every bad thing we did, there were three good ones.
I just had to make my wife see that.
"You need us?" I asked Lino.
"Nope. Matteo's got clean up covered," he answered, gesturing to where Matteo stood shaking the Chief of Police's hand. Calla looked at him in shock, no doubt recognizing him as he nodded to her in acknowledgement. I knew the moment she realized that nobody would ever know there'd even been an accident.
"Then let's go home," I told the kids.
And so we did.
Fifty-Four
Calla
The reflection in the mirror didn't look like me. The massive blue eyes were too empty to be mine, too dark against the skin that was too pale—even for me. I thought back to Axel's plea as we tucked him in. It wasn't me that my son reached out to for comfort.
It was Ryker.
My husband. The murderer.
"Will the bad men who got away get caught?" Axel had asked, his face stern and solid and looking at least twice his age with the horror he'd seen that day. I'd sobbed, escaping the room so I couldn't upset him further as Ryker told him he'd make sure they could never hurt me again.