Page 38 of The Bratva's Hostage

“It is just us. There’s no need to be on guard especially since you just neutralized my men,” he said, wearing a silly grin, his left eye twitching.

“You’re a fucking coward, Lucas. You let your men do all the dirty work while you go into hiding.” I said, grinning at him. “What kind of leader are you? Fucking wimp!”

He let go of her mouth and placed the hand on her shoulder, his grin turning into a sneer as he leveled me with a hateful gaze.

“The men, just like you, her, and anyone who stands in my way, are replaceable. Everyone is replaceable for the cause.”

“And you’re not?” I asked him.

“No, I am not. I must be available to lead the future generation. I am the messiah I need to save them from their weakness, which she and her damn father have caused.”

He pulled her head back by the hair and grinned when she groaned. “I should have done this sooner, but that doesn’t mean I enjoy it any less. Maybe I’ll let your father wake up instead of killing him like I originally intended, and then I’ll tell him how I killed his precious little girl and his bastard of a son before I choke the life out of him too.”

I moved forward to put an end to his torture when her eyes filled with pain and his lit up with madness. His head snapped up and the threat in his eyes made me pause. As much as I wanted to lunge at him and beat him to death, I couldn’t risk her getting hurt.

“Back off! If you make any moves, she will die. And don’t think about shooting so suddenly that I won’t be able to strike back. My gun is cocked, and my finger is on the trigger. One sudden movement and she dies.”

I frowned, disgusted by his cheerfulness. “I don’t think I need to remind you that she’s your niece. Then again, you killed your nephew, so I suppose family means nothing to you.”

Lucas’s face contorted into a rage. “That bastard was not my nephew and family is important to me, but only the Italians. She stopped being my family the moment she married you, you prick!”

He spat viciously, lowering himself to her level, his eye still on me, gun still cocked to her face. “You should have preferred death instead of agreeing to marry someone like him. You are not a Moretti. You will never be one, ever again.”

Elena just stood still and quiet, not saying anything in retaliation. Smart girl!

“You all make it so much easier for me to kill you. No one will fight me when they find out you died on my turf. I was just trying to protect myself after your wife came in here to attack me, and you went along with it when you realized she couldn’t do it alone,” he said, his face showing a wide range of emotions.

I laughed. “You really are as fucking crazy as they say you are. I just never believed it because only a few people seemed to know, I see that they were right all along. You are one fucking crazy man. No one is going to believe any of this bullshit you’re spewing.”

“Ah-ah-ah. Be careful what you say to me. I could so easily go mad and pull the trigger and end her life,” he threatened, his eyes blazing with hatred.

I looked at Elena, who motioned with her eyes. I had trouble understanding what she was trying to tell me until she raised her shoulders. She flinched and I cleared my throat to distract Lucas from looking down and realizing what she was doing.

“Why are you doing all this? How can you be so greedy that you kill the people who should mean the world to you?” I asked him angrily.

He shrugged. “I was always meant to lead them, not my idiot brother. Now that he’s out of the way, I’ll be the one to make us great again. I have a vision and I will realize it. No one will stand in my way.”

With a tilt of her brow, she broke free of the ropes he’d restrained her with and before he could comprehend what was happening, she reached behind her and hit him with a chair. The gun clattered from his hands as he staggered, stunned by the attack. It went off, firing and ricocheting off the walls.

My breath caught in my throat as I jumped across the table to her. “Are you hurt?” I asked, looking at her, but she smiled and shook her head.

“No, I’m alright. I’m not hurt.”

I wrapped her in my arms as a moan sounded behind me. Elena’s eyes widened, she pushed me away, ran, and made a lunge. She kicked the gun away from him as he tried to pick it up.

He growled with rage and rammed his elbow into her stomach, causing her to topple over. I lunged at him and punched him in the side of the mouth. I heard a satisfying crunch as blood and teeth flew out. I pulled him up before he could hit the ground, punching him repeatedly until his face had turned into a bloody mess and he looked unrecognizable.

“Maksim, stop, it’s okay.” Elena grabbed my hand from behind, stopping me from delivering yet another blow to his face.

“He is not worth it. I hope he dies a slow and painful death.” She said icily.

Still hovering over Lucas, I looked at her surprised, never had I seen such emptiness in her eyes. I stepped away from Lucas and turned to her, cupped her face, and caressed my thumb over her bruised cheek.

“Did he do this?” I asked.

“No, one of the guards did.”

“Point him to me when we leave, and I’ll make sure he is punished for it.”

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