Page 63 of The Bratva King's Twins

“You think this is supposed to help anything? All that power and influence has surely gone to your head,” he growled, knocking the pistol against Vivian’s head again, making me wince internally. “We wouldn’t be in this mess if you could’ve just left things alone. But you had to flex that power of yours—you had to beat our father down all to prove a point, didn’t you?”

“Don’t forget it was your dad who hit us first. It was nothing personal, just business,” I returned, aware that he and Elio were still new to the whole thing. If it weren’t for me, they never would’ve found themselves taking over their father’s modest empire. “But the moment you decided to hit back—the moment you took matters into your own hands and abducted my wife as if she doesn’t share blood with you—that was when it became personal. That was your doing.”

Dante scoffed before letting out an incredulous laugh. “If my sister hadn’t let herself be used by a Levov, she would never have this false allegiance to you. Her Stockholm syndrome is so strong, she isn’t even aware she’s been brainwashed by you dogs! Now, why would I care about the blood she has tainted? She is a disgrace to this family, and the only way she can begin to redeem herself is by axing this sham marriage and being with someone whose ambitions line up with ours.”

Even hearing him admit his plans was enough to make me see red, wishing I could cut the shit and knock him down already.

Forced to push down that rage, angered by how easily he could disrespect Vivian, I could hardly stand how it brought tears to her eyes.

He had a world of suffering waiting for him if only I could find my angle. If only I could fire without risking her life in the meantime.

“If that is how you feel about her, then just let her go, Dante. Let her be brainwashed. Forget all about her and never come back to this city. But only if you hand her over and leave. That’s my one and final offer,” I said, stretching that condition to him.

I caught Elio glancing between me and his brother with an uncertain gaze, surely tempted by the offer. From what I could tell, he had a stronger will to live than Dante. He knew there was no escaping our forces unless they took the deal.

But the younger of the two grit his teeth and refused, voice tearing through the space, “You aren’t getting it, Levov! Without her, we have nothing. We have nothing to wager—nothing to propel us forward. Without her on the table, we have no leg to stand on with the other heads. All because of you!”

While he claimed to need Vivian in their lives, it wasn’t so they could appreciate her or keep her safe. They wanted to use her as a means of tying themselves to another family, and one willing to follow through with a proper trade.

Confusing caring about his sister with the need to do business left him raging before us as the veins in his neck stood on end.

He didn’t care about her, and he never had. Which was exactly why I needed to get her away from him.

If I were to let him go to ensure Vivian lived, he would fall back into old habits, or potentially treat her even worse than before. She would be miserable again, forced to be treated like an asset rather than a person.

An object instead of a sister.

The way he thought so lowly of her was shameful, and hell was too good for him.

“Listen, kid. Cut your losses now and get out of it while you can. Take your family and leave. Start honest lives somewhere else, and let the city forget all about you. If selling your sister off is the only way you can stay afloat, then you were never meant to make it in the first place,” I said, hoping my calm tone would get to him eventually.

Only the most ruthless could make it in the city’s underbelly, and given how he shook with anger and fear, he would never survive long enough to reap the benefits of handing Vivian over to someone else.

Dante shook his head hard as if forcing those thoughts away. Determined and stuck in his stubborn ways, he wouldn’t let it go.

“That’s easy enough for you to say from the top, Aristarkh. Taking Vivian from you wouldn’t make a dent in your empire. But for us, she would make a difference. She would solidify our standing with the greats. She is a temporary blip in your world, but she would change ours completely!”

She was far from temporary to me, and that statement alone made me clench my jaw to hold my tongue.

Adjusting the pistol in my hands, I was itching to make him eat those words.

A wild glaze filled his eyes as he swung her around, loosening his hold with the gun balancing between them. “Don’t you see? She changes everything! This whore will make the De Luca name rise in New York and beyond without even knowing it.”

Seemingly drunk on his fear and reckless abandon, he was being careless with his hold on her, and with a cocky air, he pulled the pistol away as he held his arms out in a grand display, as if he was untouchable.

“The De Luca name will be infamous. Infamous!”

Time seemed to stand still as I locked eyes with Vivian, watching as her fear softened into comfort long enough to let me feel just how much she loved me. Then, her gaze filled with cold resolve as an idea seemed to strike her, like she knew exactly what needed to be done.

Elio looked hesitantly at Dante, as if questioning his manic shouting, and even allowed his gun arm to go slack.

That was our chance.

“I’m not a De Luca anymore,” Vivian muttered, catching Dante’s attention as his brow furrowed.

Before he could lift his pistol again, she swung back in a blur, clipping his face with her head before ducking again.

He staggered just as Elio, in a flash of confused momentum, instinctually grabbed Vivian’s arm to pull her back.

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