Page 135 of Cruel Knots

“The food’s delicious,” I say.

“Why do you sound surprised?”

“I don’t know...I guess the caterers Callum uses provide absolutely crappy food.”

A chuckle escapes him. Warmth deepens the color of his eyes as he stares at me. He chooses a tart from the tray and gobbles the tiny morsel whole.

“I almost didn’t recognize you, Damien,” says a female voice as the valet walks away.

Damien turns around, allowing me to peer around him to look at the newcomer.

A gorgeous woman with Asian features stands before us, eyeing him with a haughty look in her dark eyes. Looking closely, I realize she’s much older than us, probably in her late forties.

“Madam Takahashi,” Damien says, tilting his head toward her. “I’m glad you could make it today.”

“I wouldn’t want to miss meeting the new generation of Volkovs,” she says in a grim tone. An indomitable aura surrounds her, telling me she’s an alpha. I note her impeccable manners as she speaks to Damien.

Suddenly, I find her staring right back at me.

“This is the woman you’ve chosen to be your queen,” she says, inspecting me closely.

“This is Lucia Baldwin,” Damien says with a hint of pride in his voice.

His politeness surprises me. He hasn’t introduced me by my name to anyone else this evening.

“You should tread lightly with Callum Baldwin,” Madam Takahashi says in a warning tone. “He’s known to be a ruthless player in the local business community. His competitors have been suffering from mysterious deaths and accidents at an alarming rate. You might’ve won the first battle with him but stay on your guard. I don’t think he’ll give up on his sister that easily.”

Damien gives a grim nod. “He can be Satan himself and I’ll still not give Lucia up to him.”

Warmth and safety flood through me at his declaration. Damien and his brothers are the reason I don’t live each day in constant fear and anxiety now.

“Your enemies are gathering forces as we speak,” Madam Takahashi says. “Make sure this woman’s worth the risk you’re facing. You and your family will be dead if she turns out to be a backstabber like her brother.”

“She’s different,” Damien says through clenched teeth.

Madam Takahashi suddenly laughs. “I have said this to many young men before but this is my first time I’m telling you this. Don’t make decisions with your dick, kid.”

A faint reddish tint spreads across Damien’s scarred face. I can’t decide if he’s embarrassed or angry.

Madam Takahashi turns around and gracefully walks away.

“Who was that woman?” I ask.

“Madam Takahashi is the sole leader of the Japanese Yakuza in this part of the world,” he says. “Don’t be fooled by her looks. She’s more blood-thirsty than me and my brothers combined.”

“Really?”

“She punishes her men with seppuku,” he says in a grave tone. “If they don’t comply, they’re tortured to death.”

“What’s seppuku?” I whisper, guessing it has to be some kind of horrible torture.

“Seppuku is an ancient form of punishment that was practiced by the samurais of feudal Japan,” Damien explains. “The person is expected to stab himself in the abdomen so that he dies slowly and painfully.”

“That sounds like suicide.”

He lets out a heavy breath. “Betraying her counts as suicide.”

I sit quietly, digesting the fact that something so crude and torturous is still being practiced in this day and age. My mind wanders to the things Leon did to punish the traitors in their group. The memory of him drenched in dark crimson rises in my mind.

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