Page 98 of Cardinal

Happily, Luciano smiled at me as if I made his day. "No rush, amorina, whenever you are fully ready." Giving me a sweet kiss, he held my face lovingly for a moment before kissing me again. "Now, behave. I have to go change." He gave me a knowing look that had my eyes rolling in response.

"Yes, sir, I will," I muttered begrudgingly, crossing my arms and sinking back into the seat after he removed me from his lap and stood up.

Rolling his eyes in return, he reached down and pinched my cheek. "Are you ready to make your debut as my wife?"

My body perked up at his proud smirk, a wide grin aching at my cheeks as my excitement overflowed my body. "More than ready." It's time for everyone to know I'm not one to be messed with.

Rather impatiently, I sat in my seat, clinging to Luciano's jacket for comfort as I waited for him to finish doing what he needed before taking the stage. At least I was distracted by setting up the media to be played for the whole stadium, so I didn't die in a ball of impatience.

With everything set to roll, I tried my best to focus on the final fight, but the flurry of movements did nothing to calm my overstimulated nerves. I nearly jumped out of my skin when the bell went off, indicating the end of the match, and the shouting of everyone in the place grated at my hypersensitive nerves. My heart thudded against my ribcage like a rabid beast as the emcee calmed the whole place down and announced Luciano to the stage, making everyone hype up again as Luciano took his sweet time entering the caged arena.

"And tonight, his lovely new bride is joining him by the ringside. Please, everyone, welcome up the new, the one and only, Missus Juliet Agosti!" The spotlight blinked onto me with the emcee's gesture, and I couldn't help but feel a little nauseous with the sudden attention as I made my way to the cage, standing right outside the cage behind Luciano.

"Ladies and gentlemen, tonight's a special night. Not only are we celebrating and congratulating Mister Agosti on his new nuptials, but tonight is a new era for New York and The Syndicate. So, sit back and learn."

All the lights shut off instantly, and the big screens flashed momentarily and played the cued-up video of the raid and burning of Champion's Lounge. Everyone in the place, except those involved with the raid, watched the whole thing with horror-riddled expressions. Then, hysterical gasps and sobs chimed throughout the place when the lights came back on to reveal four bound men locked inside the cage with Luciano.

"We are done holding back and playing nice after all that's unfolded. The old mafia ends tonight. Those who engage in forbidden activities will face their consequences after tonight, and don't think you can escape if you have. We know who you are. It is a matter of time before we make our way to you." Luciano's projected voice silenced the stadium, causing the air to chill up with fear and soft, panicked whispers.

Menacingly, Luciano stalked up to the bound men, who cowered under his looming shadow. "Now, if you are thinking about running, I highly advise you think twice because if you run, and we have to chase your stupid ass down, you're going to end up in my cage like these fuck ups." Without warning, Luciano's leg shot out and kicked an expecting man in the face, toppling him over.

"Sweetheart, give me a knife," Luciano said with a hand held out towards me.

Oh yes, let me procure a knife out of thin air for you, babe.

A soft nudge to my side made my head dart to the source. "Thank you." I smiled gratefully at the emcee, taking the offered knife by the handle and passing it between the cage bars to Luciano.

Some quick snaps cut through the air from Luciano freeing the men, and then the knife was tossed back out of the cage.

"Don't kill them, babe. I want to tie their bodies to the cars and drag them through the streets. They'll make better sounds and decorations than cans to the back of our car." Call me a twisted bitch, but I didn't care, not when it came to those bastards begging me for mercy with their eyes.

From the sidelines in the VIP area, Aidan's warning rang through the air as clearly as if he spoke into a microphone. "I highly advise you cooperate and deal with us rather than Missus Agosti here! She's a twisted little thing who you don't want to be in charge of your demise!" Aidan's laughter rang through the area.

The pathetic, balding man of a person crawled up to me, clinging onto the bars of the cage while looking up at me with eyes full of panicked desperation. "Please, please, please, I'm sorry, please be reasonable. If I had known you belonged to The Devil, then I never would have touched you."

Looking down at him with mocking pity, I stared at him with empty eyes for a few seconds, acting as if I actually pondered his words. "You know, I'm getting real tired of hearing the same excuse from you bastards every time. I mean, if you were genuinely sorry, then maybe I'd consider something, but you aren't. You're only sorry that you got caught. The main point of it all is that it shouldn't matter who I belong to or not. You should have some kind of morals to know better than to rape anyone, let alone a minor."

Grabbing onto the bars for support, I pressed my heeled foot against his old face and shoved him back into the ring. "You had your chance and blew it when you bid for me." I spat out resentfully with a glare.

At least this fight proved more interesting than the last I saw with Luciano. The men actually tried to fight back despite the outcome. I mean, I wasn't too thrilled about watching Luciano eat a punch or few, but at least it was more entertaining to watch some action opposed to no action. A few small hits won't kill Luciano, so I wasn't too worried either. Granted, it didn't look like fun, especially when he got clocked in the jaw, but he rebounded and broke the person's nose in return.

Call me a psychopathic bitch, but I found myself enjoying the whole fight play out way too much. I even caught myself giggling and bouncing in my spot like a child opening their Christmas presents—yeah, that should have been a major red flag, but who cared.

When Luciano called it, I frowned in disappointment because I was so caught up in the excitement. Every punch, every swing, every kick sent a surge of adrenaline through my strung-out body. Needless to say, I didn't want any of it to end yet. It didn't matter to me if all four men were beaten bloody to the ground. If it weren't for the subtle rises of their chests and twitches of their body, then I would have thought them to be dead.

A soft whir hummed at my ears as the bars of the cage sank into the ground, removing the metal barrier between Luciano and me.

Seeing him all sweaty and bloody in all his glory made my heart race like an out-of-control race car on the tracks. I couldn't tear my eyes away from his form, which grew bigger and bigger with each step toward me. I was sure my heart would explode from the stimulation when Luciano stopped inches from me, his adrenaline-crazed face looking down at me like I was his next victim.

Remaining as still as a statue, I carefully followed his hands with my eyes as they reached out for my face. My breath hitched when I felt the scratchy feeling of the bandages cut across my cheek with his movement to cup my face. "Ready for our honeymoon, amorina?" He asked with an over-excited chuckle through his slightly busted lip.

Tension furrowed my face as I continued to look at him. We didn't discuss taking a trip anywhere, let alone a honeymoon, especially since Luciano and the others would still be busy with cleaning up New York. "Where we going?" Maybe this was all for show, but theatrics weren't Luciano's thing.

Luciano kept his voice low as he spoke, so much so that I barely caught his words. "I was thinking of a nice little trip to the Bahamas or Caribbeans, your choice, or we can go wherever you want. But for the next month, it'll be you and me on the yacht, out at sea, no mafia business or troubles, just thirty whole days of fun and bliss." His eyes were hopeful as he looked deeply at me. "What do you say?"

Unable to help it, I cracked a little laugh of amusement. "As if I'm going to say no to any of that," I remarked with a roll of my eyes. "Of course, you jerk. A hundred times yes." Honestly, the thought of escaping the busy streets of New York and the craziness of mafia life proved too tempting to resist.

Letting out a satisfied hum, his hold on my face tightened, and I was brought up into a rather bloody kiss. God, I really hoped it was his blood and not the others. That would just be gross.

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