Page 66 of Recaptured by the Crime Lord

The son said nothing, but his eyes flicked from Paul to Gavin and back again. He didn’t say a word, which was wise since one punch would crumple this guy. He was reed thin and had a dainty air about him that neither his father nor brother possessed. It wasn’t surprising that this brother held no resemblance to Rafael since they were probably from different mothers. To Gavin’s knowledge, this nerdy brother wasn’t involved in the criminal underworld and was a damn good lawyer.

“What’s your name?” Gavin asked into the loaded silence.

He swallowed hard. “Steven.”

“Your father tells me your brother was murdered,” Gavin said.

Steven gave him a jerky nod, but said nothing. He clasped his hands in front of him and Gavin noted that he was trembling. He hoped he had enough dignity not to wet himself.

“You have any leads?”

Steven opened and closed his mouth without uttering a word.

“Spit it out,” Gavin said impatiently.

“E-eli Stark.”

Everything within him froze. “Eli?”

Steven’s eyes fixed on something behind him. It was all the warning he needed. Gavin dodged to the side just as Paul fired his gun. Steven let out a high-pitched scream as the bullet meant for Gavin nicked his arm. Gavin whirled and shot Paul in the wrist. Paul shouted blasphemies as he dropped his gun and clutched his injured arm. Gavin stalked forward and shot his father’s nemesis in the shoulder at point blank range. Paul fell out of his chair and twitched on the ground. Gavin shot him in the thigh for good measure and didn’t bother to shut him up since the office was soundproof.

The hair on the nape of his neck rose in warning. Gavin turned and was mildly surprised to see Steven fumbling with a gun. It took him only a split second to aim. One bullet shattered Steven’s kneecap. He squealed like a pig and crumpled to the ground, hands hovering over his useless leg. Gavin reloaded his gun and debated whether Steven needed more punishment and if he should let Paul bleed out.

Gavin crouched beside Paul. Eyes glazed with pain focused on him. Gavin welcomed Paul’s loathing and was satisfied by the flicker of fear in his otherwise soulless eyes.

“You don’t want me to visit you again, do you, Paul?” Gavin asked.

Paul bared his teeth. “No.”

“Then you’ll let me know what you find out about this crime lord, won’t you?”

“He killed Rafael!”

“And I’ll make sure he dies nice and slow, you got me?”

Even though he was in acute agony, Paul hesitated before he nodded, giving Gavin the right to avenge their loved ones. Gavin rose and strolled over to Steven who wasn’t taking the pain well. Tears streamed down his face and he was pleading for Gavin to call 911. Gavin placed his foot on Steven’s shattered knee and he shut up immediately.

“You got off easy today,” Gavin said and leaned down, exerting enough pressure to make Steven’s eyes roll in their sockets. “You ever pull a gun on me again, it’ll be the last thing you ever do. You understand me?”

Steven nodded fervently. Gavin lifted his foot and allowed Steven to believe that was the end of his punishment for thirty seconds before he belted the lawyer across the face. A sharp crack filled the office as Steven’s jaw was dislocated. Steven collapsed against the wall and then slid to the floor.

“Stick to what you know,” Gavin said patronizingly. “I might call you if I need a good lawyer. Be a good boy.”

Gavin rose and opened the door to find his men talking loudly, drowning out the sound of the Vega’s moans. Gavin closed the door and walked out of the building, dissatisfaction eating at his gut. His men dispersed once they were in the parking lot. Gavin drove home, his temper nowhere near assuaged by the encounter with the Vega’s. Lyla saw Eli Stark at Incognito. The new crime lord couldn’t be Eli Stark, could it? Gavin didn’t hear about the hit on Eli’s mother until it was too late, but Eli had his own code that didn’t fit with the savage beating the crime lord did on Raphael and his father.

Gavin made it home in record time and wasn’t pleased when he heard a deep bark when he opened the front door. Lyla ran towards him, her delighted face doing crazy things to his insides. She hurled herself at him. She had to stop doing that at some point, but he fucking loved it. He wrapped his arms around her and drank from her mouth. He needed her more than he needed food or water. She was everything to him. Her silver blue eyes were alight with happiness and his worries fell away as he lost himself in her.

Pregnancy suited her. She had bouts of nausea, but vomited only once. Much to his delight, her pregnancy was now obvious. Her slim build made her stomach painfully obvious and her breasts were swelling and extremely sensitive. Lyla seemed to be shining from the inside out. It made his heart ache.

“How was your day?” she asked, linking her hands behind his neck.

“Fine,” he said and looked down at a gray muscled beast. Dark assessing eyes met his. The dog sniffed his bloody shoes. He tightened his hold on his wife, keeping her airborne and away from the predator watching him so closely. Everything in him wanted to back away, lock Lyla in a room and get the damn thing out of his house. Why the fuck did he assume she would pick a poodle or something? Fuck. Lyla never did what he expected.

“You see Beau?” Lyla asked and fought to get out of his arms.

He didn’t release her. “Can’t miss him.”

She caught his tone and gave him an exasperated look. “Gavin, I’ve known Beau for a month. I see him three times a week. He’s really great. I couldn’t leave him there. Hecrieswhen I leave. It broke my heart.”

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