Page 66 of All the Dangerous Things

“Which was how I knew it was you,” Amara inserted.

Gio’s nostrils flared once again, and I saw his face become red. With a disgruntled sound, he turned from us, running a hand over his short black hair.

“Your husband just had to cross that line?—”

“Watch it, motherfucker,” Nikolai was the one to snarl now, not liking his wife being spoken to in any way other than submissive respect.

Everyone stayed silent, as if they were waiting for one of these three men to lose their shit.

“I made a deal with Dmitry and Nikolai in order to fight in the underground circuit. They keep the winnings, and in return, they let me fight as often as I want.” And then he spun around, fire blazing in his eyes while they shot gasoline-soaked arrows at my brothers, as he forced his next words out through gritted teeth. Loudly. “And. They. Keep. Their. Fucking. Mouths. Shut.”

It was clear all truths were coming out tonight.

“If the Cosa Nostra found out what I was doing behind their backs, making deals with the Bratva without speaking to the Head of Italy first, chaos would ensue.”

And, of course, Nikolai had to open his mouth. “Get a fucking grip, man.”Amara hissed something unintelligible at him, which had him snorting like he found this shit funny. “Your brother is over here throwing a hissy fit. From where I’m standing, watching a six-foot-five, three-hundred-pound man act all pissy that his little sisters found out he is participating in illegal fights is hilarious to me.”

“Jesus Christ,brat,” Dmitry muttered in annoyance. “Shut the hell up.”

Nikolai cast him a narrow-eyed glance.

At that moment, Gio quickly rounded on Nikolai, and my brother pushed Amara back even farther, barking out orders in Russian to me. I reached for Amara, even though I knew Gio would rather die than have either of his sisters get hurt. Or me, for that matter.

Gio faced off with Nikolai, his eyes going cold, the aggression pouring off him tangible enough I had no doubt everyone felt it.

I could see Nikolai grin before he moved his head back and forth on his neck to crack it, took off his suit jacket, and then rolled his shoulders.

And then, faster than I could’ve expected, Gio clocked Nikolai, right in the side of the mouth. My brother’s head whipped to the side, and I could see his lip split and blood ooze out of the fresh wound.

Amara gasped, and I took a step forward. I felt someone grab my wrist and glanced behind me to see Dmitry holding on to me while sporting a hard look.

And then with his other hand, he pulled a gun on Gio.

“No!” Claudia shouted at her husband.

Nikolai pulled his eyes off his opponent long enough to murmur, “?? ?? ?????? ???? ???????, ????. ???????? ??? ??? ????. ????????? ???? ? ?????? ?????? ??????, ??? ??????.”You're not thinking clearly, brother. A fist fight is one thing. Putting a hole in yourbrother-in-law's head is another.

He held his hand up, stopping our brother from coming closer. It was interesting to see Nikolai being the more level-headed of the two of them for once.

Nikolai ran his thumb over his mouth, smearing the blood before placing the digit back in front of his lips and then crudely licking it off. “That’s your free shot, Gio.”

Both men stared at each other, Gio’s chest pumping up and down, his teeth bared, and murder in his eyes. Nikolai stood there like he was bored as hell.

After long, very tense moments, Gio exhaled and scrubbed a hand over his face. It was clear he was trying to regain his control, and as the seconds passed, his aggression dimmed.

“I wasn’t purposely trying to keep this from either of you,” he finally spoke, addressing Claudia and Amara. “But I’d be lying if I didn't admit that if I could have, I would have.”

“I wish you had told us. I would’ve been there for you, rooting you on,” Claudia was the one to speak.

“We both would’ve been there for you,” Amara inserted, then took a step closer, brushing away Nikolai’s arm when he tried to stop her.

Gio cleared his throat and nodded, but he wouldn’t look at anyone. “Growing up—” He paused, then cleared his throat again. “—Father was….”

I knew where he was going with this, and my heart ached for the man I loved. I could see he was sifting through the memories of his childhood and found myself lifting a hand and placing it over my heart… which felt like it was breaking.

My gaze went to his bare arms and chest, and although I couldn't see the permanent marks that littered his flesh, I knew they were there, and they not only scarred his body but also deep inside.

“The things Father made me do, the situations I witnessed—they’re forever a part of me.” Gio’s shoulders bunched. “I did a lot of fucked-up shit.” The tension in the room increased. “And I’m forever fucked up because of it.” He looked around at everyone now.

---