Page 60 of Sinful

I stared at the photo of the dark-haired man in the picture. He looked every bit the future head of a mob syndicate.

Father went through and showed me a blond named Cole, Lorenzo’s right-hand man, and then a photo of someone I recognized from watching football. The quarterback for Mayfair, Fox Evans.

Surprising, but then again, this world was twisted, so why the hell not?

“And this is him. The Sugar Daddy.” Father pushed a photo of a guy with dark hair and green eyes at me. The guy looked sad as hell. I studied the photo, taking in the exhaustion in his features. The haunted look in his eyes. This was a man who battled demons.

None of the people in the photos were much older than me. In fact, I knew Fox Evans was nearing his twentieth birthday because I’d heard it on some spot they did on him for TV. He was only months older than me.

“His name is Ethan Masters,” Father continued, smiling. “Luck would have it, I have a photo of him as a boy, as well.” He showed me another picture of the guy, but this time, he couldn’t have been more than nine years old. Same haunted expression graced his face. The bruises on his arms were visible, but that wasn’t what drew me to look closer.

“This was taken here,” I said, looking up from the photo and to my father.

He gave me a sinister smile. “He was one of my very favorites.”

My stomach twisted at his words.

“A sweet boy. Trusting. Loved fire trucks. Wanted to be a firefighter someday. Do you remember what you wanted to be when you were young, Dante?”

I averted my gaze from him and stared down at the picture of the sad boy in front of me again.

“I wanted to be free,” I whispered.

“And to be free, you’ll get me the Sugar Daddy. To have the family you seem so desperate for, you’ll do what it takes to ensure I get what I want. The girl is the way in. I want Rosalie Bishop.”

I glanced to her photo again. She was so vibrant. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that this was the type of woman who brought sunlight into a room with her. That she filled the tormented soul of Ethan Masters with the motivation to keep fucking going.

He and the horsemen would do anything to get her back. Even give up the recipe that was the key to their new kingdom.

“So what say you, Dante? Will you be everything I need you to be? Will you conquer worlds with me?”

I closed my eyes for a moment, gathering myself. Could I do all this shit for the rest of my life? I didn’t mind taking life. I felt nothing when I did it. But was it what I wanted? To rule this hell someday?

The bigger question was, how far was I willing to go to protect the ones I loved?

A vision of my mother flashed in my mind. Her long blonde hair. Her sweet smile. The way her green eyes sparkled when she was happy. The way it felt to be hugged by her. To be loved by her.

“You know the rules.” He pulled a knife from his drawer and slid it toward me before taking out a piece of paper, the terms of the arrangement clearly spelled out for me.

I read over it, everything in order that stated I’d get Sirena for good and my guys would be safe as long as I fulfilled my duties. It was something to buy us some time until I came back and was able to kill his ass.

Reaching out, I picked up the knife and twirled it between my fingers before pushing the blade against my other palm and making an X on it. The blood ran red, and I pressed my hand to the sheet of paper, sealing a deal with the fucking devil.

Everything came down to what I wanted. What I needed.

I missed being loved.

Now I had that with Sirena.

I wasn’t about to let it go.

It didn’t matter how many empires I had to conquer. Kings. Horsemen.

I’d do it. Without question, to keep the ones I loved safe, I’d do it.

“Perfect.” He rose to his feet. “Let’s go for a ride, shall we?”

SIRENA

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