Page 85 of The Devil's Den

“No, man. I’m sorry. But if you need help, my brothers and I, we can help you find her.”

Brothers. I once had those too.

I stiffen my jaw. “I work alone.”

Staring back at Agnelo, I’m ready to get him out of here so he can tell me where the hell Aida is.

“This is so beautiful.” A synthetic smile crosses Agnelo’s face. “Reunited at last and they have no idea. I only wish my brothers were still alive to witness this miracle.”

My body breaks with a cold wave, a subtle awareness filling the space around me.

What is he talking about? Who are they? His brothers are dead?

“What the fuck is going on?” the guy asks, equally confused.

“Why don’t you tell them who you are?” Agnelo stares hard at me before glancing at each of the people here.

Suddenly, the other one, who I first saw with the green eyes, he’s in front of me, his gaze narrowing as he circles me.

My heart throbs in my chest and that strong desire I had to kill them all just to get the man I want, is slowly fading. The more I look at him, the more I realize something I never for one moment thought I’d find again.

Brother?Raw emotions clog up my throat. How’s this even possible? Is this really him?

Dom?

The questions spin in my head. Fuck. It’s like I’m back to being that little kid again, wanting his big brother to hold his hand and tell him he’s going to always protect him. Because that’s what Dom did for me. He protected me with everything he had. At school, at the playground, he was ready to beat anyone who messed with me.

And here he is after fifteen fucking years. But I can’t seem to ask, how after protecting me for so long, how he could give up on me. How could he trade me for his own safety? Because that’s not the brother I remember.

“No…” His intake of breath sharpens with the slow shake of his head. It hits him then, who I am. His face twists with a bout of sadness, his brows furrowing. “It can’t be.” A palm runs over his mouth while his eyes don’t leave mine. “I watched you d—”

I attempt to steady my nerves, my breaths intensifying the more he stares. When I dart my gaze to the others, a heaviness sinks into me. The other guy with the green eyes… I can’t believe I hadn’t realized it as soon as I saw him.

Enzo.

I push down all these damn feelings clawing at me. I can’t be weak. I can’t let them know how much they hurt me, what abandoning me had done.

I cock the pistol at Agnelo.

“Who is that, Dom?” the dark-eyed one asks, swiping his hair away from his forehead.

I drag in a breath, my heartbeats slamming into my rib cage, realizing the man who just spoke is Dante. He has to be. He’s a lot bigger, but if I look at him enough, I can see it. It’s him.

They’re all here. But why?

“Don’t you recognize your own brother?” Agnelo sniggers, his shoulders rocking.

“Br-brother?” Enzo speaks low. “It can’t be.” He looks straight into my eyes and I can see the realization branding on his features. “Fucking hell.”

Dante comes over to stand beside Dom, his jaw straining as he examines me up and down, muttering a curse.

“Matteo?” Dom’s voice curls with a strain. “Is that really you?”

“Surprise!” Agnelo announces, flipping his hands in the air.

“H-how could you be here this whole time? Where have you been?” Dom stutters, his eyes still on me.

I try not to stare back. My heart, it can’t fucking take it. After all this time, seeing them again, it unravels me. They have no idea how damn hard it is not to ask them why? Why didn’t they search for me?

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