Page 19 of Captured By the Bratva

With all the guards around my building, she wouldn’t get far. But I didn’t want to take any chances.

“I’m not sure that number came from a Rossini source,” Dmitri said, still holding her phone.

“You said it was interesting.”

“Yeah. As a burner that’s come up before. But we can’t place it.”

I shook my head at him. “He identified as a Rossini.”

Dmitri huffed. “So? Anyone could claim to be someone else on the phone. She didn’t seem to recognize the voice.”

I appreciated his insight. Everything that Becca did, everything she said, I took it with a heavy sense of doubt. I wanted to assume she was the enemy. I had to view her as a liar I couldn’t believe or trust. I was second-guessing every moment together. Because I wanted her so viscerally, because she seemed to burrow in deep and capture me in a way not many women could, I was desperate for a solid reason for why I had to forget about anything happening. I needed her to be “bad” or to be the enemy to prevent myself from letting it get into my head that I could enjoy her.

I didn’t think I’d ever wanted a woman so quickly and badly as I did her. I couldn’t explain it, and I didn’t want to.

Hearing my brother’s assessment gave me much-needed guidance. If he seemed to think she wasn’t acting, maybe I was overthinking it all and searching for excuses to pin her as my foe.

“No Rossini seems to be looking for her.” Dmitri set her phone on a table, leaving the tracking ware attached to it. “We’ve already put it out there that Becca’s been taken. Not confirming nor denying thatwehave her under Valkov custody, just that she’s been taken.”

“And?”

“And nothing.” He shook his head. “The Rossinis aren’t reacting to this news that Becca’s captured. Murphy isn’t either. He hasn’t returned any calls that we’ve set up with informants and moles that he might listen to.”

So… no one cares?That made no sense. She was his flesh and blood. Murphy had to care to some degree. He cared enough tostay in contact with her and lean on her to do favors that she always rejected.

“Something’s not adding up,” I replied.

“I agree, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens.” Dmitri glanced at the time. “It’s early yet.”

I nodded. It was. I’d only snatched her from that club a few hours ago.

The whole purpose of holding Becca hostage was to lure Murphy out long enough so I could kill him. That didn’t mean that everything would happen quickly. The fucker might be biding his time and trying to see how he could play this.

“Did she say anything else?” Dmitri asked, seeming ready to leave.

“No.” I gripped the back of my neck and blew out a long breath. “Silent treatment and being uncooperative.”

He grinned. “Oh, like that’d stop you.” As he went to leave, accomplishing what he’d come for—setting her phone to be tracked—he was done. “Like you can’t get someone to talk.”

I wondered how far I’d have to push her to speak up. In protest as I fucked her. In agreement and begging me to fuck her.

No!I had to stop seeing her as a sweet cunt to bury myself in. This attraction was a problem, but I’d use it to my advantage.

I hesitated before going back to her room. Something just wasn’t making sense about all of this, and I refused to think with my cock or let my darkness take over. I had to be smart about this. If something seemed off, niggling at me, it had to mean somethingwasoff.

Are things not going smoothly between Murphy and the Rossinis then?If trouble was brewing between the crooked cop and one of the Italian Mafia lords, I could probably use that antagonism to my advantage and benefit from the trouble. Maybe that was how I could get Murphy to reveal himself.

In the meantime, though…

I faced the door and stalked toward it.

I wouldn’t let a minute go to waste with Becca. Dmitri was right. I could get anyone to talk. Silent treatments didn’t last with me. And she was about to learn that lesson.

She whirled around to face me, her face clear of tears but a scowl of petulance and anxiousness.

“Who is Emily?” I asked as I unbuttoned my shirt.

She opened and closed her mouth, startled with how quickly I demanded an answer for that. Her gaze dropped to my chest—scarred and tatted—as I revealed it quickly.

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