Page 141 of Vito

"Enough!" Lixin bellows, and the hits stop. "We want her fucking conscious!"

Eden lifts her head with labored breaths and freezes.

"Recognize it, sweetheart?" Lixin stops rolling up his sleeve, and I see the tattoo on his forearm. Black fills my soul.

"All Novak and Mancini's best soldiers that they've loaned me for the cause wearmymark."

My jaw nearly hits the metal vent when Eden starts to laugh.

She's so goddamn strong—physically and mentally. They can't break her.

"Christ, she's your perfect match in every way." Raf chuckles quietly in my ear, shifting off from pining me down but careful not to make too much noise.

"Do Novak and Mancini know you killed two of theirbestsoldiers last night?" Eden taunts.

Good fucking girl. Taunt and play with them.

Lixin freezes, Novak goes rigid, and Mancini whirls at Lixin. "You fucking told me her guard got lucky. You son of a bitch, those were my best men!"

The three other men in the room walk closer with their hands on their weapons, glaring at Lixin.

"She's lying!" he yells in panic.

Eden laughs harder and shakes her head, making her tangled hair swing. "Nope. Not even a little bit. Snapped the neck of one and blew the heart right out of the other with his Desert Eagle."

"She's trying to push a wedge between us," Amazu shouts. "Don't fucking listen to her!"

"Shut up!" Lixin yells in Eden's face, and Amazu grips her hair and yanks her head back.

"Get ready to move," Ohith orders over the earpiece. "We're ready to breach.We'll go on your count, Vito."

Raf puts his hand on the grate, ready to push it open. Eden headbutts Amazu. His hand closes around her throat.

I grin as I envision all the things I'm going to do these soon-to-be-dead fucks. "Three. Two. Go."

Raf tosses the military-grade flashbang and smoke grenade into the room. We both lower our facemasks outfitted with thermal vision to see through the smoke. Instantly, we're moving into the room.

My internal radar is locked on Eden, and I move directly to where she is by memory and her physical pull on me. I can make out her hazy form tied in the chair with the thermal vision. Knowing I have no time to lose before bullets start to fly, I launch at her, tackling her sideways in the chair. As soon as I touch her, I wrap her tight, twisting my body so I bear the brunt of the tackle and our weight.

At the same time, the room explodes into chaos from the smoke and our enemy blindly shooting—not caring who they hit, even if it's one of their co-conspirators. The building shakes and rumbles with loud percussive booms made from our breach explosives, adding to the chaos.

Eden is coughing and the smoke blinds her. Keeping us low, I slip a mask from my jacket over her face. Her eyes and throat will sting from the smoke that's already irritated them, but at least it won't worsen.

Through my mask and the smoke, I can see someone stumbling and running toward the door. I'm not worried about them escaping because we have all the exits covered.

"I got you, Eden." I fist my knife and slit the ties holding her to the chair, then grab her hand, pulling her to her feet. With the wall protecting her back, I shield her with my body and unhook the extra bulletproof vest from my belt. After slipping it on her, I press a gun into her hand. She shouldn't need it, but I want her as protected as possible. "Stay behind me, and don't let go of my belt."

She fists the back of my belt in answer, and we move through the room. Raf takes down Novak and Mancini's men. A headshot to one, then a knife to the neck, while he gut-shoots the third.

The beast within me roars, wanting to be the one to unleash on these cocksucking bastards—but Eden's safety comes first.

A body flies at me through the dissipating smoke. I kick, feeling the give of their knee as it buckles out to the side. Amazu's scream of agony as he crumbles makes me grin.

I stab my knife into the top of his trap muscle between his neck and shoulder. Hoping I miss the subclavian artery because I want to draw his death out, so it'spainful.Kicking his gun out reach, I quickly holster my weapons to zip tie his hands.

"Vito?" He coughs and blinks his bloodshot eyes, seeing through the smoke and my mask.

"You took what's mine," I snarl. I ignore Eden's sharp intake of breath and her hiss. When she growls, 'Possessive fucking cunt,' I laugh.

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