Page 80 of Beautiful Enemy

“You’re too weak to stop me.” I rush for the front door but right as I reach it, Matteo gets back home.

“What’s going on here?” he asks, looking between me and Dante.

“Get her back in her room. And lock the door.”

Matteo sighs but he doesn’t object and grabs my arm, forcing me back into the bedroom. “I am sorry, Nadia.”

“Don’t do this.”

“Dante will never change, I’m afraid.” Matteo shuts the door behind him as he leaves.

I hear the click of the lock and know that I’m stuck once more.

Chapter Fourteen

Dante

Going after Ivan should be easy. For one thing, I know where he lives. Over the years, when I went digging into Erik and Sergei, Ivan’s name popped up. I just never bothered paying much attention to him. He was never worth my time before.

Now, I’m going to kill him. The fucker thought he could stab me, kill me, and end this war. But I’m going to make him pay.

I’m going to make sure Erik knows that he will never win this war.

But as I drive to Ivan’s house, I can’t get Nadia out of my head. The way she spoke so confidently that I could change. That I could stop this war if I just put aside my hate. She made it sound so easy. For a moment, she made me believe I could actually be the man she wants me to be.

Nadia helped save my life. That doesn’t go unnoticed. But she didn’t save me because she’s in love with me. She saved me because she’s a good person. I haven’t corrupt her. Not yet anyway. And I won’t stop until I have.

I won’t stop until Erik and Anya are fully broken.

“We have to be smart about this,” Matteo says from the passenger seat. “Ivan is probably expecting you. He probably has back up. If he willingly stabbed you in a crowded room to end this war, then he’s shown he’s capable of anything. We have to be smart about this. No barging in and hoping for the best.”

“But that’s my style. Ivan won’t be expecting it.”

“If he’s even home.” We arrive at his house and park across the street. Matteo nods to the dark house. “Looks like nobody is home.”

“Or nobody is awake. It is almost midnight.”

Matteo sighs. “I’m just not sure this is the best idea, Dante.”

“The fucker stabbed me. He needs to go.”

“I know. But barging in is only going to get you hurt.”

“Are you on my side or theirs?”

The hurt in Matteo’s eyes makes me feel guilty. “Yours. I’ve been with you for the past three years now when no one else was. That’s why I don’t want to see you die.”

I think back to Nadia. She would tell me not to do this - not just to save Ivan’s life but my life as well. My mind warms to the idea of her. Maybe in another life we could have had a future together but in this life, vengeance is the only thing I can have.

What I want can’t be a reality. If I keep Nadia, she’ll only resent me more.

But I’m not doing any of this for the love of a woman. I’m doing this to right the wrongs done to me and that’s what I need to focus on. Getting distracted is not going to help my cause.

“I won’t die,” I say more cheerfully than I feel. “I’m just going to have some fun.” I get out of the car and keep my footsteps light as I head across the street. After a moment, I hear Matteo follow.

Ivan lives in a brownstone. There are no guards out front but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any inside. And knowing a lot of Mafia and Bratva men, Ivan probably has security cameras. In fact, my eyes land on one near the front door. Paranoid fucker.

I don’t bother covering my face. I want Ivan to know that I’m coming for him.

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