Page 81 of Savage Don's Captive

“He sent Raffy here.” Dominic’s jaw tightens again. “Raffy was the one who bombed the church.”

“Raffy?” I blink, the name taking me by surprise.

“Raffaele Russo. Your mother’s cousin.”

“He’s here?” My body tenses despite the pain. “What did he want?”

“Given your reaction, I take it you’re not so fond of him as he thinks?”

“I don’t know how I should feel about it, but I’m sick of being my family’s collateral.” I shift, wincing as pain shoots through my side. “But I remember Raffy being close with my mom when I was younger. Then he disappeared, stopped going to family gatherings, and all that. I thought he and my mother had a fallout.”

“When I had to leave in a rush the other day, it was because the Commission was demanding an update on Marco.”

“You went and saw the Commission? Are they in the city?” My fingers unconsciously tighten around his.

“Relax, they’re not here. Even if they were, they’re not touching you.” Dominic’s thumb strokes the inside of my wrist, his touch unexpectedly soothing.

“At first I thought I was meeting with them, but they sent their seconds. Raffy was one of them, there on behalf of Paolo. I couldn’t read him, never really knew him. But he asked about you. He said he did everything to follow Isabella’s wishes. That he helped keep you out of Cosa Nostra. He said he wants to make things right for the Russos, whatever that means. And I get the feeling that now he wants you in the Cosa Nostra to do it.”

I dig my nails into my palm, anger building inside me like a pressure cooker. “I’m not going to be part of it. And Raffy didn’t do shit to help me. He wasn’t even at my mother’s funeral. He showed up at my apartment once when I was already doing something good for myself, and the Cosa Nostra was nowhere in my life. I was in the university, I had an excellent track record and good enough grades to land me a job at The New York Times. No connections, no help from anyone—not even from my own father. I did it. And I was thriving.”

“He said he was going to be staying in the city for a while. The next thing I know, he blows up a church. He rang a few seconds before the explosion, said it was his little surprise.”

“What did he want?” My stomach clenches in anticipation.

Dominic hesitates, his eyes flicking away briefly. “He wants me to return you to him.”

Because somehow, against all logic, against every survival instinct I’ve honed since I was twelve, the only person I trust besides myself is Dominic. The man who kidnapped me. The man who’s threatened everything I care about. The man who’s shown me more honesty in captivity than my father has in freedom.

“Let me talk to him.” I straighten slightly, ignoring the pain that flares across my body. “As long as you’re there to make sure I’m safe—”

“Over my dead fucking body.” Dominic’s fingers stop their gentle caress, suddenly rigid with tension.

“Well, if he wants me in, it means he’s not going to hurt—”

“Like fuck he won’t! He knows you were inside that church and bombed it anyway. He’s fucked in the head, Alessa. Like every man in that family. No offense.”

“None taken.” It’s strange how you can love someone and still acknowledge their poison.

“And you don’t know what his plans are. What if he’s working with Paolo to fuck with me? To take you? What then? I couldn’t guarantee your life once the Commission takes you.” He pulls his hand from mine, pacing the small hospital room like a caged animal.

“Why do you say it like you’re not part of it?!” I push myself higher on the pillows, my body protesting with every movement.

“Because I’m not part of it!” He slams his palm against the wall, making the medical equipment rattle. “I’m not part of the Commission, Alessa. Not yet. This assignment—finding Marco, shutting down this goddamn RICO case—it’s supposed to be the deciding factor. If I pull it off, I get made. Officially. That means a seat at the table. Calling shots. Earning respect from men like Raffy. And only then I’ll be on my way to Don and control everything. So no—I’m not part of it.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” The revelation lands like a physical blow, forcing the air from my lungs.

“Because you’re my captive, damn it!” He rakes his fingers through his hair, messing it further. “You were supposed to be a goddamn assignment, Alessa. A means to an end. Not—” He cuts himself off, breath ragged. “This should’ve been simple. Grab you, break you, use you as bait. That was the fucking plan. But here we are, and I’m bleeding out my secrets because I can’t stand the way you look at me like I’m one of them. Like I’m the fucking monster under your bed.” His fist connects with the wall again, the impact echoing through the room. “And the fucked up part—I don’t know if I even want their precious respect if it means you’ll hate me for it. What the fuck is happening to me?”

His words knock the breath from my lungs. For once, I’m completely speechless, my usual sharp retorts deserting me. His walls have come down, revealing something raw and unexpected beneath.

I don’t want you to despise me.

My chest tightens with emotions I can’t—or won’t—name. One thing crystallizes with sudden clarity—I don’t want him to lose this battle with the Commission. Not because of me. Not when he’s been fighting his whole life to get here.

“You’ve come this far,” I trace the edge of the hospital blanket with my fingertip, not meeting his eyes. “There’s no point in backing down. Not from the Commission. Not from Raffy. Let me talk to Raffy.”

“No.” The word falls heavy and final between us.

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