Page 22 of Ludovico's Vengeance

“She can discuss that with you while you show her out.” He jerks his head for Tabatha to leave. He turns to Michael as soon as they're gone and barks at him to leave before he faces me once again.

My gaze is trained on the firecracker in front of me. Jesus Christ, I didn’t think she’d have that in heryet. This woman has been underestimated her entire life. She is going to leave a trail of bodies in her wake, and she doesn’t even realize it. I close the distance between the two of us and drag her into my arms. She lets out a breathy gasp when I crush her against my chest.

“I have no idea where the fuck that fierceness came from,Bella. But fuck me, that was sexy as hell.” Her eyes are bright with pride as I continue, “You are so fucking incredible and you don’t even realize it.” I admit before crashing my lips against hers. She parts for me, allowing my tongue access to her own eager mouth. A soft whimper passes from her into me as I explore every part I can. Our tongues come together in a salacious dance that has my cock stiffening in my pants. The pressure of her body pressed against mine has me ready to explode right here.

Nina stiffens and presses her delicate hands against my chest as she pulls away from the kiss. Her face is that gorgeous shade of pink I love so much as she glances down at the monster not very well hidden between my legs. It must have scared the hell out of her.

“Shit. I’m sorry,Bella.” I internally scold myself; I need to work on my control. I lean down and press a soft kiss against her forehead before tearing myself away and snatching my Glock from the desk. “I’ll be back in a bit; I’m going to go take care of some things.”

As soon as my back is to her, I squeeze my dick as I adjust myself, trying to relieve some of the pressure. My feet move swiftly with purpose as I weave my way through my home to get to the basement. I shove my gun into the waistband of my trousers to free my hands so that I can pull my phone from my pocket. I tap the screen a few times and send quick messages to Milo and Michael instructing them to meet me at the cell.

I pull open the heavy door and descend the stairs to find the cell where my grandfather’s body was left not too long ago, now occupied by the motherfucker who nearly allowed Nina to be taken from me. When I find Danny Boy standing guard at the entrance, I nod at him to take his leave.

My eyes take in the man who is cowering on the cot in the corner of the room. My face turns into a scowl as I observe the asshole. I feel Michael and Milo’s presence before they even have a chance to speak. My hand lands on the latch of the cell door and I pull the heavy metal toward me, allowing access to Rich. His eyes dart up to find mine, his skin ghostly pale. My lips turn up into a wicked grin as I shove my hand into my pocket to find the knife that is never too far away.

“We’re going to have a,” I pause as I take a step closer. “Friendly,” my sinister inflection at the end of the word has him pressing further into the wall. “Conversation, Rich.”

The man lets out constant, shrill, pained whimpers that have me ready to strangle him. I haven’t even touched the motherfucker yet. I pull the knife from inside my pocket and release the blade. The glint of the metal flashes in his eyes before I toss it into the air and catch the knife by the handle waving it in front of Rich to taunt him.

“I’m sorry, Johnny. I didn’t mean to –” He sobs as I pull him from his position on the cot by his throat and drag him to the center of the room. I feel his throat bob as he swallows hard under my grip. Loud scrapes of metal against concrete sound as one of my men brings in a chair to strap Rich to. Milo and Michael quickly work together as I lower the man into the seat, restraining him before I release my grip.

Instead of speaking, I wind my arm back, with my hand bawled into a fist, and swing hard. The punch lands with an audible crack when my fist collides with his eye. I grin when I feel the eye socket crunch under my fist from the impact. Rich howls out in pain as blood trickles down the side of his face.

“So, you thought that a nap while you were stationed to guard Nina was a smart fucking move?” I snarl as I force his head up to meet my gaze with my blade pressed firmly under his chin. “How long have you been working for Barone?”

Rich shakes his head and spits out a mouthful of saliva and blood. His lips part as he tries to speak, but I'm too worked up to allow him to even attempt to give a chance to explain himself. I quickly swipe my knife against the dirty shirt he’s wearing to shred the material. When his bare chest is on display, I slice through the skin just enough to draw blood. He hisses at the sting of the blade and curses as he forces himself to look back up at me.

“Johnny, I swear. I would never!” His sobs only serve to fuel my anger and I dig my knife into him, slicing along the ridge of every muscle his fitness routine has blessed him with. Rich’s screams become frantic with every drop of blood I spill. “No! I have the flu!” His whales stop me in my tracks.

I look back at Milo and Michael who look as stunned as I feel. Rich groans as he pleads with me to hear him out. Lifting my arms to cross them against my chest I wait with a glare steadied on the man before me. I arch a brow in question, when he realizes he has the floor he spills his secrets, which aren’t even close to what I expect to hear.

“I have the flu; and I’ve had a fever for three days. I was so out of it when I woke up for my shift, I didn’t realize I had taken the nighttime dose until it was too late.” Rich’s face is stained with tears as he explains himself. I rear back as his words sink in, the blade drops to the floor next to my feet. My blood boils in my veins as I stand in place for a moment.

“Are you fucking kidding me? You put her life at risk because you didn’t want to use a goddamn sick day!” My words come out in a roar as I grip his throat again. His lips part as he attempts to grasp for air but this time there’s no room for the fucker to breathe as I release my venomous words at him. “She could have been taken, or worse, you fucking idiot!”

Without another word I use my other hand to pull the gun from my waistband and place the muzzle into his open mouth and smile widely at the man in my grasp.

“No one will put her at risk again, motherfucker.” I whisper into his ear before I look him square in the eyes and squeeze the trigger.

His head explodes in front of my eyes. Blood and brain matter land all over, including on my suit. Fuck, I forgot just how bloody this life is. I turn to face Milo and Michael. The latter is trying and failing to stifle his laughter. Milo on the other hand can’t hide his anger.

“What the fuck, Johnny! He had the fucking flu.” He snaps at me as I walk past him. “You could have done a fucking blood test to see if he was lying before you killed him. He was a good soldier!”

I feel the anger boiling under my skin again as I spin back around and step into Milo’s space. He doesn’t even flinch, good.

“Would you have waited around for a fucking test if someone tried to abduct my mother?” Milo takes a step back, startled at my accusation, but by the way he isn’t arguing my point tells me all I need to know. “Yeah, that's what I thought – we'll be having a fucking conversation about that as soon as this cluster fuck of a situation is finished.” I wave my hand over the direction of the body before I storm out. “Clean this shit up.”

The steam from the shower envelopes me as I peel off the bloody clothes and leave them on the floor to dispose of later. As soon as I step inside, the water washes over my body and I press my forehead against the cool tile. Allowing myself a moment of calm before I face the woman that has had me twisted with so much sexual frustration since the day I met her it’s not even funny. As I wash myself, my dick begins to stiffen with thoughts of her being pressed against me closer and closer each time we kiss. My hand wraps around the base and I squeeze myself, instantly appreciating the relief. Before I have a chance to continue, a loud scream startles me and I jump out of the shower nearly crashing into Nina who is standing in front of me with her eyes on the pile of bloody clothes on the floor. Fuck.

She rushes over to me; her hands find my forearms. She digs her nails in to keep me in place and looks up at my face, cataloging every part of me as water drips from my drenched, tousled hair. Her eyes well with unshed tears as she takes me in.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” I ask as I take in her worried expression.

She meets my gaze and huffs out a heavy breath as she tries to explain why she barged into the bathroom.

“Pinhead was pawing at the door like he needed the litter box and when I opened it, I saw the clothes and I thought.” She lets out a strained sob, “I thought something happened to you because of me.” She tries to pull away as her gaze drops.

The moment she glances down to see the monster standing at full attention between my legs, she steps back with a pretty heat flushing her chest and neck. Nina spins away from me and I can’t help but grin because I didn’t miss the lust that filled her eyes before she turned her back to me. Her body is hidden under a thin tank top and a pair of sleep shorts that just barely cover her ass. Fuck, that is not helping the situation I desperately need to conceal. I grab the towel from the hook to my right and wrap it around my waist, a wasted attempt at hiding my erection. The tent between my legs is obvious as I step closer to her. My hands reach out and wrap around her middle as I press my lips to her ear which sends a shiver through her.

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