Page 222 of Kissing the Villain

Bastian and Damian hooked their arms around Marcello so I could slap him harder.

“Wake the fuck up!”

“Drake is on it,” Bastian confirmed. “He said to give him a minute to locate the van.”

I nodded, then turned to Damian.

“Alex was on the third floor. She snuck into the library,” Damian told me.

“Fuck,” I groaned. “This is my fault. I showed her the secret passage in the library.”

I shook Marcello, and after several more unsuccessful attempts, I headed into the bathroom and filled the small trash can with cold water from the bathtub. I threw it in Marcello’s face, and he groaned. Bastian wiped the water from his forehead as Damian stood there, soaking wet, unaffected.

Marcello stirred, looking at me with one eye open. “What the fuck?”

Anger surged through my veins, pumping so hard and fast my body trembled from the rush. “You had one fucking job, Marcello.”

It took everything in my power not to wring his neck. I wanted to choke the fucking life from him for failing to protect Alex.

“Why the fuck were you sleeping?”

He blinked a few times, still groggy, and shook our brothers off him. Marcello sat up and rested his elbow on the arm of the chair. “I think Alex drugged me.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the irony. Marcello had drugged her for running away from Wellington Manor. My clever girl. Maybe I hadn’t given her enough credit. She was just as ruthless as I was when she set her sights on a goal.

“That bitch,” Marcello grunted with his hand pressed to his head. “What the fuck did she give me?”

“The Albanians got her,” I said in a harsh tone. “You never should have let her out of your sight.”

“What?” Marcello rubbed his eyes, now more awake. “No, that’s not possible. We doubled our guards. She must be somewhere in the house.”

I blew out a deep breath and pinched the bridge of my nose between my fingers. “I showed Alex the secret passage in the library in case of an emergency.”

“Fuck,” he whispered. “I’m sorry, Luca.” My brother lifted his head until our eyes met. “Alex asked me to get her some tea. She must have slipped something into my scotch when I left the room. I didn’t think she would run away.”

“How was she acting before you left the room to fix her tea?”

“Fine.” He shrugged. “Happy, I guess. She was working on a new sketch.”

“She snuck out of the house to find Aiden. He saw them take her.”

Marcello grabbed the arm of the chair and pushed himself up on shaky legs. “How did she know where to find him?”

I rolled my shoulders. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

“Did you pull up the security feeds at Aiden’s house?”

“Yes,” Bastian cut in. “Two men threw her into a black Mercedes van. Drake is working on finding them.”

He scratched the dark stubble along his jaw and removed the phone from his pocket. “Did Aiden get a good look at them?”

“He saw nothing that helps us.”

Marcello scrolled through his phone. “What about her necklace?”

Caught up in my rage, I had forgotten the tracking device in the diamond and sapphire necklace I’d given her. Every woman in my family had worn it for their protection. And because Salvatore men were possessive as fuck.

“The tracker says she’s in London.” Marcello held out his cell phone so I could see her movements. “They couldn’t have gotten that far in an hour.”

---