Page 17 of Cherished Union

“She’s going to be sore. She’s lucky she didn’t break anything. A few bruised ribs, a split lip that I’ve put three stitches in, cuts and bruises, but nothing serious.”

“Nothing serious?” I growl. “This is beyond serious.”

His eyes widen, and he quickly nods as he makes a hasty exit. The moment the door closes, Rocco turns to Dario and me.

“We’re going to kill the bastard for what he’s done,” he begins. “I don’t give a fuck if he’s dying already, he’s going to pay for what he’s done.”

I nod in full agreement. “First, we need to ensure that we have the men on our side. If we don’t and we kill the cunt, there will be a rebellion.”

“That’s good,” Jade says as she starts to pace. “The asshole’s dying, which means we can get him to give everything over to Rocco. It could take a while, but it could work.”

“He’s slowly giving me the ropes already. We just need to speed up the process.”

“And do what? Pretend as though we don’t know what he did to Ade?” Dario questions, his lips curled at the ends. “How’s that going to work for you when Ade finds out that we’re not doing anything to avenge her?”

“She’ll understand,” Jade whispers, trying to calm him down.

“Will she? She’s not you, Jade. She doesn’t have the strength that you do.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” she replies, her voice even and sympathetic. “She’s already showed you how strong she is. She’s been dealing with this abuse for a while now, and she’s bided her time. She knows that she’s leaving. She’s kept her head held high. To me, that’s fucking strong.”

“That’s true,” he concedes. “But having her think we’re not doing anything for that bastard hurting her… No, I’m not part of it. She’s been hurt by this family enough. I won’t let it happen again.”

“I agree,” I tell Rocco. “We either tell her or we kill him now.”

“We tell her,” he agrees. “We let her know the plan. She may not like it, but she’ll at least know that we have her back.”

“Now that’s sorted, what about Vivi? We can’t let her go back there,” Jade says, her eyes pleading with us to not let her go back.

“She’s not going back,” Rocco grunts. “Ade and Vivi will stay here,” he says, and I nod, happy to have them here where I can keep an eye on them, and judging by the guilt in Dario’s eyes, he’ll be here too. “We’ll decide on where Vivi goes once we get Ade back on her feet.”

Knowing the bastard is going to die eases some of the anger that is coursing through me, but it’s not enough. He needs to suffer harshly for what he’s done to Ade. I’ll be more than happy to dish out that punishment.

There’s a knock at the door, and Jade’s shoulders slump forward. It’s Hayden. Good.

It’s time the world knows that the Gallo family are off limits, especially our sisters. If you come for them, if you try to hurt them, you’ll suffer the consequences no matter who you are.

CHAPTER6

HAYDEN

Itake the stairs two at a time. The urgency in Jade’s voice has me worried. Hayes is hot on my heels. I was just leaving our parents’ house when I got the call from Jade. Hayes didn’t even need me to say a word. He took one look at my face and climbed into my car.

I rap my knuckles against Elio’s door, ready to kill anyone who’s hurt my sister.

The door opens, and I do a head-to-toe scan of Jade. Relief washes through me when I see she’s not injured. “What’s wrong?” I demand.

She sighs. “I should have known you’d have Hayes at your side. You two are inseparable these days.”

Hayes chuckles as he throws his arm around her shoulders. “Jealous, sis?”

She rolls her eyes. If there’s one thing about Jade, she’s never jealous. Although that could have changed now that she’s married.

“Someone want to tell me what the fuck is going on?” I grind out when I take in the solemn faces of the Gallo brothers.

Before I’m able to get answers from them, I hear small, soft footsteps to my left, and when I turn, I’m surprised to find the youngest Gallo sibling walking toward us.

“Vivi, is everything okay?” Jade asks her softly.

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