Page 29 of Dark Desire

I furrowed my brows in confusion. “For me? I don’t understand.”

Vincenzo said nothing as he led me to the bedroom. His silence concerned me as we pulled on clothes and got into the car.

“Vin.” I watched his face. His harden expression freaked me out. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“You need to prepare yourself. Antonio believes it’s a message from Dmitri. If it is, he knows who you are and that could be dangerous for everyone involved. Did your partner hint at anything that would make you think he knows how deep you’re involved?”

“No. And if Jackson suspected I was a double agent, he'd turn on me fast. He hated the fact I was given this detail.”

“Look.” Vincenzo parked the car in the alley behind Discoteca and laced his fingers with mine. “If this is from Dmitri—it’s going to be bad. He is known for his brutality and sending you a message will be a statement.”

“I’ll be fine. I knew getting involved with your family in any way would paint a target on my back. It’ll be okay.”

His pained look had me rethinking that I was ready for anything. I knew he wasn’t telling me something about the contents waiting for us—it was something big. He helped me from the car and walked behind me as we stepped inside. His palm radiated heat as he pressed it to the small of my back and led me through the dim hallway. I watched in fascination as he pressed his palm to a reader and let us through the heavy door. We crept down a flight of stairs that opened to a massive room. His brothers were standing around a table.

Donny, Massimo’s right-hand man, had an imposing look about him. His arms were folded across his chest. But that wasn’t what had my anxiety rising. The box was opened, and Donny shook his head, halting Vincenzo in his place. It nearly knocked me down as he jerked my hand, stopping me in place as well.

“What the fuck is going on?” I glanced at each man. “What’s in the box, Donny?”

“Vin.” Massimo stepped toward us. “I don’t think she should look.”

Vincenzo wrapped his arms around my waist and pressed a kiss to my ear. “Riley. Perhaps you should step outside.”

“No.” I jerked against him and pulled free. “It was addressed to me.”

I stomped over to the table where the box rested. It wasn’t an enormous box, but something about it screamed danger. Every man in that room kept their eyes on me as I pressed my hands to the cardboard sides. Everything inside was telling me to walk away and let them handle whatever monster laid beneath the surface, but I couldn’t.

My fingers shook as I slipped them beneath the flaps and lifted. My vision clouded and my gut churned. Bile rose, needing to be let out. Turning my head, I vomited. Dropping to the floor, my scream echoed off the walls of the room. Nothing in my training or in life could have prepared me for what was waiting inside the cardboard hell.

I could vaguely hear voices around me as I was lifted from the floor. "I've got you."

"Jesus Christ, Donny. Get that out of here."

Massimo was the one speaking—at least, that's what I thought. My head was trapped inside a perpetual loop of what I'd found waiting for me. It was something I feared I'd never get out of my mind.

"Riley." Vincenzo cupped my cheek. "Baby, can you hear me?"

"I think she's in shock." Antonio squatted beside him. "Should I call Catarina?"

Vincenzo brushed his thumb across my lip. "No. I'll take her home. I shouldn’t have let her open that fucking package. We knew it was from him. Ivanov is known for his brutality, Antonio. But I never thought… fuck."

"I'll make some calls." I blinked as my eyes glazed over and a door slammed shut.

"I'm so fucking sorry, Riley. I swear to you—I will stop at nothing to find him and make him pay."

"No." My voice cracked. "Not pay. Dead." I blinked, finding Vincenzo's eyes on me. "I want him dead."

"Anything for you, Tesoro… anything."

Dmitri had just made this personal.

Eighteen

Vincenzo

I knew from what Antonio had told me on the phone, whatever was inside the box wasn’t good. My brothers and I have seen a lot of shit in our young lives, so seeing them, along with Donny, looking like they did, I knew it was bad. Riley was strong willed. I knew she wouldn’t listen to Donny when he tried to coax her out of looking. When she opened the lid, a piece of me broke. The gut-wrenching cry she let out pierced my heart like a speeding bullet seeking a victim. I barely caught her when she collapsed to the floor.

“Massimo.” I looked at my brother as I scooped her into my arms.

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