Page 1 of Let Vengeance Be Mine

MATTEO

“Thank you for coming with me today.” Thalia smiles warmly as we step out of the private hospital, and walk toward the car I had sent to pick her up this morning. “Here, you can keep this one.” She hands me one of the black and white photographs the sonographer printed out for us, and when I look down at the grainy image in my hand, I can’t help smiling at it.

A Romano heir, a chance for me to do things so differently.

This was not the way I planned on becoming a father, but fate had other plans, and who the fuck am I to argue with fate?

“I’ll have my driver take you home.” I look into the pretty, hazel eyes of the woman, who will bring my child into the world, and wonder if I’ll ever be able to love her. Thalia’s attractive and kind, she knows how to satisfy a man, which is exactly what got us into this situation. But will it be enough?

It will have to be.

I wasn’t raised among love, my mother never really paid me much attention as a child. I was brought up by housemaids and nannies, most of who my father would end up fucking and my mother would then fire. For that reason, I always planned to commit myself to one woman. I guess it all just happened a lot faster than I expected.

“Are we still having dinner on Friday night?” Thalia looks up at me with a hopeful smile. It’s not often we spend time with just the two of us. We’ve only ever hooked up after parties, but now all that is going to change. I will give our child stability. If we have a son I will teach him how to respect, and if we have a daughter she will know how to be respected.

“Of course. I shall have Claude pick you up at seven,” I assure her.

“And it will be just the two of us?” she checks.

“Three,” I remind her, sliding my hand over her flat stomach, unable to keep the smile off my face.

“How could I forget?” She giggles before reaching up on her toes to place an awkward kiss on my cheek.

“We’llsee you Friday then,” she tells me.

I watch her move toward the car she came in, and when one of my new drivers goes to open the door for her, a thought comes to mind when I look down at the picture in my hand.

“You should take my car, you have a longer journey and it’s far more comfortable.”

I move over to my own car and open the back passenger door, for her, myself. Franco has been my driver since I was twelve years old, I trust him with my life, and now he will be trusted with the life of my child.

“Honestly, Matteo, there’s no nee–”

“I insist. Franco, get Miss Cattaneo home, safely. Remember, you have precious cargo on board,” I order my driver, who nods at me efficiently as he gets behind the wheel. Once she’s inside, and I’ve closed the door for her, she waves as he pulls into the heavy city traffic.

I can tell by my best friend's face that he disagrees with what I’m doing, he’s been on edge all morning and he looks even more worried now that he can see the evidence in my hands.

“Speak your mind,” I call out to him.

“I already have…Did you ask her to move into the house, yet?” Demitri moves to stand beside me as we watch them drive away.

“Not yet. I don’t want to push her, getting her to keep the child was enough for now. I’ll gradually work towards the next step.”

“Do you ever wonder if, maybe, she did it on purpose?” His next question has me moving fast, gripping my best friend by his throat and pressing him into the side of the car.

“Why would she do that? Her father is one of the richest men I know. She could have any man she wants. What reason would she have to tie herself to me?” My eyes narrow on him as I wait for his answer.

“Some women are attracted to power, and you, my friend, have a lot of it.” “I know where the mistake was made, and it was a lack of control on my part. The outcome is a gift, not a burden.” Slowly I release him, keeping the snarl on my lips. A loud bang suddenly echoes through the tall buildings that tower around us. Pulling my attention away from Demitri so I can look up the street in the direction that it came from. What I see there is pure chaos. Thick, black smoke bellows in the air. People are on the floor crawling to safety, trying to get away from the car that's burst into flames.

A car that belongs to me…

MATTEO

ONE YEAR LATER

“Ireally don’t think this is a good idea.” Demitri struggles to keep up with me as I march down the narrow, underground corridor. “She’s Stevan Fucchini’s daughter,” he points out, as if that isn’t the whole reason why the girl, I have in my basement, is here.

I stop when I get to the door and turn around.

---