Page 70 of Titan

I wrapped my arms around my body.

“He told me I needed to stay silent,” I murmured, not wanting to draw attention to myself.

Gil was still talking to the man in the chair, but I tuned it out. Thinking about the fact he’d killed two people wouldn’t get me anywhere. The evidence was already in front of me, considering they were slumped in their chairs with bullet holes between their eyes. He hadn’t even hesitated. It was like his walls came down the moment he stepped into the warehouse, and he became Gilberto Villetti, mafia boss and silent killer. It reminded me of when he’d stabbed that guy in the hand the day we’d met.

By all accounts, I should be fucking terrified of him, but I wasn’t. Gil wouldn’t physically harm me. He’d hesitated to even be close to me at first. The memory of what he’d done to me earlier flooded my senses, making my skin grow hot.

Stop it! You can’t think about that right now.

Edric tutted next to me.

“Figures. Always so strict, that one. Doesn’t let me have any fun either.”

I looked down at the floor and tried not to smile. Gil certainly had “fun” with me this evening, though I’m not sure it was the type of fun Edric wanted to have with his best friend.

“I’m Theia.”

He put his hand out to me.

“Edric.”

I took his hand, letting him shake mine.

“I know who you are.”

His eyebrow curved upwards.

“Do you now? He didn’t say a word about you. Fucking typical. Such a secretive bastard.”

I hadn’t expected Gil to tell Edric about me. He was a private person, and while he’d told me about his friend, I was aware he had a hard time opening up to people. It was almost a miracle he’d told me anything about himself at all.

“Edric.”

Gil’s voice whipped around me. There was a sharp note to it that made my back straighten on automatic. It reminded me of the club where he’d told me in no uncertain terms what he wanted me to do, and I’d obeyed without question. My eyes darted over to him. He was looking at his friend with a neutral expression, but I could feel the undercurrent of annoyance radiating off him in waves.

Edric rolled his eyes and made his way over to Gil. They had a hushed but heated conversation between them for a minute. His friend looked a little forlorn as he came back over and stood next to me. I wondered what Gil had said to him. It was probably about behaving himself around me. I don’t know why it gave me a warm feeling in my chest. The same thing had happened when he’d called me his. Did Gil see me that way? I had no fucking clue. We hadn’t talked about it. On the way over here I’d thought about saying something, but my mind was still firmly on the man who’d arrived on my doorstep. My captor. I only knew him as H. They all went by an initial in that place, so I didn’t know his real name.

I wrung my hands together, shoving the memory of his face out of my brain. It was something to think about later when I wasn’t surrounded by Gil’s mafia men. Not that they would hurt me. I was pretty sure Gil wouldn’t let them get anywhere near me.

“Apparently, I’m not allowed to flirt with you,” Edric muttered a moment later. His eyes were fixed on Gil’s back, and he was scowling.

“You were flirting?”

“No, but I’ve never seen him so irate over me talking to a woman before. Normally, he doesn’t care who I engage with. You’re clearly special to him.”

There was only one way I could take that. The fact Gil was acting possessively over me was quite the fucking revelation. We still had to talk, though. I wasn’t going to take any of this at face value. Until I heard the truth from Gil’s mouth, I would reserve judgement on anything that happened.

A scream echoed around the room, making me flinch again. My eyes went over to the man Gil had been talking to. He’d stepped back, but his men were standing by the guy in the chair. One of them had a pair of pliers in his hand and pinched between it was a tooth. Blood dripped out of the tied-up man’s mouth.

“I told you I would make this easy on you if you just tell me where they are,” Gil said in a calm voice as if none of this affected him.

“Jesus,” Edric murmured next to me.

I glanced at him. He was a little green around the edges. A mafia man who was queasy at the sight of blood was not something I expected. Then again, I didn’t think Edric was a typical mafia man. Not from what Gil had told me about his best friend.

I should be bothered by this myself, but I’d already seen so much violence in my life. I was numb to it. Still, they were torturing him for information. It was brutal… but what else did I expect Gil’s life to be like? I had no fucking clue. Only that it was dangerous, violent, and unforgiving. Now I was getting a clear picture of his mafia world and why he hadn’t wanted to make me a part of it.

They continued to torture the man as he refused to talk. Edric turned his eyes away from the scene. I tried not to watch but found it hard to look away. Seeing Gil wearing this mask was a whole new experience. I could see his father’s influence. Gil was shut off… cold and emotionless. And I understood why he had to be.

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