Page 19 of Titan

I sighed and rubbed my hands over my face. It was time to go find Remi and give her a piece of my fucking mind. She and Gil had ambushed me. She could have told me it was our boss’s brother.

Standing up, I walked over to the door and ripped it open, intending to find her, but much to my surprise, she was right outside with an apologetic look on her face.

“You have some explaining to do.”

“I know.”

“And you owe me for this, big time.”

Remi nodded, her green eyes intent on mine. I linked my arm with hers and dragged her down the hallway back to the club so we could go to the staff room. We were going to have a little talk about this shit, because there was no way in hell I was letting her get away with what she’d just pulled. No way at all.

Seven

Gilberto

Edric and I stared down at the mutilated body left just inside the building. I arrived a few minutes ago to speak to Salvatore about the potentialcapodecinacandidates when Edric intercepted me with a grim look on his face. He hadn’t said much as he led me over to the side door near the back of the old factory that served as our headquarters.

“Do we know who this is?” I asked when he didn’t volunteer anything.

“I haven’t looked that close.”

Stifling the urge to roll my eyes, I squatted down to get a better look. I’d seen worse done to a person. Hell, I’d done worse, but I didn’t like to think about the things I was capable of. Some things were better left in the past. It included everyone I’d killed in my father’s name.

His hair was matted with blood and half of his head had been caved in. There was bruising around his eyes and all along his bare torso. Cuts had been made to his chest, and his nails had been torn from his fingers. It was clear he’d been tortured before he died.

“I don’t think this is one of ours, unless you recognise him.”

Edric came closer, flinching at the gruesome sight.

“No, and I know everyone, so unless he’s a brand new recruit, fuck knows where he came from.”

I glanced up at my second. Edric was trying to find his feet in his new role, just as I was. The past week hadn’t been easy on either of us with trying to keep the men in line. And now there was this.

“Get Sal. Maybe he knows something we don’t.”

Edric looked relieved to be getting away from the dead man. I shook my head and rose back to my feet as he jogged away to get mycapodecina. He could be a tad squeamish, but he would have to get over it. I’d seen enough violence and death to last a lifetime. None of it fazed me. Edric hadn’t been involved in that side of my father’s mafia interests. He would have to learn if he was to survive this with me.

There was something that had confounded me, though. It was the fact I could not stop thinking abouther. I hadn’t suddenly found myself attracted to Theia or anything. I merely wanted to know her. To see what drove her as a person. To understand her. And I had honestly never wanted that in my life. People tended to seek me out and wanted to get to know me, not the other way around. I didn’t understand my intrigue. It wasn’t like me to find another person strangely… fascinating.

It was also disconcerting knowing I had revealed far too much to a woman I barely knew. I didn’t think Theia wouldn’t keep my secrets, but it was the first time I’d even admitted my fears out loud. Well, there was one I’d held back on… the fact I didn’t know who the fuck I was without Gennaro. Didn’t want her to think I was completely incapable of performing my new role. I had to pretend I knew exactly how to handle everything. I sure as fuck didn’t know what to do about this situation with a dead body turning up on my doorstep.

My eyes darted around the space by the side door. It wasn’t covered by cameras. No doubt how they slipped it in here without anyone noticing. I’d get them to check the outside footage to see if it caught anything. Then I’d up security. If this was the beginning of our problems, I wanted to get ahead of it.

Edric returned with Salvatore five minutes later. Both of their mouths were turned down. Edric kept his distance from the body while Salvatore walked right up to it. He looked over at the man for a minute, then turned to me.

“This is one of your cousin Dino’s men.”

What the fuck?

“Are you sure about that?”

Sal nodded, his eyes turning dark before he stuck his hands in his pockets.

“I know most of them by face if not name.”

I hadn’t talked to my cousins since the dinner at their house. Neither had Zayn, not that he’d been asking me for updates or anything, but we’d spoken yesterday.

This did not bode well. Dead bodies turning up was a bad omen. It being one of Dino’s men made it infinitely worse.

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