While I wasn’t entirely certain of the reason, given what had occurred over the last few years with both our families facing tremendous tragedies, I’d honored her demands. Given the fact we’d formed the alliance, the additional uptake in business taxing as well as the battles with the Bratva, I’d had little time to think of a personal life.

  But that hadn’t kept me away from her, at least not entirely.

  I’d stalked the beautiful princess, remaining obsessed with her, my hunger often out of hand. And it had taken every ounce of strength in what had been left of my blackened soul to walk away. It had seemed necessary at the time. Now I wasn’t so certain. She’d remained a sitting duck, a weak link to the entire family.

  After her admittance of hatred, I’d thrown myself into keeping one woman on my arm or another, my blind attempt at soothing the ache that had never healed. No one could compare to my beautiful princess so I’d stopped trying. Christ. I still had it bad for the woman but my sense of obligation to the alliance had prevented me from fulfilling a promise I’d made to her. Hell, I wondered if she even remembered or cared at this point. Other than hating me, of course. “Why is she even on the radar?”

  “I’m not entirely certain of everything that went down, but she was abducted. Of that I’m certain.”

  “What the fuck? For what?” I slammed my hand on his desk.

  “Calm down, Mattia. Ransom doesn’t seem like the reason, but so far, her disappearance remains a mystery.”

  “Was she still in school? Was she taken from the campus? Doesn’t she have a security detail?” I’d purposely done everything I could to shut her out of my life. If not, I’d have lost my mind. However, I still knew every detail about her existence, but that wasn’t something I was willing to disclose to Dar or anyone else for that matter.

  He looked at me in amusement, his brows furrowed. “She’s almost twenty-five, old man. She’s a highly successful business owner, her art brokerage firm making millions. She also dabbles in security. And yes, of course I keep soldiers watching her. But you already knew all this. Didn’t you?”

  I looked away.

  “Didn’t you?” he demanded.

  “Yes. What kind of security is she involved in?” That part I hadn’t known. Security. That was out of the blue. I’d learned about her penchant for computers years before but had assumed she was doing so because of college.

  “Clueless. Even Lucia doesn’t know. Sophia was determined to have a life entirely on her own and I allowed it with Lucia’s encouragement. What don’t I know?”

  “I said leave it.”

  “And I said that’s impossible. Sophia is a member of this family and because of that would be considered a valuable commodity to any one of our enemies. Granted, I still don’t see her brokerage firm as being the reason for her abduction. However, we need to figure out the reason quickly if we have any hopes of keeping our women protected.”

  “The two situations aren’t coincidental,” I said through gritted teeth.

  “Doubtful.”

  Maybe she’d been taken because she was a mafia princess, one of the few remaining within the borders of Italy. The Five Families likely knew of the contract given Roberto had taken her off the market at my request. Whether or not they’d fit all the pieces of the puzzle together didn’t concern me in the least. A hell of a lot of things had changed in the last six years.

  What did trouble me was that D’Artagnan had no idea about the contract. There was no doubt in my mind it would create a rift between us given Lucia still didn’t trust me. She had her reasons, including what happened years before with the death of our fathers, but this would set her off. Fuck. Secrets and lies were the one thing that would always derail a family.

  “What do you need me to do?” I asked. “Maybe I should ask, who do you want me to kill?”

  “For you to take a team and extract her. Bring her to this estate where she can be placed under twenty-four-hour surveillance. And do so quickly. You’re the only one I trust who can make this happen, Mattia.”

  Fuck. Now I was taking orders like a typical soldier? Exhaling, I did what I could to shut down my attitude. I was angry at myself.

  “She won’t want to have anything to do with me, Dar.”

  “Uh-huh. Now we’re getting somewhere. Maybe that’s the case, but it’s not up to her. As I said, she’s a member of this family and as of right now, I’m the Don. Which means she is required to follow my rules.”

  It was interesting he wasn’t suggesting that I did as well. He knew what would happen.

  “You don’t know her very well,” I said, laughing at his words. Our family by way of marriage. The word held an entirely different meaning to me. Sophia likely didn’t know that I’d employed soldiers over the years to keep track of her, ensuring her safety even though her father had employed two and D’Artagnan had continued to do so after our alliance was formed at Lucia’s insistence.

  “And you do?” he asked. I could easily tell his curiosity was increasing. He drummed his fingers on his desk, waiting for my reply.

  I’d wanted my own eyes and ears kept on her, which had done nothing but enlarge the significant rift between us. So I’d backed off after our last confrontation, Sophia making it very clear that she didn’t want anything to do with me. She’d even held my men at gunpoint until I’d arrived. That was almost two years before.

  However, while she and I were less than friendly, that didn’t mean her abduction wouldn’t cause significant strife to the family. I wasn’t foolish enough not to understand the ramifications if that were to happen. Goddamn it. I’d gone against everything that I knew to be right. In doing so, I failed the only woman I’d given a damn about.

  “Yeah, I do. How do you know she’s been threatened?”

  He glared at me, his eyes spinning into darkness. Then he tossed a single piece of paper in my direction. “Because this was delivered by courier early this morning.”

  I grabbed the note, the words written in what appeared to be blood.

  The youngest daughter will be sacrificed because of the choices you made.

  Exhaling, I tossed it onto his desk. “The courier?”

  “Grilled and sent away. Nothing more than a kid working for a living for a company who has no clue what’s inside various envelopes and packages,” he said, gritting his teeth.

  “But you’re certain she’s been taken.”

  “Yes.”

  “How?”

  He seemed put off by my constant questions.

  “Because I can’t get in touch with Sophia or the two soldiers protecting her. But I did receive this message an hour ago.” He held up his phone, replaying a voice recording. The woman’s voice held a tremor of fear.

  “D’Artagnan. I can’t get in touch with either one of my soldiers. Something is wrong. Oh, my God, I—”

  The call was dropped, but not before hearing a dark, male chuckle in the background. My blood boiled. Who would dare fuck with my family? I’d sworn to protect the regime and would do so without question.

  “I must admit, I’d surprised at your reaction, Mattia. I know you too well. Given Lucia mentioned Sophia isn’t fond of you now, I feel I need to know the reason why. You’re the only one I can trust with this mission, but I won’t place Sophia’s life into additional jeopardy if there’s a larger issue. Lucia would kill me.”

  Sighing, I glanced out the window, remembering how incredible she’d looked the night she’d stepped into my club. I could swear the taste of her lingered in my mouth. And every time I gathered a scent of vanilla and jasmine, I looked to see if she was close. “She and I have a history.”

  “Meaning?”

  Fuck. I’d never been so uncomfortable in my life.

  “Meaning I was her first. And I told her she belonged to me. That was when she was nineteen.”

  The silence was exactly what I’d expected. “Well. Fuck. Let me guess. There’s more to the story.”

  Laughing bitterly, I scrubbed my jaw. “Isn’t there always?”

  “Tell me the truth.”

  “I have a contact signed by her father for her hand in marriage. I refused to allow any other man to touch her.”

  “Then why didn’t you marry her?”

  “You mean other than suddenly our respective families found themselves in the middle of a war and you suddenly crossed our paths with the DeLucas?”

  He snorted. “Yeah, other than that. Nothing stops you from taking what you want.”

  “I honored a promise.”

  He closed his eyes, shaking his head. “Okay. Tell the rest.”

  I did. And when I was finished, I turned my head toward him. Seeing the twinkle in his eyes was interesting given I’d expected anger. The tension was awkward until he chuckled under his breath.

  “Do you love her?” he finally asked.

  The question was one I’d asked myself a dozen times. Until today, I’d never admitted it, including to myself. “Yes.”

  When he looked away, his brow hitching, I could tell he was putting some pieces together.

  “What is it?” Now I was demanding.

  He closed and rubbed his eyes. “Lucia led Sophia to believe you were responsible for my death.”

  His death. The truth was that D’Artagnan had been used as a pawn, our father making good on a promise made by adopting him. It had been nothing more than a business transaction, but for years Lucia had believed he’d died in the fire. “That’s why Lucia didn’t want me with her.”

  “She still believes you had something to do with my family dying.”

  “Do you?”

  Dar looked into my eyes then shook his head. “I did once, but no longer.”

  The lies had taken years from both of us, greed because of our father’s need for power almost stripping us of everything that had been important. Even rotting in his grave, our father still held some sense of control.

  “Then you’re the only man for the job, Mattia. You’re the only man I can trust completely. I’ll handle Lucia when the time is right. Bring Sophia home to her family. And to the man who loves her. Then we’ll see about planning a wedding.”

  “She won’t agree to it.”

  “You’ll learn something quickly, Mattia. Women are strangely in control yet ruled by their hearts. If you have a connection, it was never broken, just lying in hibernation. It’s an area I have expertise in.”

  For once, I could agree. Still, he didn’t know Sophia like I did.

  “We shall see. She is a tough girl. Beautiful. Ballsy. Opinionated.”

  “Which makes her perfect for you. So is Lucia, by the way.” He laughed. “One thing is certain. This family shit is tougher than I believed. Trust me, you’ll see.”

  Family. It’s nothing like either one of us had been able to understand, the brutality of our upbringing preventing anything remotely normal. I’d watched him from afar as D’Artagnan had fallen for the woman he’d been sent to kill. She’d broken through the barrier and I’d wanted the exact same experience.

  Once upon a time I’d allowed the woman I’d fallen hard for to slip from my fingers. That would never happen again.

  Sophia Lazarro had always been mine.

  I stared at him for a few seconds then nodded. “I’ll leave within the hour. And don’t worry, Dar. I will bring Sophia home.”

  Even if I had to burn down Paris to do so.

  CHAPTER 15

  Two days earlier…

  Sophia

  Panic.

  I’d been prone to panic attacks for several years, hiding them behind a fake smile and a pretense that I was a good girl while my insides were churning. There were always reasons for me to look over my shoulder, less in the recent months, but that didn’t mean I didn’t follow my instincts. Every. Single. Time. At least usually. Why did it suddenly feel as if I’d gotten too careless?

  After all, I came from a wealthy, dangerous, and brutal family with dozens of enemies in every corner of the world. Yet I refused to remain a pampered pet, living behind closed and locked doors in Italy. Paris was the only city where I wanted to live. At least it was far enough away from my past.

  And someone I was determined to hate.

  Just thinking about Mattia and his possessive nature made me cringe and my heart flutter at the same time. I hated him. I wanted him. The dichotomy continued to drive me crazy even after all these years. He’d wanted control over me. I’d refused. He’d been my first.

  And my last.

  Maybe that meant he had control after all.

  I glanced into the rearview mirror, trying to keep my wits about me as I weaved through heavy traffic.

  My father had tried to protect me, as much as the savage beast could do. My sister had hidden me away from as many horrors as possible with our family. And the bodyguards who’d remained with me over the years had been a shield from assassins and other thugs. Sadly, they’d both retired, the two new guys about as animated as concrete statues. Still, they’d provided a level of comfort, two shadows allowing me to enjoy my life.

  Now I almost wished that I’d allowed Mattia to keep his men in the background. Shit. Why was it that any time I felt uncomfortable or worried that I was in danger, the larger-than-life man rushed into the forefront of my mind? I’d shoved him out of my life completely after realizing he’d entered into business with my father years before.

  Or so it had seemed even though it had never been confirmed. However, what Lucia had told me about when D’Artagnan had lost his family had been enough to enable me to realize the man was pure evil.

  Too bad my body continued to crave him.

  I shoved aside the thoughts, forced to accept he wasn’t here to save me. I had to do so by myself. I’d trained for this, had worked hard to maintain an anonymous persona, known as the Spider for my ability to get inside the most secure computer systems. While I adored working with art, my bread and butter was working in the middle of night, hired by various sources to hack into mainframe systems. My fee was significant, but there were plenty of people willing to pay the exorbitant sum. I’d gone to great lengths to maintain my anonymity, including leaving clues every so often that had allowed a magical mystery identity to form across the dark web.

  I was seen as a man living in the United States. Even the Feds believed that to be the case.

  But there was something wrong. I was certain of it. As if I’d been discovered. How? If I was right, there wouldn’t be any second chances. I’d played a game of Russian roulette and this could be the last bullet in the weapon.

  My skin crawled from the knowledge, tremors skating through my system. As I glanced into the rearview mirror again, I didn’t see the SUV that usually followed behind. While my bodyguards had been told in no uncertain terms to keep their distance, this was ridiculous. I’d tried calling both numbers provided in a case of emergency. The calls had gone straight to voicemail.

  I had to get back to my apartment where I kept a weapon. I didn’t hesitate to jam my foot down on the accelerator, trying to keep my wits about me as I drove through the streets of Paris. I loved everything about the city including the festive atmosphere, the food, and the Parisian people. While I missed being in Italy where I grew up, especially my sister Lucia, I’d been there so rarely that I considered France my home now.

  Liar. Liar.

  The little voice hadn’t pestered me in months. Okay, so I was lying to myself, doing my best to keep my distance from Mattia. If I didn’t, I wasn’t certain I would be able to keep my resolve around him.

  College was far behind me, but I’d parlayed both the significant time spent away from my family and my education into a multimillion-dollar regime of my own. I didn’t need the family fortune or their connections, enjoying all that Paris had to offer. Unfortunately, I sensed it was all coming to a crashing halt. Maybe I’d been living in my bubble for far too long, refusing to acknowledge that dangers existed all around.

  Especially for a girl from a savage family.

  My thoughts drifted to Mattia again. The man had been a shadow in my life until recent years. I’d grown accustomed to seeing him on corners and inside bistros. It had been almost a game of cat and mouse. Now even he wasn’t here to protect me.

  My breathing labored, I did everything I could to keep from fainting, which is what happened when I was overwrought. My fingers were white knuckled around the steering wheel as I drove, ignoring the speed limit. I was shocked that I didn’t once see the SUV trailing behind as usual, just another day in my life, their service done without complaining.

  But I did see a dark red vehicle remaining three car lengths behind. I had to know if the driver was following me. I knew the streets like the back of my hand, concentrating on how to try to get away from whoever was following me. I waited until the last minute to make a sharp right turn, speeding down the road then making another turn quickly. There was more traffic, forcing me to slow down.

  I kept looking in the rearview mirror. After two minutes had passed, I couldn’t see the car any longer and breathed a sigh of relief.

  Until I went through the next intersection, noticing the same vehicle waiting to make a turn to be able to follow me. Now I knew the only hope I had was getting to my apartment, an address only the most trusted people in my world knew. I had a roommate, but she’d been checked and rechecked over the years, becoming a good friend, helping keep the loneliness away. I knew I could trust her. I also needed to try to get her to safety.

  Maneuvering my car at a high rate of speed, I managed to place a call to her cell phone. “Fuck. Fuck.” It went to voicemail as well. As soon as I heard the beep, I started rattling off.

  “Margot. It’s Sophia. Get out of the apartment. Now. Just do it and I’ll call you later. Please listen to me.” I lived in a gorgeous apartment in the heart of the city, enjoying the company having a roommate provided. Now my attempt at being normal had likely placed her life in danger.

  Issuing a warning was all I could do. I tossed my phone and became a crazy driver, barely missing two cars in my attempt to get away. Every few seconds I glanced into the mirror. At least given the traffic and my insane but trained driving, I was making headway. When I pulled onto my street, I wasted no time, thanking God I found a close parking space.