Chapter 18

Eighteen

Romeo

I watch my wife leave with Aldo, who surprisingly volunteered to be her main guard despite hating that position.

I guess she has a way of making people want to protect her.

"Papa, s-she's lying; I-I would never harm her or a baby, please…" Liliya denies, no one saying a word. I can feel all eyes on me, waiting for what I'm going to do with my wife's accusations, but I ignore them all as my eyes stay on the door my wife went through.

I saw right through her when she accused Liliya of trying to poison her. Guilt consumed her features, and she wouldn't look me in the eyes.

A part of her, even just a small part, believed I was in on Liliya's nasty plans, and my fucking black heart darkens. I pushed her to the point she'd think I'd do that to her, to our child.

"If that were true, Liliya, then why are you stuttering?" Agy questions and I look her way to see she's looking at her niece with horror, though Mikhail and Anastasia are quiet.

My eyes go to the door again. Curt, one of my soldiers, gives me a thumbs-up, stating that she's left safely. I still don't move, though. Instead, I stand staring at the door, waiting for Ray to check the footage.

"I-I…I've just had a knife thrown in between my fingers! Why aren't you punishing her for her actions?" Liliya rages, and I have to fist my hands to stop myself from grabbing her by the throat.

I need to wait for the footage before I act. I know my wife wouldn't make shit up. She hasn't got an evil bone in her body; her elbowing my side and then apologizing with tears in her eyes is proof of that.

That's my wife for you, all heart; that is the only reason I'm not flying off the handle right now.

I won't act without the proof I need so no one can use it against her .

"Well, we'll soon see, won't we, Liliya? It seems as it's not our men looking into El's accusation but her husband’s, who won't bend to your will when you spread your legs," Maxim sneers from beside me, showing me whose side he's on.

Mikhail has kept quiet, waiting for the proof and preparing himself.

He ensured I kept her safe; he sold his youngest daughter because he was fed up with the shit Liliya kept causing—all for it to turn out this way.

I look at Liliya, and her eyes are on my wife's water. I can see the wheels turning as her eyes go to her cutlery.

"Maxim," I snap, causing Liliya to freeze. "Please keep hold of El's water until Ray returns."

Maxim instantly grabs the glass, and I watch as Liliya pales.

I don't fucking need proof; her actions speak loud as hell, and honestly, all I needed was my wife's words.

It takes Ray ten minutes until he returns, a laptop in his hand, but his face is red when he does.

He points at Liliya and growls, "You’re fucking lucky I respect my Don…."

Mikhail stills, his eyes going hard as Ray turns the laptop around and presses play. Anastasia and Agy gasp as Valerie murmurs, "I'm going to fucking kill her," as we all watch Liliya smirk at her sister before handing a vile to a waiter, the same fucking waiter not even three minutes later replacing my wife's water, the same water Liliya's eyes go straight to now in Maxim’s hold.

"Daddy, I-I, please…. He-he was promised to me first, he-he was supposed to be mine, y-you promised him to m-me." She tries to plead.

Unfortunately for her, she's pleading with the wrong Don.

He knows she's gone too far this time.

She didn't fuck a wife's husband to cause shit; she's tried to kill a Don's wife and child right in front of him.

My fucking wife…my child….

Anger like no other fills me as I turn to Maxim, who hands me the water before I round the table in long strides.

Liliya's eyes widen, and panic takes over her features as she tries to get up from her chair, "Romeo, p-please, please, I-I—please, I'm sorry!"

I ignore her pleas as Agy grips her arm to keep her in place. When close, I grip her cheeks hard, ensuring to bruise her, no one stepping in to save her as she screams, "Please, Romeo, I'm sorry, please, you were mine first, please…."

I place the glass to her lips, keeping them open as I pour the water in. She screams, trying to spit it out, causing it to drip down her face and top, and I shout in her face, "Fucking drink it!"

I hear her gulp, and I smirk. I ensure the glass is empty before throwing it on the floor, smashing it.

I lean down, looking at her tear-filled face, and I sneer, "I was never fucking yours. That day in the café was for me to vet you, to see if I wanted you as my wife, and what I saw was a whore who only wanted attention, not capable of being a Don's wife. That same fucking day, your sister became my reason to breathe." I smirk. "Better make yourself sick, bitch, I'm sure the poison will kick in quickly."

With that said, I shove her face back, causing her chair to fall backward. She lands on the glass, and no one helps her as she gets on her hands and knees, shoving her fingers down her throat, gagging and crying.

I straighten and readjust my suit jacket before Ray hands me a cloth, and I wipe my hands. Marco rushes in, takes in the scene, and growls at Liliya, who's making herself sick.

"I found the fucker. Leonardo met me outside and is taking him to the warehouse," he explains, and I nod.

"I'm coming with you," Maxim sneers as Mikhail stands.

I nod again and walk out, ignoring a crying Liliya and a screaming Valerie, who is being held back by her guard.

I head to the back entrance, refusing to be photographed without my wife, and not wanting rumors, and climb into the waiting car, Maxim and Mikhail going into their own.

It takes him over an hour before we pull up outside of the warehouse.

I don't wait for the others, and storm into the metal building, the fucker's pleads hitting my ears.

"Please, just let me go. I didn't know it was going to harm her, please," he cries, not hearing me come inside.

I see my brother leaning against a desk, flicking a lighter on and off, a sign that he's struggling to control his anger.

He and my wife fight like siblings, and their bond is something I used to be jealous of, but now I cherish it because I know he'll always have her back—not just because she's his Don's wife, his sister-in-law, but because she holds a piece of his cold heart.

"Please, the woman, she fucked me, and said it was just a prank, only a prank," he continues.

I walk over to where he's being held in the middle of the room, my footsteps echoing, getting his attention. His eyes widen when he sees me unbuttoning and removing my jacket. The doors open again as I throw my jacket on the chair, but I ignore the men behind me, keeping my focus on the fucker before me instead.

"So, you allowed your dick to override your mind, is that what you're trying to tell my brother here?" I question as I roll my sleeves up.

He swallows, his throat bobbing. "It-it was just a prank, flavored water…."

I tilt my head. "Is that what she told you?"

He nods vigorously, and Maxim growls, "It was fucking poison in the vile!"

The man's eyes shift, and I smirk and confirm, "But you already knew that didn't you?" His body starts to shake, and I question, "Do you know who you tried to poison?"

Sweat drips from his greasy forehead, and he whispers, "She said she was her sister, that she threatened her."

I laugh. "And you believed her all because she allowed you to fuck her?" I grin sarcastically. "Were you aware that she has chlamydia?" His eyes widen. I continue as I walk over to him, "Are you aware that the woman you tried to kill is pregnant?" His breathing picks up. "Are you aware that she's my wife?" He shakes his head, tears falling. "And not just any wife but a wife to the Italian Don who owns the restaurant where you work?"

"P-please," he begs, but I ignore him and ram my fist into his face.

His head knocks back, a crack echoing in the room, and I hit him again, hard.

Left, right, left, right….

" Fratello , do not rip your stitches," Leonardo growls, and Maxim adds, "Yeah, we don't need your wife on our asses. She's only just started talking to me."

Mikhail cuts in, "She spoke to you once at dinner, and that was only because you brought your kids up. She's still not talking to you."

I hit the guy again, this time in the stomach, once, twice, three times, making him grunt and cough.

Maxim snorts. "It still counts, and it's also how we make up. She loves me again; we all know it."

Swinging my left fist, I hit the fuckers eye socket with such force I knock him out.

Sharp pains fill the left side of my body, but I ignore it, breathing heavily as I rasp, "She never stopped loving you, jackass; you lost her trust, that's the difference." I turn to Leonardo, "Does El know you're here?"

He nods. "She does. She's the one who called me, thought you'd need me, which is a big fucking win in my book after the shit I said to her.”

Hope fills me, that we haven't gone ten steps back, and I nod. "Then you'll most likely get the blame for not stopping me."

He furrows his brows. "Stop you from what?"

I smirk, pushing my white shirt to my side, and he groans, seeing the blood I can already feel dripping.

"Sorry, fratello ," I say unapologetically, and he narrows his eyes at me.

"No, you’re fucking not." Leonardo’s eyes shoot daggers.

Maxim and Mikhail chuckle along with Marco, and I shrug, when the soon-to-be-dead guy groans, and I look his way. His face is covered in blood, but it's not enough. He tried to kill my wife, my baby….

Breathing heavily as fury overtakes me, I grab the gas can near the chair he’s tied to.

"Fuck, it's nice seeing the demon in action; it's like fucking poetry," Maxim whispers as I pour the gas over the fucker, causing him to wake, before panicking at the smell.

"P-please, I'm sorry, please…" he stutters as I hold my right hand out to my brother. He places his lighter in my hand, ignoring the pleading man, and I light it, throwing it on his lap.

He lights up like a fucking bonfire, and I take one step back, watching as he screams, trying to fight against the restraints.

Fucking beautiful….

We all watch as his screams quiet down, and death takes him after a few minutes.

"Mikhail, next week, I want a meeting to discuss your daughter, who we both know survived what I did," I rasp after a few minutes of silence, the rancid stench of burnt flesh surrounding us.

"I'll ensure she's locked in the basement until then," he replies.

Leonardo cuts in, "You'd do that to your own daughter?"

I look at Mikhail, who swallows. "It's something I didn't want to do. I've tried for years to clear up her messes, but this is one…I know we can't." He shakes his head. "She tried to kill her own sister, who is pregnant with my first grandchild, the future heir to the Italian Mafia. Even before she knew about the pregnancy, she had that vile on her…so it was her plan all along."

Maxim speaks up, "How will Aunt Ana take that, though?"

Mikhail clears his throat. "She won't step in. These past few months, her eyes have been opened." He clears his throat again, fidgeting before admitting, "Liliya isn't Anastasia's." My eyes widen in shock, and he winces. "She's Agy's. I got drunk one night after Ana found out her chances of conceiving were slim. Agy took advantage, believing I'd leave my wife. She recorded it and sent it to her own sister, hoping to break us up, and it nearly worked. Ana tried to leave me, but I wouldn't allow it; I locked her up for weeks."

"What the fuck?" my father rasps.

Mikhail shrugs. "When I fought for my wife, even after finding out she was pregnant, Agy didn't want to raise her. Her husband had just been killed. It took a lot, but my wife said she'd adopt Liliya, and over the years, Agy started to become more involved, much to my dismay, but Agy is still her sister, so Ana allowed it."

I cut in, "It's why Agy always sided with Liliya over El?"

He nods. "And when my wife finally got pregnant, she was upset El was a girl. Liliya was already acting up, even as a three-year-old, and my wife struggled to bond with her. She had hoped to give me an heir."

Maxim cuts in, "Fucks sake, she overcompensated and treated El poorly instead, not wanting her to turn out like Liliya."

He nods again, and I sigh. "Does El know?"

He shakes his head. "No, but Liliya does. Agy told her out of spite, and she's used it against my wife several times over the years."

Sighing again, I look at my shirt, wincing at the blood before stating, "Next week, we'll talk. I need to get home and face the music."

He nods, and I turn and leave, allowing my brother and Marco to deal with the body while Ray accompanies me.

"Your wife is going to kill you," he rasps as we climb into the car, and I nod, knowing damn well she will.

If she gets pissed, then it just means she still cares. I can’t be mad about that.