Chapter 17

She stands holding that fucking razor blade for dear life like it’s some kind of a goddamn life line. My immediate concern is her safety. Natalia is gripping the blade so tight, it’s cutting her hand. Blood drips from her arm on one side, and from her hand on the other. I rush into the shower, grab her arm that has the blade, twisting it behind her back as I spin her and slam her into the wall.

“Fucking drop it, Natalia. I swear to fucking God if you don’t, I’ll break your arm.”

Do I want to hurt her that badly? No, I really fucking don’t, but she’ll live with a broken arm. If she cuts too deep or the wrong spot, our girl might end up dead. And I can’t allow that to happen. The sobs that come from her are loud and desperate as the bloody blade falls to the shower floor. Dante comes into the shower on her other side. Turning her around to face me, her face is drenched with tears, I think, since the showerhead was only hitting her side. Once I let go of her arm, she slides to the ground with a thump. Both my brother and I lower ourselves to the floor with her.

I wrap my arms around her, pulling her tight against my chest. He strokes her hair while whispering to her, “It’s okay.” I have no idea what the fuck is happening right now.

“Is this about us fucking you?”

Natalia tilts her head back and gazes at me as she shakes her head. “No.”

This is what I wanted, right? Her crying, broken in front of me. I wanted to be the one to break her. I wanted it, but not like this. The thought that someone other than me hurt her makes me see red.

“Who did this to you? Who made you cry?” I ask as she shivers in my arms.

She’s ours, and no one may hurt her. Any man that does will die. It’s simple. I may spank her, cut off her air supply and make her scream and cry, but no one else gets to do this to Natalia.

“My sister,” she whispers against my skin, “She calls me fat and worthless. I guess I believe her.”

Dante kisses the back of her head, “You’re not fat. You definitely aren’t worthless. Natalia, you’re fucking perfection.”

My brother wants to make everything better for her, take away all the pain. I want information. I want to understand why she cuts her beautiful skin. And I want to kill her fucking trash sister.

“This is why you want to cut your flesh?”

Pulling back from me, her eyelashes flutter lightly as she lifts her gaze to mine. “It’s not a want, it’s a need. I need to cut. It dulls her voice. I can’t explain it, but it lessens the pain.”

I take her face in my hands. “If you need pain, I’ll give it to you without risking your life. There’s an artery in that beautiful arm of yours. You won’t do this again. Give us your pain, every fucking ounce of it. If you still need to cut someone, you’ll cut me.”

Dante grabs her hair and yanks her head back. Pressing his mouth to her neck, he growls, “There’s no way that you believe her, Sunshine. No fucking way a woman as beautiful as you could ever buy into those vile words.”

She whimpers from the sting from him pulling her hair. “You can convince anyone of anything if you tell them the same things repeatedly.”

Natalia isn’t wrong. I witnessed it with my brother Domenic’s wife, Giada. Abuse is damaging and lasting. The ramifications of it don’t disappear when the abuse stops. Did it stop? Or is this ongoing?

I glance at Dante, and he nods as if I said anything. I didn’t, but that’s the connection we have. Silent conversations became our expertise years ago. He gets out of the shower as I shut the water off. After I help her stand, he wraps a fluffy warm towel around her body and lifts her into his arms and carries her into the bedroom.

Once my brother and Natalia are in bed, I climb in on the other side of her. She lies on her back, her eyes wide open but glazed over like she’s not here. She’s somewhere else deep inside her mind. Dante kisses her neck, but she doesn’t respond at all. I need to find out more about what her sister has done to her. It’s obvious that it’s a different family dynamic than the one I have with mine. I know she doesn’t want us to hurt her sister. The only reason she’s here with us right now is to protect her. Yet, I cannot comprehend why. Her sister has been cruel enough to her that she cuts herself. Why the fuck would you protect someone like that? Anybody other than Natalia would’ve simply told us to kill her. It confuses me and intrigues me at the same time.

After she falls asleep, I motion to Dante silently that I want to talk to him. We both get out of bed, leaving her sleeping peacefully, and grab sweatpants and pull them on. I glance back at Natalia quickly. She lies on her back; her lashes flutter slightly as she breathes softly through parted lips. She is so fucking stunning. I shake my head at myself as I walk to the kitchen with my brother behind me. Natalia is fucking with my head. I want to punish her, yet I want to protect her. There’s a strong urge for me to destroy anyone who has ever hurt her, starting with her fucking sister. I shouldn’t care. I just wanted to fuck her. But I do care, far more than I’m willing to admit.

Dante stands staring at me when I call Benji telling him I want fucking everything on the Grant family. Every single piece of information on the sister and her parents. No stone is to be left unturned. I need to know every way she’s been hurt. Once I have that information, people will pay.

“She’s going to be really pissed if you kill Nicole.”

I shrug nonchalantly, like it doesn’t matter because it doesn’t.

“She’ll get over it. If her own fucking sister hurt her enough to make her cut herself, she needs to die. We both know there isn’t another option. Anyone that causes harm to what’s ours is dealt with in the same way. Her family will be no different.”

Dante grabs two glasses from the cabinet and pours us both two fingers of whiskey. He hands me one before leaning against the counter. “Agreed, but you better be prepared for one pissed off woman. She might actually cut you.”

I grin while I imagine our sweet woman losing it on me. That’s exactly what I want from her. Natalia exploding and fighting for herself is exactly what I’m hoping for. I know enough about her family already to know she takes whatever she’s given. She doesn’t stand up for herself, and that pisses me off.

“I fucking hope she does.”

Dante chuckles lightly, “She’s right, you are a psycho.”

I don’t inform my brother that it’s not about wanting her to cause me pain, but about her standing up to fight for herself instead of bottling everything inside. I don’t particularly enjoy pain, but I am not afraid of it either. When I told her I’d rather she hurt me than herself, I was being sincere. She’s different from the women I normally fuck. My normal type is beautiful like she is, but not damaged and not good. She’s so fucking good. Natalia is good to everyone except herself, and it drives me fucking crazy.

He sets his empty glass on the counter. “So what’s the plan?”

“We’ll start with the sister. If we don’t get what we need, we’ll move on to the parents.”

While I’m not planning to kill her parents, things could change depending on what I find out. If we determine they have hurt her, then they will also die. The information we’ve gathered on Natalia isn’t enough. There are more holes than a slice of swiss cheese. If she won’t be forthcoming with the information, I will find it through other means.