19. Dante

19

It's a dangerous game we're playing.

As I sit in the kitchen, listening to Camila's sweet laugh drifting from our shared living room as Elio' works' on her, I know I'm the only one who can see it. Tonight is the night.

As far as we can tell, Renzo has behaved, but Elio and I know he's a loose cannon. We can't relax until Elio has sealed the deal tonight. Once he has, I'm confident she'll be hooked and reeled into a twisted set up between us.

Camila is different from the other girls they've been with.

She's not a cheap, desperate fuck that would do anything for us. Camila is a virgin princess. Untouched, untainted.

Ty told me about Ren's meeting with Dimitry. We've got an into the Nexus if we can get her to agree to be ours—all three of ours, which will be no easy feat, but I sense she wants more every time I speak with her. Our girl is uncertain and innocent because of a lack of experience. Once we show her how good it can be, she'll soon be willingly on her knees, ready to service the three of us.

I shift in my seat, my eyes fixed on Elio and Camila through the kitchen doorway. A chill runs down my spine as I watch Elio's calculated moves, his hand brushing Camila's thigh, his eyes locking on hers with laser focus. He thinks he's playing the game, but I can see right through him.

There's another layer that is going to make the entire plan difficult.

Elio is falling for her. Hard.

It's written all over his face in the way his gaze softens when she laughs and his body leans toward her like a magnet. He thinks he's in control, but Camila has him wrapped around her little finger without realizing it.

And then there's Renzo. My eyes flick to where he lounges on the couch, his dark eyes devouring Camila's every move. He's hooked on her, addicted to the very sight of her. I can practically see the gears turning in his twisted mind, plotting and scheming ways to make her his.

But they're both fools. Blinded by lust and ego, they are too arrogant to see the danger right before them. Camila isn't just another conquest to be won and discarded. She's the key to everything we've been working toward, the linchpin in our plan to stop the Aguilar cartel from moving in on our turf.

And I'll be damned if I let Elio and Renzo's little crush fuck it all up.

"Hey, Dante!" Renzo notices me at the doorway.

I plaster on a false smile and walk in. "Hey, what are you guys up to?"

"Just hanging out," Elio says.

Camila smiles at me. "Hey, Dante."

Fuck. I can see why Elio and Ren are hooked on her, especially when she smiles. However, our plan for all three of us to have her is risky.

"Hey," I reply.

Camila gets up. "I need to use the bathroom."

Elio nods. "Down the hall on your right."

Once she's out of earshot, I lower my voice and glare at the two of them. "What the fuck are you two pussies doing?"

Elio sits straight at that. "What did you just call me?"

"I called you a pussy. You're in here acting like a loved-up idiot. Have you forgotten the plan?"

Renzo pulls a knife out of his jacket pocket and points it at me. "You do realise you're talking to the men that will someday be your bosses, right?"

"I get that you're both into Camila, but we can't lose sight of why we're trying to get close to her. We need intel on the Aguilar carte."

Elio's eyes narrow. "Watch yourself, Dante. You don't call the shots."

I step closer, meeting his glare head-on. "No, but someone has to keep you two in check. You're letting your dicks do the thinking, and it's going to fuck everything up."

Renzo laughs, the sound cold and humorless. "And you think you can do better? Face it, Dante, you want her just as much as we do."

I clench my jaw, fighting the urge to deck him. "This isn't about what I want. It's about the job. And right now, you two are compromising everything we've worked for."

Elio opens his mouth to retort, but the sound of the front door slamming cuts him off. We all freeze, realization dawning on us.

"Fuck," Elio hisses, storming down the hallway. "Camila?"

But she's gone, the apartment empty except for us.

Elio whirls on me, fury etched into every line of his face. "You fucking idiot! She heard everything!"

I hold up my hands. "I didn't know Camila would hear."

"Well, now she knows about the plan. We're fucked," Elio says.

Renzo steps forward, his expression calculating. "Not necessarily. We just have to go about this a different way."

Elio frowns. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, we take a more forceful approach. Camila won't trust us now, so we have to make her talk." His face splits into an evil grin. "And make her sit on all of our dicks."

I don't like the sound of that. "Ren, we can't just-"

But Elio cuts me off with a sharp look. "No, he's right. We must do whatever it takes to get the information we need. And if that means playing hardball with Camila, then so be it."

"What's the plan?" I ask, trying to sound calm and collected, but my voice betrays me. It comes out shaky, betraying my inner turmoil.

Elio turns to me, his expression one of cold calculation. "I'll go after her and drag her back to our apartment with all her stuff. And we'll keep her there as a prisoner to ensure she doesn't report back to her family. We'll tell Dimitry we have a slave; she becomes what we need to join the Nexus, too."

I nod, trying to keep the panic from my face. This isn't how we planned it, but I can't deny that a part of me is excited by the idea of having Camila locked up with the three of us. "Alright then, let's do this."

Elio stands and marches out of the apartment in pursuit of our girl.

I pace the living room, unable to keep still. My hands shake with adrenaline, my heart pounding against my ribs. This wasn't how it was supposed to go down. We were never supposed to take her hostage. But Elio and Renzo have decided, and now there's no going back.

Renzo lounges on the couch, casually flipping his knife and grinning like the psycho he is. The sight of him makes my skin crawl. I know exactly what he's thinking about doing to Camila when we get her back here. The kinds of sick, twisted things he has planned for her innocent body.

"This is gonna be fun, eh Dante?" He chuckles darkly. "Can't wait to get my hands on that fine piece of ass."

I swallow hard, fighting back a wave of nausea. "Yeah," I force out. "Should be interesting."

Interesting. It's a fucking understatement. The truth is, I'm terrified about what Renzo will do to Camila once she's at our mercy. The guy is completely unhinged. A loose cannon with a hair-trigger temper and a taste for violence. And now he has free rein to unleash all of his darkest desires on this poor girl.